Cono Sur Colchagua Chardonnay Sustainable Agriculture 2007, 13% alc., $12.99: Pale to medium straw color, with straightforward apple and pear flavors and aromas accented with a little spice; good weight, balance and cut, but a little less expressive than the regular bottling. Find this wine

Cono Sur Colchagua Viognier Vision 2007, 13.5% alc., $14.99: Good color, with ripe apple, kiwi and a hint of honeysuckle in both flavor and aroma, turning slightly bitter on the finish; medium full bodied, with good cut and concentration, this is, as always, a solid performer. Find this wine

Cono Sur Central Valley Pinot Noir 2007, 13.5% alc., $9.99: Ruby red color; hints of smoke and tar add some interest to the straightforward, varietally correct black cherry flavors and aromas. Just when I’m about to write this off as just another middle weight contender with enough structure for a few years of development, it starts to open with air and reveal a subtle earthiness and a note of cola, gaining some weight, depth and nuance. Here’s a great example of why we always prefer to spend some time with a wine instead of taste through fifteen, twenty or more at a large event and barely get to know any of them. Great QPR with this one. Find this wine

Cono Sur Colchagua Pinot Noir Vision 2006, 85% Santa Elisa Estate (Colchagua) and 15% El Marco II Estate (Casablanca), 14% alc., $14.99: Ruby red, with a tinge of smoke; a little deeper and darker than the regular model, but also showing a note of oak-vanilla-toasted bread that bothers Kim more than this taster. There’s some earth and tar underneath the black cherry character, but the oak seems to mask any subtler characteristics at this point. Medium full bodied, with good depth and structure; give it some air now and enjoy it with some salmon or roast pork loin, or give it some time in the cellar and see if the oak tones down and other things emerge. Either way, it’s still a good buy at $15. Find this wine

Cono Sur Colchagua Merlot Vision 2006, 85% Merlot, 7% Cabernet, 5% Malbec, 2% Syrah, 1% Aspiran Bouchet, 14% alc., $14.99: Purple garnet in color, and a little leaner than the Cameron Hughes Lot 79 2005 Napa Merlot tasted on the same occasion; toasty oak flirts with crossing the line into excess, vying for dominance with the black currant and berry flavors and aromas. Toasty, as with toasted bread straight out of the toaster, with subtle earthy undertones and good structure for three to five years or more of development. Drinks well enough at first, but becomes tedious with a second glass. Find this wine

Cono Sur Central Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, 3% Carmenere, 3% Syrah 12.8% alc., $9.99: Kim called this one correctly when she characterized it as “extracted oak, fermented cherry all spice juice.” There’s obviously some deep, dark fruit here, but it’s ruined by excessive oak and manipulation. Neither of us could finish a glass of this atrocity. Find this wine

Cono Sur Maipo Cabernet Sauvignon Vision 2006, 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Syrah, 4% Malbec, 3% Carmenere, 2% Petit Verdot, 1% Aspiran Bouchet, 14% alc., $14.99: Opaque in color, and pushing it with the oak, but never quite crossing the line for Kim, who is far less tolerant of the wood than this taster. The fruit is like a cross between black currant and black cherry, deep, dark and rich, with good structure and length and a note of chocolate. This is the only one of the reds besides the Pinot Noirs that we could really drink and enjoy throughout, and it should develop and improve with at least a few years in the cellar. Find this wine

Reporting from Day-twah,