Every week, 34th Street purchases, consumes, and reviews select wines from around the world. Employing only the most rigorous of standards, we demand that the wines we sample be unique, balanced and most importantly, alcoholic, in addition to costing less than $10 at the liquor store at 41st and Market. It's not an easy task, but for the college lifestyle, it's a necessity. So read the review. Learn some wine terms. And go up to Market with your friend with the fake i.d. of his older brother, now expired, and drink.
Black Opal Shiraz, 2005 South Eastern Australia $9
Named apparently after a famous Australian gem, the Black Opal Shiraz comes in a chic, black bottle with the company's trademark logo, a rainbow sphere of sorts, adorning the label. It's a calculated look, one that, according to the Black Opal website, "creates an impression of intrigue and sophistication at every occasion." While it's hard to say whether the effect really took hold atop the Ikea coffee table in my room, I did dim the overhead lights and light a candle or two, and for $9, you could do much worse. While most cheap reds are marked with a bitterness and acidity that can turn the college palette quickly to Franzia, this Shiraz went down surprisingly smoothly. Yet what it gains in smoothness it compromises in flavor, as its slightly-too-sweet taste quickly disappears upon swallowing, the wine going down a bit like water (not that that's necessarily a bad thing). And while midway through the bottle my date complained that the wine felt empty and she wasn't getting drunk, the flush on her face told a different story. So does the label: at fourteen percent alcoholic volume, the BOS is doctored up and ready to go. More than worth its price tag, this Shiraz is definitely worth your Thursday night consideration.
