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The Aiolas Red Blend 2019 is a $5.99 Trader Joe's import wine, a DOC designated wine from the  Dão region of Portugal. TJ's does not offer any information concerning this Red blend.This is somewhat unfortunate since the wines of Portugal tend to be unique. they often use indigenous grapes such as Touriga Franca or Tinta Barroca….

The Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot sourced from Rothschild (Lafite) vineyards in the Pauillac AOC inside the Haut-Medoc AOC on the Left Bank or westside of the river in the Bordeaux region of France.The Légende line of Rothschild (Lafite) is their drink-it-now export brand. It features…

The Bartolomiol Ius Naturae DOCG Prosecco 2018, Ius Naturae translaties to Natural Law, is farmed in certified organic Estate vineyards in the DOCG Valdobbiadene district of the Prosecco region of Veneto in northern Italy.This is a vintage Prosecco, from the 2018 vintage, which is a bit different from the usual seemingly available everywhere non-vintage Prosecco….

The La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 is a $6.99 Trader Joe's import Bubbly using two of the three traditional Cava grapes, Xarel-lo and Parellada farmed in the Cava DO of northwest Spain, near Barcelona.La Granja 360 translates to the Farm 360 and is a brand owned by Axial Vino, a Ditch company producing…

The Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 is a vintage, bio-dynamic, Estate grown Sparkling wine from the Penedes district of the Catalonia region of Spain (think Barcelona). While this is a Sparkling wine produced with the traditional method (like Champagne) it is not Cava.Raventos I Blanc is part of a wine family that has…

The Domaine Ste Michelle NV Brut 2020 is a non-vintage Champagne-style Sparkling wine from Chateau Ste Michelle in the Columbia Valley of Washington. This is a value-priced Bubbly, it lists for $13 and I found it for $8.99 on-sale.Even though it is a reasonably priced Sparkling wine it is produced in the same production style…

The Bread and Butter Pinot Noir 2019 is sourced from vineyards in California. Their motto is” Good. Honest. Simple. Do not overthink it.” In keeping it simple they do not go into a great deal of detail about the production of this Pinot Noir.Bread and Butter are one of the WX Brand's families of wines….

The Veuve Monsigny Champagne Rosé is a $19.99 Aldi exclusive, 65% Pinot Noir, 25% Pinot Meunier, and 10% Chardonnay sourced from vineyards across the Champagne region in France. I imagine when a lot of folks see a store brand twenty buck Champagne they figure that there is no way it can be very good. Most…

In this episode, we switch things up & talk spirits! Local spirits! Specifically we chat with Eric McMillan, Brand Ambassador for Wolf Point Distilling in Chicago.We talk about what Wolf Point is & taste through their Jackscrew Vodka, Florence Field Gin, Captain Santa Vapor Infused Moonshine & an extra tasty treat or two as well.So…

The Trader Joe's Platinum Reserve Sonoma Brut NV (2020) is a Trader Joe's $14.99 non-vintage blend of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier sourced from vineyards in Sonoma County AVA in Northern California.The back label says this Bubbly was “produced and bottled by” Rack and Riddle, Healdsburg, California. They are an independent wine company that…

The Mantenere Russian River Chardonnay 2019 is a $6.99 Trader Joe's wine sourced from vineyards inside the Russian River Valley AVA which is in turn inside the Sonoma County AVA of Northern California.The trademark for Mantenere is own by Francis Coppola Wines and Mantenere Cellars is located in Geyserville, California. Which also happens to be…

The Farmhouse California Red 2019 is a blend of Zinfandel, Mourvèdre, Carignane, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Grenache sourced from vineyards in California. Farmhouse California is one of Cline Family Cellars' line of wine.Cline is a family-owned winery founded in 1981 that specializes in sustainably farmed vineyards and wine. One of the things I admire about…

The Gerard Bertrand Crémant de Limoux Thomas Jefferson Rosé 2017 is a blend of 65% Chardonnay, 20% Chenin Blanc, and 15% Pinot Noir sourced from the Cremant de Limoux AOC section of the Languedoc in southeast France.Limoux is the birthplace of Bubbly/Sparkling wine the monks from the local Abby started making wine with bubbles in…