The Edna Valley Vineyard Central Coast Chardonnay 2016 is sourced from vineyards in both the Edna Valley AVA (inside San Luis Obispo County, about 1/2 between L.A and S.F.) and the Monterey County AVA, both inside the Central Coast AVA. Edna Valley Vineyards were one of the pioneers of the Edna Valley AVA (founded in 1982)…
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The Luzada Albarino 2017 is a $7.99 Trader Joe’s import exclusive (though it seems to available in other countries), it is estate grown and bottled in the Val do Saines DO (a DO in Spain is the same as an AVA in California, a specific boundary) located in Rias Baixas in the northwest corner of Spain,…
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The MoonX Black Pinot Noir 2016 is a $6.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive produced for TJ’s by a well-respected family owned vineyards and winery located in Lodi, California that has been in business since 1924. As a Trader Joe’s exclusive wine there isn’t a great deal of information available concerning the making of the wine and that…
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The Santa Julia Malbec Bonarda Tintillo 2017 is 50% Malbec and 50% Bonarda, the Malbec came from vineyards in the Uco Valley and the Bonarda came from estate vineyards near the town of Santa Rosa in the Mendoza region of Argentina. The Bonarda grape originated in France, it never became particularly popular there, but does quite…
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The El Terrano Rosado 2017 is a Garnacha Rose’ sold exclusively by Whole Foods ($9.99) sourced from 4 vineyards located near the town of Longares in the Carinena DO in the Aragon province of northeast Spain. This area has been producing wine since Roman times and Aragon is thought to be where the Garnacha grape originated….
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The Maison Les Alexandrins Syrah 2016 is 92% Syrah and 8% Viognier sourced mainly from vineyards in the Northern Rhone region of France, but also from vineyards in the Loire and in the Southern Rhone Valley. Viognier is a White grape and is the only White grape that is regularly added to Red wine, I asked…
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The Coppola Rosso & Bianco Pinot Grigio 2016 is 86% Pinot Grigio and 14% Chardonnay, the Chardonnay is sourced from the Central Coast AVA and while Coppola does not say where the Pinot Grigio for 2016 is farmed, it has in the past and the 2017 vintage been taken from Monterey in the Central Coast AVA…
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The Trestoria Rose’ 2017 is a $6.99 ALDI exclusive sourced from vineyards in California, that’s it, the grape or grapes used and any info that narrows down where the grapes came from are sadly omitted. The back label says this Rose’ was produced by a company from Modesto, Ca. that seems to be related to E…
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The Dark Waves Red Blend 2016 is a $5.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive produced for them by the Central Coast Wine Warehouse from grapes farmed in the Central Coast AVA of California. The Central Coast Wine Warehouse has been making custom wine for Trader Joe’s for years, they are part of a family owned group of wine…
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The Confidencial Reserva Tinto 2014 is a blend of more than 10 grape varietals farmed in Casa Santos Lima estate vineyards in the Lisboa growing region north and west of Lisbon in Portugal. What is confidencial about this wine is the grapes used. Many of the grapes grown in Portugal are indigenous to the region and…
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The Wishing Tree Unoaked Chardonnay 2016 is sourced from higher elevation vineyards in the Adelaide District (Barossa, Clare Valley, McLaren Vale, and Adelaide Hills) of South Australia. The South Australia growing region provides over 50% of the wine produced in Australia and the vineyards are located not far from the coastline. The reason high elevation vineyards…
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Monterey Meritage Lot 168 2014 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive sourced from grapes grown in the Monterey County AVA which is located north of Paso Robles and up to the Monterey Bay inside the Central Coast AVA of California. A Meritage wine is a Red blend that uses the grapes approved…
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The Beau Rocher Brut Rose’ is a non-vintage French Sparkling wine, the label says Mousseux which along with Cremant is French for any Bubbly not produced in Champagne. I choose this bottle because it was the cheapest French Bubbly, $5.99, in the store, it may well have the cheapest French wine of any sort on the…
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The Wente Southern Hills Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 5% Petite Sirah, 5% Malbec and 2% Tempranillo grown in Wente’s estate, sustainably farmed vineyards in the southern section of the Livermore Valley AVA, east of the San Fransisco Bay (south and west of Lodi) in the Central Coast AVA of California….
