On Tue, 10 Apr 2007 15:52:13 -0400, "Zeppo" >
wrote:

>OK, the most expensive was fun. How about the least expensive wine you've
>really enjoyed?
>
>I tried a sale item at a wine shop I deal with and found a wine that really
>surprised me. A 2004 Bodegas Borsao Vina Borgia Campo de Borja, at $4 a
>bottle was pretty impressive. Wish I had bought more than 6 bottles. The
>2004 is long gone.
>
>
>Jon
>
Gasp... it was a "filler" from a batch of wines I bought via an
internet "clearance house". I had picked a few wines to buy, and as
it costs zero in extra freight to go from my 10 selected wines to a
dozen, a few "curiosity" bottles were added.

I989 Chateau Leamon (Geelong, Victoria, Australia) Cabernet Sauvignon.
From a region more renowned for Riesling and Pinot's, was pretty sure
it would have seen better days, but as a "filler" at $5AUD, what could
I lose? What exacerbated my doubt was when the foil was removed from
the bottle, a wet cork greeted me. Oh well I thought, that kills that
wine. Removed cork gradually, decantered, and sipped....wow. Full of
soft elegant dark berry fruits, silky tanins and a rich mouthfeel that
lingered for minutes. I can only assume the leakage was initiated
from the shipping, thus had not been totally tainted as longer term
leakage surely would have done to the wine. Huge surprise given the
circumstances surrounding this wine.

A week later, "curiosity" bottle #2 was opened. 1998 Blass. That was
it. Obviously a product of the famous Wolf Blass, but no description
on the bottle, not even varietal info (rare for an aussie wine). I
can only assume it was an export wine. I opened with a few friends
"blind". It was a Shiraz- Cab blend iirc, and whlist it did not
"sing" to us, it more than held it's own amongst better credentialled
wines. I could not resist, asking others to "price" the wine. $15 -
35 was the range..... it cost me $3AUD !!

Chock full of confidence with my new found supply channel, I ordered a
case of old chardonnay, Danbury Estate, 1999. It cost $24 for the
case plus freight. 1st bottle was opened a week or so later. It
looked like an aged chard, perhaps a tad too dark for my liking,
typically aged chard nose, and first mouthful was...well, ok at best,
maybe it would improve with some "air" time. Within minutes, and I
mean 1 or 2 minutes, the wine had collapsed, and tasted feral. The
nose turned into a rancid petroleum product and we sat about laughing
at how bad it was. Brown is not a good colour for wine either...:>)

So, in the world of wine, I guess we can always expect the unexpected.
That's why it is so much fun!!

hooroo....