Glasses Up! Oracle Pinotage

For me shopping for wine is like going shoe shopping. I like to wander the aisles. I like to pick up bottles and look at them. I like to look at cute labels and imagine where I would drink it. I like to think about what I would pair them with. I get excited when I see a cute label and a low price tag. For me wine shopping is what shoe shopping was in my 20’s, especially now that most of my shoes are sensible and boring.

It’s hard to see but the label says, “from the stars, the sun, the rain, the wind, the soil” I kinda love that.

So this evening when I went into my favorite wine store, Passion Vines, I turned down all the offers for help so that I could peruse until I found a bottle that was a perfect fit. One that wasn’t too pricey but had a cute label and that I hoped would be just as delicious.

And while I love all the offers to help me find the perfect bottle (like the time I went in and said, “cheap, red, and good for under $10 and got the perfect bottle), a lot of times I like finding a great wine on my own.

There really is a joy in discovering something you like on your own. So that when you share it with friends you can sound all fancy and say, “Yes, I picked that Pinotage out all on my own, isn’t is wonderful”. Though I don’t really say those things. If you were to come to my house I would grab a glass and say, “you have to try this, it’s wonderful and under $10, I might drink the whole bottle”. That’s the kind of wine girl I am.

But back to that Pinotage. While I was perusing Passion Vines, I came across a rack of South African Wines. I bet you are all like, I didn’t know they made wine in South Africa, but they do and it’s some really good stuff. And I happened to see a label that said Pinotage and I thought I’ve never had a Pinotage. And while I’ve had wines that have had Pinotage grapes in them, I had never had a Pinotage. And that just seemed wrong and when I saw that the price, I figured I couldn’t go wrong with Oracle Pinotage.

And boy was I right, because the wine was better than I anticipated. When I opened the bottle the first thing I noticed was the smell. This wine hits your nose fast and my husband could smell the aroma across the room. It smelled juicy, like a plum with hints of vanilla and spice.

I poured myself a glass and was so happy with how smooth and decadent this wine tasted. Had I not purchased the bottle I would have thought it costed much more. The wine had a complex taste to it. Is it smokey? Is it juicy? I don’t care just pour me another glass.

My husband prefers his wine to taste like juice and he said that this one had a bit of the grape juice taste that he loves but tasted much more adult than the sweet wine he prefers.

Oracle Pinotage is definitely the type of wine that has you staring at the bottom of your glass wondering where it went and can you have some more. And I definitely know I will be heading back to Passion Vines for some more.