Instant Gratification Collection

We’ve curated the Instant Gratification Collection with red wines that are ready to pop open and enjoy now. 90% of wine purchased is enjoyed within the month. These are crowd-pleasing, versatile wines that are a pleasure to drink! Pour yourself a glass after work or bring a bottle the next time you visit a restaurant. You won’t find these wines on retail shelves!

Instant Gratification Collection (wine so darn good, you’ll want to enjoy immediately) includes 1 bottle each of the following wines:

Omen Cabernet Sauvignon California A blend of fruits, florals and spices fills the nose and palate, reminiscent of blackberry jam, black cherry, dried violets, chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg, toasted wood and black tea. Plush tannins coat the mouth while balanced acidity adds lift and lightness to the midpalate. It’s an overall engaging, full-bodied red wine.

Frog’s Leap ‘Flycatcher’ Red Blend California VIN93 The 2023 Flycatcher is a blend of 36% Zinfandel, 15% Cinsault, 13% Petite Sirah, 13% Carignane, 10% Tempranillo, 9% Merlot and 4% Syrah. Crushed red berry fruit, blood orange, cinnamon and crushed flowers soar from the glass. This vibrant, exuberant red offers tons of forward fruit buffered by brisk acids that add notable energy. Eminently quaffable, the 2023 also has plenty of complexity to satisfy more intellectually curious wine lovers.

Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande Douro DOC Ruby color of good intensity. Intense and complex aroma, with notes of red fruits, black fruits, spices, pepper and slight curry, balsamic, cedar and tobacco box, with discreet and well-integrated wood. In the mouth it has good volume, balanced acidity, good quality tannins that are well present, ripe black fruit, with a long and very elegant finish.

Domaine de Cristia Ventoux ‘Haut-Zone’ AC Rouge WSI94 From 35 year old vines, 60% Grenache and 40% Syrah, aged 15 months in cement vats. Average age of the vines is 35 years. Floral aromas and fresh red berry fruit emerge on the nose. On the palate, remarkable intensity and richness, quite characteristic of the Ventoux area, smooth texture with no jammy-ness. A long delicate finish seals the experience. This is a stunning wine that checks all the boxes at an affordable price.

Domaine Gassier Costieres de Nimes Nostre Pais Red JD91-93 Surprisingly, the 2018 Costières de Nîmes Nostre Païs had not been bottled at the time of this tasting. Nevertheless, it continues to show beautifully, with a perfumed, medium to full-bodied, finesse-driven, elegant style that I would happily drink today. Giving up lots of both red and black fruits, garrigue, candied violets, and ground pepper, it has both richness and elegance and certainly competes with any number of base Châteauneuf du Papes that sell for quite a bit more.

Bedrock Wine Co. Evangelho Vineyard Red Blend VIN95 The 2023 Evangelho Heritage Wine is fabulous. Intensely floral and lifted, the 2023 is so finessed. Bright red berry fruit, blood orange, mint, spice and lavender all grace the palate. It’s another wine in this vintage that is especially vibrant and red-toned. The late harvest, a month later than usual, brought out the best from these own- rooted vines planted in the 1890s. This opens beautifully on the mid-palate and through to the finish.