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The Tuatea Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017 is a $6.99 Trader Joe’s import exclusive, 100% Sauvignon Blanc sourced from vineyards in the Marlborough Region in the northeast corner of the South Island in New Zealand. Tuatea is Māori for “crest of a wave“, if you are attempting to learn the Māori language one random word at a…
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The Ferrari-Carano Siena 2014 is blend of mainly Sangiovese along with smaller portions of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Sirah sourced from sustainably farmed vineyards in the Alexander Valley AVA, the Dry Creek AVA, and the Russian River AVA all inside the Sonoma County AVA in Northern California. The Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery have been family…
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The Noble Vines 446 Chardonnay 2016 is 100% Chardonnay sourced from sustainable farmed Delicato Family Vineyards estate property in the San Bernabe AVA inside the Monterey County AVA below the Monterey Bay in the Central Coast AVA of California. Noble Vines is one of Delicato Family Vineyards (family owned since the 1920s with vineyards in Lodi,…
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The Mionetto Prosecco Brut DOC is made rom the Glera grape sourced from vineyards near the town of Valdobbiadene inside the Treviso appellation in the Veneto region (near Venice) of Italy. Mionetto has been producing wine since 1887 and all Prosecco is made from one grape varietal, the Glera grape. There are 2 main growing areas in…
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The La Vieille Ferme Rosé – 2017 is a blend of Cinsault, Grenache, and Syrah made by Famille Perrin and sourced from vineyards in the Ventoux district in the southeastern area of the Southern Rhone Valley of France. This is a sub-$10 Rose’ (I found it for $6.99) and it does not seem to be a…
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The VINTJS Organic Mendocino Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 is an $8.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive produced for them by DnA Vineyards, located in Mendocino County, California. DnA Vineyards is Dennis Patton and Andrea Silverstein, with Dennis having been a fixture in the Mendocino wine industry for over 40 years. DnA makes some of my favorite Trader Joe’s exclusive…
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The La Coqueluche Rose’ 2017 is a $5.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive designated an IGP or a Vin de Pays D’Oc wine sourced from vineyards in the Languedoc region of southeastern France. French wine regions have governing bodies that issue strict rules and regulations concerning the farming of the grapes and the production of the wine, IGP…
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The Rancho Zabaco Sonoma Heritage Vines Dry Creek Zinfandel 2014 is 94% Zinfandel and 6% Petite Sirah sourced from vineyards in the Dry Creek Valley AVA inside the Sonoma County AVA of Northern California. Many of you may remember Rancho Zabaco for their Dancing Bull line of wines (mainly Zinfandel), E & J Gallo split Rancho…
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The 90+ Cellars Mendocino Chardonnay Lot 122 2016 is a negociant wine sourced from vineyards in the Mendocino AVA, located north of Sonoma and west of Napa in Northern California. A negociant (a French term) buys surplus wine from mainstream wineries and sells these wines at a discount. Because the wines are exactly the same as…
Read MoreThe Columbia River Landing Red 2014 is a $6.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive, produced for them by Bronco Wines (of 2 Buck Chuck fame) from grapes grown in the Columbia Valley AVA of Washington. The grapes used in this Red blend are not specified, but Columbia Valley is well-known for Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah, but they also…
Read MoreThe Shaw Organic Rose’ 2017 is a $3.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive, the Shaw in the name is Charles Shaw better known as 2 Buck Chuck. The Shaw Rose’ is sourced from certified organic vineyards, they mention Cottonwood Creek vineyards, so this isn’t 2 Buck Chuck, it’s 4 Buck Chuck. If an organic $3.99 wine isn’t…
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