Weekly Winedown #33 The Whale Caller

Welcome to the Weekly Winedown. Each week I selflessly drink wine for you and offer a review.
Please don’t expect anything professional, I consume a lot of wine but I’m no pro.

The only real ‘rule’ I’m putting in place is that the wine is to be under £8 a bottle. #keepitclassy

Hello Friday you sexy thing you!
We have been waiting, what took you so long?

I always look forward to the weekend. Someone once asked me why when I don’t work and every day is like a weekend.

OH HOW I LAUGHED.

Take my children and come tell me how weekend like it is!

I like the weekend because there are more grown ups around to talk to and I get to share the daytime parenting.

However, I don’t recall the last time I had weekend plans though, unlike Rory who is off at some fancy ball as we speak.
I know right?!

He’s off larging it at some event in his tux leaving poor old me here, all alone to fend for myself.

Meh, I’ll get over it.

I’ve been a bit poorly this week which must be the ONLY explanation for my wine selection.

Let us say Goeienaand to The Whale Caller, a shiraz cabernet sauvignon from South African.
Interesting fact, the guy who delivered my shiraz today was called Shiraz!

This particular wine comes in at £4.99 a bottle. Not on sale, just always £4.99…

I’m no wine snob, OK just a bit, but I tend to rule out a bottle of wine if it doesn’t have a punt (indentation) in the bottom of the bottle. It doesn’t REALLY make a difference, it’s pretty much pomp but this bottle doesn’t have one and I found myself coming out in a cold sweat when I realised.
I’m such a punt.

The Label

All the right colours – red, white and black. The font is unoffensive which is always a bonus. There is a picture of a whale and a man with a horn, who I assume is the Whale Caller. I don’t know why the Whale Caller is important enough to have wine named after him. Maybe he’s a pretty big deal in South Africa?

The Blurb

“As you savour this rich red wine, with dark berry fruits and hints of chocolate and spice, you may just catch the strains of the Whale Caller’s horn, blowing on the southern wind.”

Well, if this wine makes me start hearing horns I’m going to question whether it is wine. I like a drink, I’m not adverse to getting a little tipsy on occassion. Heck I’m all for getting mortalled if the situation requires BUT I don’t want to start hearing things, nevermins whale horns on the breeze.

That aside, I’m quite liking the ‘hints of chocolate and spice’.

This wine could be amazing.
It could also not.

It’s not.

The aroma is a bit plasticine like. It smells synthetic and not the most pleasant.

The blurb offers promise but promises can be broken. There is a distinct lack of spice. It’s a very flat taste, almost watered down.

As a wine lover, I’m not a fan. As a Yorkshire woman, I’ll drink it as not to waste the money.

Name – The Whale Caller
Price – £4.99
Colour – A nice dark red
Smell – A little plastic/synthetic
Taste – NOT spicey. Kind of flat and watered down.
Goes well with – Nothing, absolutely nothing.
Overall score – 1/5