The Game Day Rosé 2020 is a $6.99 ALDI wine. ALDI typically owns the trademark to their brand names, but that is not the case here. The producer’s name, Cattlemen Ridge Wine, is owned by a large family-owned winery headquartered in Greenfield in Monterey, California.
The Greenfield winery makes several wines for ALDI and Trader Joe’s and is adept at producing quality, value-priced wine. While the Game Day Rosé 2020 is an ALDI wine, for now, it may end up in retail shops at a later date.
Neither ALDI nor Cattlemen Ridge give any details concerning this Rosé; the location of the vineyards is simply “California,” and there is no mention of the grape or grapes used to make this wine.
I always say wine with a story tastes better; knowing something interesting about the production gets you more involved. I understand that ALDI saves money by not spending money on anything other than the wine. I get they pass the savings on to us wine drinkers, but would it kill them to mention which grapes are used?
Drinking the Game Day Rosé 2020 for the first time is basically doing a blind tasting. Pay your $6.99 and take a chance. This is also part of the fun of drinking ALDI wines; if you had good luck with previous ALDI wines, you probably would not be disappointed.
A seven-buck ALDI is not the same as a $7 wine at a retail wine shop. ALDI contracts directly with a wine producer for these wines; they do not need all the wine and spirits distributor services, and they need some warehousing and transportation. And as I was complaining about above, they offer no production information or do any advertising.
If you have ever seen a pie chart showing what makes up the cost of a bottle of wine, you will see the grapes and winemaking are a small part. The cost ALDI is eliminating is significant. There is no direct comparison that would work in every instance, but a $6.99 ALDI is of equal quality to a typical $9 to $11 retail wine.
The producers would make ALDI, Trader Joe’s, and Costco wines also make retail wine shop wines. There are no store-brand vineyards and retail wine shop vineyards; they are all the same. The main difference is the Game Day Rosé 2020 was one of 3 Rosé wines my ALDI had on display, and my local wine retailer has a Rosé section 15 yards long and 4 shelves high. What you can in the price you lose in selection.
Game Day Rosé 2020 Tasting Notes
The color is dark for a Rosé, more strawberry jello than pink. The nose is ripe red berries and candy spice, a little Fuji apple, lemon, and cherry, a collection of interesting scents. The Game Day Rosé 2020 is a very balanced Rosé, sleek and nuanced, with good flavor.
It tastes like cherry hard candy (not sweet), a mix of peach and pear, a mineral water sensation, ripe apple, soft but edgy spice, and nectarine. The acidity is excellent; this Rosé has excellent length and balance.
The Summary
- The Game Day Rosé 2020 is a very drinkable Rosé and very well-priced at $6.99.
- I was irritated about how they gave so little information concerning this wine until I tasted it, then all was forgiven.
