Wine club to the rescue.

Thanks to The Winehound in Santa Barbara for actually getting me out of Santa Barbara wine for a minute. As much as I love the SBC, it's nice to refresh the palate with a little bit of the outside world. I joined their "Premier Cru" wine club which each month nets me two hand-selected $20 bottles of wine from around the world. To me it sounds like a great solution to those wine ruts that we all fall victim to from time to time.

My first May wine was a 2010 Farnese Casale Vecchio Montepulciano d'Abruzzo. This is a step up from Farnese's entry-level Montepulciano- from the Casale Vecchio terroir in the Chieti province in Abruzzo and aged in barrique for about 6 months. It is imported by Empson. It featured rich color with tons of blueberry & plum notes and hints of cracked pepper and mint. Forward bright fruit on the palate with plush tannin and a full juicy finish. Good value and perfect for what it is- a full juicy Italian red with forward fruit and just enough rusticity (Rating- I like!). A great pasta wine that can work with a heavier meat dish like a braised short rib.

The second May wine was a Napa white- 2010 Round Pond Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley. This comes from Round Pond's estate vineyards in Rutherford. There's no oak, malo or lees stirring on this wine. A very pale color with aromas of melon, grapefruit, wheat straw and river stone. Round on the palate with medium acid and a touch of leesy spice and a slight heat/astringency. The finish featured a lingering fruit tartness on the front palate. I liked this more as the days wore on- special kudos for it drinking so well on day 4 (rating- I like!). Better with seafood than spicy Asian fare.

Not a wine club wine, but a nice little 2005 Mosel Riesling I had laying around- the 2005 Bert Simon Serriger Herrenberg Riesling Auslese, Mosel Saar Ruwer. This comes from the monopole Serriger Herrenberg vineyard on severe slopes with red and blue slate soils. The importer is Rudi Wiest Selections. Bright and full gold in color, this has notes of nectarine, guava, orange and lime with subtle mineral and botanicals. Weighty on the palate with the sweet fruit coming across very bright and profound. A little short of perfect on acid, making the sweetness slightly aggressive, but one can really ponder on the profoundness of the fruit. Medium length finish (+/- $30) (rating- I like+!)