Picked up this one at the Wine Store too, this bottle more for its branding and shelf placement than anything else. I mean, friggin’ Banshee? And with a chicken-slash-dragon icon on the label? This thing practically sold itself. (Yes, true readers, I know that’s exactly the opposite of the “blind taste test” premise that drew me into this South Park wine store in the first place. I too recognize the irony.)

And so here you have it – the 2014 Mordecai, a wine that has enough of Syrah and Zinfandel that you know right away I liked it. It’s got peppery spices, some peat moss, and definitely some Cabernet Sauvignon to it as well. I should have grabbed a couple more of these but it’ll catch my eye next time I visit Wine Store.

2014 Mordecai Proprietary Red Blend, Banshee Wines, Nice, California, USA.

Some research shows the winery aimed at Cotes du Rhones with this spicy red. I’m afraid my experience in that region is virtually nonexistent, so I’ll just explain that it’s less fruity than the Conundrum and less solid than a straight-up California Cab. It is aged for 15 months in French oak barrels, and is a combination of 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Syrah (voila!), 22% Zinfandel (voila again!), 6% Merlot, 4% Carignane, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Cinsault from AVAs that include Napa, Dry Creek, Russian River, Alexander Valley, Sonoma, and more. Quite a heritage, right?

As I look for the URL to the Banshee website (you can click here), I see they called this “Our homage to Wes Anderson’s The Royal Tenenbaums” and, though I have seen the movie (and recall enjoying it), I do not recall any character by the Mordecai name. I will recall this fun wine instead!