A year ago we celebrated our 10th anniversary in Scottsdale, AZ and became acquainted with the fruits of Arizona's Sonoita wine region, located in the southeast corner of the state. We were particularly smitten with the 2005 Dos Cabezas El Norte, a rich blend of Mourvedre, Grenache, Syrah & Petite Sirah. At our first taste, in the snazzy Kazimierz Wine Bar, Gary's tasting notes  start with "great nose, vanilla" and end with "find this wine!"  And we did find it, thanks to the winery's intrepid owner, who tapped his brother-in-law to drive up to Scottsdale and deposit a case at our hotel.

Last week we celebrated our 11th anniversary and for old times sake cracked open another bottle of the El Norte. We're relieved to report that a year later the thrill is not gone.  In fact, the 2005 has aged beautifully and is in the prime of life.  The color was deeper; the nose headier; the flavor richer; the fruit sweeter. Gary noted a warm caramel flavor—something that eluded us the first time. We giddily poured a full glass and toasted winemaker Todd Bostock for this killer red and his unheard of customer service in bringing these Easterners a case of his fantastic Western wine.

We can't recommend the 2005 El Norte enough and suggest you order it from the Dos Cabezas web site, since its distribution outside the winery is quite limited.