Table of Contents
The Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 is $12.99 at Costco and between $15 and $20 elsewhere. The wine is grown and produced by Giguire Estates which is part of Matchbook wines in the Dunnigan Hills AVA.
The Dunnigan Hills AVA is located in California’s Central Valley, it is north of Lodi, northeast of Napa, and east of the Lake County AVA. Matchbook planted its first vineyard in 1981 and had been known as R H Phillips. They sold Toasted Head and Houge wines, R H Phillips was sold off and Matchbook started in 2004.
The Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 is a blend of 54% Petit Sirah, 27% Petite Verdot, and 19% Teroldego a grape from northern Italy. Matchbook farms several vineyards, all located near each other. The grapes for this wine came from Estate vineyards.
Matchbook did not specify how long the Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 was aged in oak barrels, but they did offer information concerning the cooperages (barrel-makers) used. One cooperage used oak trees that were a hybrid of American and European oak. The second used American oak, and the third made specialty barrels using only oak trees that were over 125 years old.
The Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 is an estate-grown, produced, and bottled Red blend that you can buy for a very reasonable price of $12.99. This should be a bold, powerful wine. A red blend of Petit Sirah and Petite Verdot is becoming common, but the addition of Teroldego should set this wine apart. The alcohol content is 14.3%.
The Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 Tasting Notes
The color is an inky garnet red almost more black than red if the light is right. The nose is ripe black cherry, spice, black pepper, mocha, blackberry, and a savory note. The Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 s smooth on the palate, this wine is sleek upfront with weight on the mid-palate.
This Red Blend tastes like ripe, rich black cherry, a slap of spice, licorice, vanilla, and tart cranberry. The mid-palate offers a mocha latte, orange peel, blackberry, and dusty tannins.
The tannins are fine they are part of the flavor profile in a good way. The acidity is in the pocket, it gives this wine length and structure.
The Summary
- The Pillars of Hercules Red Blend 2020 is a lot of Red wine for $12.99.
- It is very well made and has a unique grape selection. It is well-balanced for a bold wine, everything is in control.
- This is a wine for sipping and for food, a steak or a roast would go well.
