2 winners: 01 marquis phillips and 99 stonegate

[newsguy]

took two bottles of merlot to thanksgiving dinner at a friend's and both were a hit with the turkey. popped the 01 marquis phillips ($13.99) first. dark purplish/ruby color and a nose that seemed reminiscent of shiraz to me: blueberries and vanilla. but as soon as this went into the mouth its silky feel told me this sure wasn't shiraz. blueberries and vanilla still dominated, with some other dark fruits and even a bit of mocha. good finish and absolutely ready to drink now. a bargain at the price. (RP gave it a 90).

next we opened the 99 stonegate napa valley ($15.99). deep ruby color. taste of cherries and chocolate really came on as the wine got more air time. nice mouthfeel and quite a bit of tannins. wasn't able to decant, but pulled cork about two hours before serving. we drank most of the bottle and i poured a half glass and let that sit for an hour as we tried to walk off our food. came back and the wine had really opened up. nose and tastes of cherries and chocolate were much more pronounced, other fruits added to the mix. mouthfeel was more complex and finish lenthened. very nice wine that will improve for another 2 years or so. if drinking now, i'd say decant for at least an hour. (WE rated it a 91). will buy more of both.