Price: $15

Producer: Dr. Konstantin Frank

Origin: Finger Lakes region, New York

Type of wine: Dry red wine: 54% Merlot, 26% C. Franc and 20% C. Sauvignon

Try it with: Grilled meats/Portobello mushrooms; Spaghetti Bolognese

Date Reviewed: May 2004

This is a lean and somewhat racy version of the ubiquitous Bordeaux blend. Traditional scents of black currant are shadowed by an oddly pleasant vegetal character. In the mouth, this wine is crisp and light-bodied (for a red wine). The flavor is of red berries with a slightly tannic finish. A very good wine to taste the 'lighter side' these normally more powerful grapes.