Table Mountain Vineyard has the audacity to turn Valiant grape--normally used only for simple blueish jams--into a semi-sweet red wine…of 2007 vintage, no less.

Experts will tell you this varietal is totally, unavoidably and without question unsuitable for bottling. Indeed, some might even add that it's barely tolerable when jellied and spread on toast.

Presumably Patrick Zimmerer, the Wyoming winemaker responsible for this breach of common sense, sweetens the juice just a little before allowing fermentation to take place.

He bills Cowgirl Red as a hearty, jammy wine. And it introduces itself with power--aromas of dry packed dirt and sweet grasses. The flavor is, indeed, hearty to the point of earthiness, jammy enough to have a Welch's label slapped on the bottle.

But that's not to say it's unpleasant, just unusual.

Overall, the taste is reminiscent of the unfashionable (in wine circles) Concord grape. It's simple and rustic, with a clove or licorice bite on the finish and strong hints of skin.

The Cowgirl Red name is therefore appropriate. This is a pioneer wine, not one for the connoisseur or delicate drinker. It is a throwback to the days before Napa Valley--or Mogen David, for that matter--when settlers produced their own bottles from local grapes.