For the record, I was one of two chief judges at Pacific Rim. The other was Wilfred Wong, cellarmaster for Beverages & More. Our task largely was to help recruit judges, assemble the panels (a huge success; not one brawl erupted as each three-person panel debated the merits of more than 200 wines) and just generally try to keep the proceedings moving smoothly.

We didn't judge the wines ourselves, but we got to drift through the back room where the wines were uncorked and poured, far out of sight of the deliberating judges.

This gave me an opportunity to taste an unofficial class I call the "cartoon wines." In a break from traditional wine marketing, their names tend to be wacky and cute (Little Boomey, Dancing Coyote, Monkey Bay), their label art relies heavily on comic-strip customs and their prices usually are low.

They represent both a refreshingly relaxed if juvenile way to attract new customers and a certain measure of desperation among winemakers who have a whole lot of wine on their hands.

At any rate, after tasting around 30 of these wines, these were my favorites:

* Devil's Lair Vineyard 2003 "Fifth Leg" Western Australia Red Wine ($10): Don't know a thing about the scuba-diving dog on the label, but the wine is an amazing buy. It's a ripe, herbal, solid and complex blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, shiraz and cabernet franc. The build is medium-bodied, the fruit flavors suggest cherries and plums, and the spice is due to the American and French oak barrels in which the wine was aged. The wine got a bronze medal at Pacific Rim.

* Little Boomey 2004 South Australia Shiraz Cabernet ($8): A brand of Trinchero Family Estates in the Napa Valley, Little Boomey is a series of wines originating in the Murray Valley northeast of Adelaide. It must be great territory for shiraz and cabernet sauvignon, as this aggressively youthful and herbal release indicates. It's so different and strong in its rich flavors, it won't be to everyone's taste, but at that price why not gamble? Bronze medal.

* Little Boomey 2004 South Australia Shiraz ($8): Lighter and fresher than the shiraz cabernet, this Little Boomey seizes shiraz's characteristic raspberry and blueberry highlights but in a somewhat muted tone that asks that the drinker pay attention. Bronze.

* Dancing Coyote 2003 Clarksburg Petite Sirah ($12): Some terrific petite sirah is coming out of Clarksburg in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, and this is no exception. It's as dark, floral, lush and long as others, but with a softness that makes it unusually approachable for a young petite sirah. Silver medal.

* Rex Goliath 2003 Central Coast Shiraz ($9): Rex Goliath, whose likeness dominates this series of wines by Hahn Estates in Monterey County, was a purported 47-pound rooster who was a star attraction in the Texas Circus at the turn of the century. All that suggests a big This gave me an opportunity to taste an unofficial class I call the "cartoon wines." In a break from traditional wine marketing, their names tend to be wacky and cute (Little Boomey, Dancing Coyote, Monkey Bay), their label art relies heavily on comic-strip customs and their prices usually are low.

* Kelly's Revenge 2004 South Eastern Australia Chardonnay ($8): Delicate for a chardonnay from South Eastern Australia, but not spineless. The wine's tropical fruitiness is clean and refreshing, with an alluring mineral element. Silver medal.

* Monkey Bay 2004 Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc ($10): It's wiry, but all the grapefruit, grass and razory acidity of zippy New Zealand sauvignon blancs is right here in this most refreshing take on the varietal. It didn't medal at Pacific Rim, but after just three months in the American market it's the top-selling New Zealand sauvignon blanc in the country.

About the writer:
Reach The Bee's Mike Dunne at (916) 321-1143 or mdunne@sacbee.com.
Back columns: www.sacbee.com/dunne.