Cheap Wine That Doesn't Suck: Cycles Gladiator

"Drink the wine that was banned in Alabama!" That's not quite the marketing slogan of the folks at Cycles Gladiator, but you gotta admit that having your product proscribed by a bunch of crimson-necked troglodytes in Doofusville, USA, is at least one good reason to go out and buy a...

By Bill Citara

January 18, 2010

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"Drink the wine that was banned in Alabama!"

That's not quite the marketing slogan of the folks at Cycles Gladiator, but you gotta admit that having your product proscribed by a bunch of crimson-necked troglodytes in Doofusville, USA, is at least one good reason to go out and buy a bottle.

A better reason, though, is that Cycles wines really don't suck. Of course, they do bear a label that reprints an 1895 French bicycle advertisement with a nude woman showing a modest glimpse of T&A, which presumably would cause lust-raged Alabamans to violate every farm animal and keyhole within reach. But what's really important is what's in the bottle, not what's on it.

And what's in the 2007 Cycles Cabernet Sauvignon is some pretty good wine for an even better $10 price. It has a lot more going on than just simple, sweet, and fruity. There are aromas of ripe blackberries and cassis with subtle notes of olives and black pepper. There are intensely berryish flavors with hints of pepper and spice, firmed up with just enough tannins to keep all those bold flavors in line.

As for that label, I'd say these folks in Doofusville really need to get ahold of themselves. . . Then again, they probably already have.

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