Folie à Deux Ménage à Trois Midnight Dark Red Blend 2013: Inky color; plum, black fruit, spice nose;
blackberry, dark plum, dark cherry, black olive, some mocha and a flurry of other ripe fruit flavors and oak on the palate; smooth drinker, voluptuous body. In spite of the double entendre name, this is a four-way; merlot brings soft plushness, cab some sophistication and power, petite sirah inky color, and petit verdot more intense darkness, tannin and intense flavor. French name on winery and wine, made with French grape varieties, but this is all-California affair, the second label, value bottling by Napa-based Folie à Deux, an esteemed maker. This is pure California juicy, ripe-fruit bomb style where “more is more”—the winery happily prides itself on this approach. Millions applaud and pour, while others demure and prefer more subtlety and finesse; different strokes for different folks. Kim Kardashian or Gwyneth Paltrow float your boat? This is clear value winner, and even if you prefer a refined Washington State pinot noir or elegant French blend over California in-you-face big-ass bigness, keep a few bottles around for your friends who go for this sort of thing. $11