Canyon Oaks - Merlot Rose @ (1 cork) -- GIRLS' NIGHT PART 2

Retails: $4.99 (Total Wine)

To recap, we had a Girls' night at my abode to sample a variety of moderately priced bottles. The panelists? Pineapple, Sunshine, Mrs. Almighty, and S. Breezy (Fo Sheezey) . Here's our 2nd selection, chosen by yours truly.

This. Wine. Was. Horrible. Yuck.

<---Sunshine's clearly not enthused

To quote Mrs. Almighty: "It tastes too alcohol-y...like astringent." We all gave it 1's and 2's and one of us gave it a zero. (WAH WAAAAAAH). Don't even bother with this one it's entirely terrible.

The only reason I saved it is to use it for cooking. Yes, among my list of uses for awful wine is for cooking. If a recipe calls for wine, you can often use a wine that wasn't palatable for drinking. Although a flavorful wine is preferable, the wine flavor will suffice in recipes that don't require a generous amount (i.e. pasta sauce). So, instead of flushing the bottle down the drain, go ahead and save it in your fridge for use in cooking.

Speaking of cooking, Total Wine now has a small section devoted to wine pairings. They will even supply you with the recipe for free! My one critique is there were no pairings for junk food...what wines go well with doritos? Discuss...