Cultivate Your Wine Intrest

Cultivate, that’s a pretty simple name for a wine, but behind that name lays pure dynamite. The dynamite is not only with wines of Cultivate, but it is what they do with the money derived for their sale.
Ali and Charles Banks have been producing fine wines for decades and have owned several of Napa Valley’s top wineries. Now, they are involved with the Cultivate brand, a series of wines sourced from some of the finest vineyards of the world and presented with catchy labels. While we usually do not enjoy glitzy labels, the thought behind them is laudable. Ten cents of every dollar made from sales, total sales, not just the profits, go to, as they put it “fund opportunity and hope across the globe.” Those high and charitable motifs are fine if the wines thy sell are of quality, and they most definitely are. Since its launching in 2011, Ali and Charles Banks have given over $400,000 to charities in 45 communities in the United States alone.

Cultivate 2011 The Gambler Malbec ($14.99) The juice for this wine is 90% Merlot with 10% Bonarda blended in for additional balance, originated in the prime Malbec producing district in the world, Mendoza Province of Argentina The deep violet color alone tells you that you are in for something exceptional; and you will not be disappointed. The aromas of blackberry, plum, black cherries and chocolate. Cherries, plums, cinnamon, and a hint of coffee are the dominant flavors along with the added complexity provided by a hint of oak. Here is another red wine that can accompany all of the red meat dishes as well as many of the Italian or Spanish dishes. The Cultivate 2011 The Gambler Malbec is an interesting sidestep from the traditional red wines and one we feel, can expand your wine appreciation vista.

Cultivate 2011 Copa Cabana Cabernet Savignon-Carmenere ($12.99). just to clear things up , this wine nor its label have anything to do with the “Copa Cabana” of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The juices for this wine originated in the famed Central Valley of Chile, a place noted for its red wine grapes. Taking on the “big boys” of the wine world with an inexpensive cab is a very dangerous thing. There is no wine in the world that engenders more comments, opinions and criticism than a Cabernet Savignon. This one stands up to all of that criticism one can throw at it and comes up smelling like a rose. The aroma is alive with ripe summer berries, cranberries, with dark chocolate and spice and vanilla in the background. These fruits carry over to the flavor and then on to the finish where they last for a very long time. It is the final proof that price alone does not determine quality and quality need not command a high price.

Cultivate 2011 Dream Walking Chardonnay ($17.99). The Cultivate vintners did not have to stray to far for the grapes for this wine as they found them very close to their home base in California What they made from these grapes is a comfortable wine that combines all of the elements of a great Chardonnay into a mellow, soft, flavorful, and easy to drink beverage. The aroma is heavy with the scents of pears, apples, and vanilla with a hint of roasted nuts in the background. The flavor is bright, fruity, and crisp accenting green apples and pears. The first sip is a total surprise; the wine appears to be sweet. This wine is so full of the natural fruit flavor of the grape that it gives the impression of extreme sweetness. The heavy, full body of the wine helps to amplify the effect of sweetness but the wine is totally dry . The finish ends in a blast of long lasting fruit flavors. With all of this going for it, the Cultivate 2011 Dream Walking Chardonnay is also a very interesting wine that gives a new twist to the traditional California chardonnay.