Wine tasting in the Midwest Sep 07

This post captures some of the wine I've had in an ongoing trip to the midwest (Cincinnati, Chicago and W Lafayette). These will be quick notes, so I can get them all down. My ratings are in [brackets].

1. Lynn bought a bunch of wines before I got to Cincin (why hasn't this name caught on?) and they were all inexpensive Aussie reds. Lindemans Shiraz 2006 (?) was simple, a bit dilute but drinkable [83 (WS87)]. Rosemount 2005 Diamond Shiraz had some complexity and more intensity [88 (WS87)]. The Four Emus Shiraz or Cab from Western Australia was chilean with spicy fruit and opened up quite nicely [89] after an hour; this should be a bargain under $8 most places.
   
2. We went to Jungle Jim's in Cincy and they had a very good wine selection. The Marquis Philips 2005 Shiraz $14 was fruity, spicy, and peppery and was a bit hit w/ Lynn [89 to me]; this is one of my favorites. The Vitiano 2005 Falesco $9 was lighter than I remember with med red berry, cherry and balanced acidity with a hint of rock [87] The Thorn-Clarke 2005 Barossa Cuvee $12 was fruity and solid but not complex [87, (WS90)].
   
3. I found a Montes Alpha 2002 Syrah $16 at Party time in N Kentucky but was too tired to really try it. Sigh.
4. A Boony Doon 2003 Cigare Volant (like a GSM but actually an MSG) $26 from the Chicago Trader Joes that stayed open until 10 PM, was earthy and spicy but just wasn't that good [84].
   
5. In Chicago at several restaurants, including the still wonderful Cafe Ba-ba-reeba, I had some delightful Spanish and Portugese wines. So I bought more of these when I was leaving Chicago before visiting friends at Purdue.
   
6. At Binny's off Grand in Chicago, they recommended the Casal de tonda 2005 Vinho tinto "Grilos" for $12. Smooth, fruity with sweet spice, a dash of olive, in a rich long body [90]. Nice stuff. I also found 3 more bottles of the Neyers 2005 Old Lake Syrah $27, which blew me away (just the last glass) a bit back. So I snatched them all. It started out with thick fruit, spice, and smoke with many layers [91] but after it opened after 2 hours (we had gone out to eat) it had lost complexity [90]. The next day the last glass was thick, fruity verging on sweet in a nice way [90].
   
7.