Klein Constantia, Estate Wine, Vin de Constance, 2000 (South Africa) - This is an exciting and rare opportunity to taste a bit of history.  About a year ago I had read in one of my wine books about this famous sweet wine - Vin de Constance - which in the time of Napolean was hugely popular among the elite and was considered the preeminent wine of the entire Southern Hemisphere.  However, despite the fame it had vanished for nearly a century.  Phylloxera and fungus had completely destroyed the original vineyard.  But in the 1980's a family bought a big part of the original land, got samples of the same vine which used to grow there, dug up the original recipe for this wine, and started to make it again.  Well done.  But then the problem is finding it.  Not only did a review of dozens of liquor stores in Boston over the last year turn up nothing but I have read on the web that it's even hard to find in Europe.  My luck changed when I happened across the Eno wine store in Providence, Rhode Island, on one of my weekday vacation day trips from work.  There were two small bottles, each a whopping $50.  I bought one to try and when I got home both Nancy and I had something.  We conserved it and about a week later I brought it into work for our wine tasting.  So with that long story said, how was it?  I'd say fantastic.  Granted you have to like sweet wine but here's the deal... It's not only sweet but pungeant with a long finish.  It's dense and rich.  Alot like an ice wine but it's not.  I'd in fact call it midway between the honey sweet of a Sauternes and the exotic tropical sweet of a Royal Tokaji.  Excellent.  Something to be sipped and savored and when you throw in knowledge of the history - also cherished.  10 out of 10.

Domaine de Barroubio, Muscat Sec, 2006 (France) - This is the only time I've seen a dry version of muscat.  Relatively inexpensive I wasn't expecting much - and that's what I got.  We opened it with the Vin de Constance sample reviewed separately because we wanted to compare a sweet and dry Muscat Blanc sample.  Well, this was utterly weak and boring compared to the outstanding sweet sample.  Furthermore I'd call this dry white bitter, and even though the bottle claimed 14% alcohol it even seemed weak to me.  Not undrinkable, but certainly not something I'd seek out to repeat.  5 out of 10 for low average (leaning toward 4 actually).

Bangin Red, 2005 (Napa Valley, California) - I had a nice long talk with a wine store owner and at the end I asked him to recommend a bold red for $20 or less.  This was his choice.  Now personally, looking at the label I probably would have passed on it.  Also it's far from a pure varietal, it's a blend of 6 red grapes and bottled by a winery I've never heard of - Crescendo Hills - but the constant spring of new wineries is part of what our discussion was about.  Often the famous winemakers from one place will come across a great sample of grapes, or leftover unused grapes from a famous name or place, and then will use them to make these oddly named blends.  Must have been the case.  Anyway, the good news with this one is it is indeed big and bold and tasty like the store owner suggested.  I'd in fact call it kind of fresh and minty.  Oddly too the cork when I pulled it was absolutely encrusted with wine grit yet I found no lose grit actually in the bottle all the way to the bottom so I'm wondering if they deliberately encrusted it before corking as a sort of image trick.  Well, I greatly enjoyed the sample despite it's oddities.  I still have to say though I'd only call it upper average for 6 out of 10.