Two Disappointing Wines....

Opened a bottle of 2004 Chateau La Fleur Bibian ($15) the other day. It's a Listrac-Medoc "Cuvee de Coeur" Grand Vin de Bordeaux, and it's nothing. Sharp-edged and with insufficient fruit, it's a disappointment.

At the other end of the ambition scale was a bottle of Rosemount Shiraz, an 05 on sale at BevMo for five bucks - I see why. I loved Rosemount's Shirazes when they first came to the US a few years ago -- all the fun and fruit and

smiles of California Merlots back in the 80s when Merlot first became a popular drink.

Of course, we know what happened to Merlot -- popularity meant everybody jumped on the bandwagon, slapped together bottles of disappointment, grew Merlot grapes where they weren't supposed to grow, and ruined an enjoyable wine.

Guess that's happening to the Australian Shirazes -- once fun, now stupid; once with light, bright fruits, now bland. Dammit. Volume eventually kills, doesn't it?

Wonder if Yellowtail has crashed to the ground by now? It sure is grinding out oceans of their reds....