INSIDER'S PICK: 2011 RASA VINEYARDS/PB WINES SYRAH/CABERNET SAUVIGNON COLUMBIA VALLEY $19.99

​This week we are going off our usual white wine selection kick for the warm weather in order to show off an exciting value in a big burly West Coast red. Rasa is a highly regarded boutique house in Washington, founded nearly a decade ago by the brilliant Naravane brothers that both exited very successful technology careers to pursue their passions in the wine industry. While many endeavors like this peak and falter, their wines have been sought after since the start, showcasing the unique vineyard character of their many small production wines. The PB label was constructed as a 'value line' of more affordable wines (for them, anyway), but after some of the contracts for their fruit sources ended they decided to stop making this particular label. So they are having a winery-endorsed blowout of the last cases (barely more than 600 cases total produced, so there can't be THAT many left); it isn't often that the winery encourages the retailer to sell their wines for $12 less than what they initially sold them for, but we're here to help with great deals like this. 
From the first pour the wine is the essence of a Washington red, almost completely opaque in the glass and brimming with deep black fruits and hints of sweet vanilla from the oak. For many the nose alone will be worth the price of admission. On the palate the texture is equally rich but isn't an oozing fruit monster either, showing good structure and acidity, lots of cocoa notes at first that build to more of the rich red fruits from the nose showing up as the wine opens up. For the regular $30+ the winery asks for the wine, it's a solid deal; for under $20 it's a screamer.

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