THE CHALK REPORT

FROM THE WIRES... Some bottles don’t need reinventing—they just need the right moment. Graham’s Six Grapes Reserve Port (SRP $29/750ml) is both timeless and entirely of-the-moment—a wine that moves effortlessly from heritage to after-hours indulgence.   For too long, Port has been confined to ceremony and the end of the meal. Today, a new generation of drinkers and bartenders are rediscovering how vibrant, versatile, and undeniably social this category can be. Six Grapes lea

by Andrew Chalk I found this in my Texas cellar and decided to quaff it. Wow! What an impressive wine. Lots of complex interwoven fruit but, most impressively, a grippy texture on the palate. Described expansively as Bordeaux style on the back label this is 47% Tempranillo, 47% Merlot, and 6% Tannat. Nothing about the oak regimen. Rancho Loma Vineyards (RLV) has gone, a casualty of the perils of making wine in Texas. It certainly wasn't an inability to make good wine. I have