FoodBanter.com - TN: CalCab and Rioja

Friday in Georgia we went to dinner with my parents, my brother's
family, and a couple of kids who were friends of my nieces. They chose
the kids' favorite, PF Changs. I steeled myself, but actually thought
some dishes were very good- especially the chili-garlic green beans. I
also quite enjoyed the chicken in lettuce wraps, the Mongolian beef,
and the chicken in black bean sauce. I was less fond of the chicken in
a sweet Sichuan sauce and the noodle dishes (dan-dan chicken and a
veggie chow fun). Only dish that was really inedible was a shrimp in a
sweeter sauce. Good for a chain, if you avoid the dishes with sweet
sauces.

The list was frankly a mess. Not the usual segmentation, other than
one bottle of Champagne the (many- at least 40) choices were all
between $35 & $45 (mostly wines that retail for $8-15). I ordered a
glass of the 2005 Franciscan Cabernet Sauvignon. Ick! Is there another
Franciscan Cabernet besides the Oakville, one that's cheaper? I've
generally liked the Oakville Estate, but this flat out sucked. Sickly
sweet, vanilla and sawdust, flabby red currant fruit. C-/D

Flew home today, picked up the hound, Betsy rummaged through fridge
and freezer, ending up with a chorizo/tomato/onion sauce for pasta. I
opened the 1991 Muga Rioja Reserva. OK, this probably should have been
drunk 3-5 years ago, but this was quite tasty. Bright acidity, red
berry fruit, freshly grated nutmeg and cloves. Oxidative notes appear
fairly shortly, but blend with the red fruit, tobacco, and spices at
first. Eventually some of this goes into vinegar crock, but I enjoy
the first hour of this wine quite a bit. B+

Grade disclaimer: I'm a very easy grader, basically A is an excellent
wine, B a good wine, C mediocre. Anything below C means I wouldn't
drink at a party where it was only choice. Furthermore, I offer no
promises of objectivity, accuracy, and certainly not of consistency