2005 PKNT Carmenére

The 2005 PKNT carmenére from Chile's Central Valley is tasty. I picked up a bottle at Randall's Wine and Spirits in St. Louis, MO for around $7. A sip of this wine begins in the same way that it ends — with a controlled explosion of pepper and fruit. Don't hold this bottle around for too long after you open it, though. I found that the tannins were a bit harsh upon finishing off this bottle 24 hours later.

I have to say that I had my doubts about this bottle but I bought it because I had recently had some Chilean carmenére that I thought was pretty darn good. At $7 I figured that this bottle was worth the risk.

I say risk because this is a cheesy looking bottle of wine. It has a big red picante pepper on the front and below that a hot pink label identifying the wine. On the pink label is a sticker signifying that this wine won a gold medal from the San Antonio Express News in 2006.

The back label proclaims that "PKNT (Picante) is THE new wine from Chile made from 100% carmenere grapes." This winemaker is clearly excited about its wine and rightfully so.

The Wine Thrift doesn't worry about pairing food and wine. So I don't have any recommendations about "what this wine would go well with." Frankly, I think wine is best drunk on its own, from the bottle.

I give 2005 PKNT carmenére a Wine Thrift rating of 82. My scoring system weights quality and price equally. That is to say, a wine can earn 50 possible quality points and 50 possible price points.

Miscellaneous facts. Alcohol 13.5% by volume. Imported by Classic Wines of California, Ceres, CA. Produced and bottled for Terraustral S.A. Randall's Wine and Spirits is located at 1910 S. Jefferson Ave. in St. Louis. Right near I-44.

I wouldn't keep this bottle in my cellar for more than a year or two.