10 replies

TN: 2005 Henry's Drive Pillar Box Red

calicabMember
Heard so much about this $8 bottle, had to go out and pick a few up...

Splash decanted 40 minutes prior to tasting. Nose of blackberry, blueberry, plum and a little rubbing alcohol. Otherwise a definite nose of a serious Fruit bomb. Fruit actually tamed a bit after further aeration.

Smooth mouthfeel, more of same fruit, with more plum. Surprisingly long finish for a bottle of this price range. balanced but definitely firm tannins, just a little hot - but no more than would be expected from a 15% alcohol wine.

Unquestionably great QPR, at & 7.88 a bottle...
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    • Original Post
    spenserMember
    Decent Aussie value wine, but I'm not sure what the fuss is all about. I'm not finding the "mocha," or "saddle leather," that I've read about. This is a typical value Aussie: grapey, overconcentrated, and a bit tart.

    I don't feel ripped off for $9, but I have no intention of buying this again.

    This earns a grade of B, I guess.
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    thefrenchesMember
    I'm with Spenser - I have no clue what the fuss is about. Here are my tasting notes from Cellar Tracker:

    There is a lot of fever around this wine, so I was looking forward to trying it. Color is black violet - incredibly dark, like a black rose with purple edges. Nose is a ripe fruit bomb with light alcohol and some white chocolate. Flavors of ripe fruit, pie crust, fairly strong alcohol, and lightly cooked red meat (this one was interesting). Finish is rather harsh to me, with some kerosene/rubbing alcohol finish, quite hot. For the price, it is not bad, but I have found better.
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    calicabMember
    I think the point you are all missing is that it isn't bad, and it's $7.50

    No one is saying that it is a knock your socks off wine, but there is no disputing it's QPR. If someone poured you a glass of the pillar Box and told you it was a $25 shiraz, you would say "Not bad...Nothing to write home about, but not bad."

    When that same bottle is $7.50, that basically defines a QPR wine.
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    spenserMember
    Well, I see your point, but I can buy mediocre wines for $7.50 all day long. I still don't see that this is particularly special. I have a simple test to see if the QPR of a wine is noteworthy: am I inclined to buy another bottle? In the case of this wine, the answer is a decided "no," which makes the QPR average, at best. IMHO.

    If you have found this wine to be worth your while, I think that's great. There is too little pleasure to be had in this world, and if you've found a small bit here, I'm happy for you Smile
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    calicabMember
    Tried another bottle tonight, and this time I got slightly spoiled welch's grape juice.

    This time around it was WAY too jammy for anyone other than my 4 year old nephew.

    Probably depends in the pairing with this one, not anything to drink on it own, that's for damn sure.
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    tbirdMember
    quote:
    Originally posted by CaliCab:
    Heard so much about this $8 bottle, had to go out and pick a few up...

    Splash decanted 40 minutes prior to tasting. Nose of blackberry, blueberry, plum and a little rubbing alcohol. Otherwise a definite nose of a serious Fruit bomb. Fruit actually tamed a bit after further aeration.

    Smooth mouthfeel, more of same fruit, with more plum. Surprisingly long finish for a bottle of this price range. balanced but definitely firm tannins, just a little hot - but no more than would be expected from a 15% alcohol wine.

    Unquestionably great QPR, at & 7.88 a bottle...


    cool, waiting on a case of these, looking forward to burning thru them. $8.25 per. Smile
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    calicabMember
    Let me step back a notch or two...I have to say that as I make my way thru my 3rd, and then 4th bottle, my initial impression is coming out to be a little over-eager...

    I think that I was initially impressed with it as an $8 wine, but the more I have, the less I like it, quite honestly...A whole hell of a lot of fruit, and not much else...

    I guess still a pretty good QPR at $8, but don't expect to find your next go-to bottle
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    spenserMember
    quote:
    Originally posted by CaliCab:
    Let me step back a notch or two...I have to say that as I make my way thru my 3rd, and then 4th bottle, my initial impression is coming out to be a little over-eager...

    I think that I was initially impressed with it as an $8 wine, but the more I have, the less I like it, quite honestly...A whole hell of a lot of fruit, and not much else...

    I guess still a pretty good QPR at $8, but don't expect to find your next go-to bottle


    This has been happening a lot to me lately. I love a bottle of wine and buy a case, and pretty much discover that my first impressions were rather inflated.
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