The Septima Malbec 2014 is 100% Malbec sourced from Bodega Septima (founded 1999) vineyards in the Lujan de Cuyo district and particularly near the town of Agrelo in the Mendoza region of Argentina. The Lujan de Cuyo district is located in western Mendoza, high up in the foothills of the Andes and Agrelo is one…
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The Artesa Carneros Chardonnay 2013 is sourced 80% from Artesa estate vineyards and 20% purchased from neighboring vineyards. The Carneros AVA is half in Sonoma and half in Napa (Artesa is located in southern Carneros on the Napa side) and is a cool climate growing region that specializes in Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Artesa (means…
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The Chateau La Paws Cabernet Sauvignon is a non-vintage wine (grapes come from more than on vintage) sourced from vineyards in more than one California grape growing AVA. Chateau La Paws is made by, or more accurately vinted and bottled by Rosenberg Cellars, who are owned by Diego Chateau & Estate Wines. Who in turn…
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The Smoking Loon Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 is sourced from vineyards located in the Central Valley of Chile. Smoking Loon is one of Don Sebastiani and Sons ( a family owned wine company since 1909) wine labels. Smoking Loon is a negociant wine company, meaning that they have no vineyards or winery, they purchase grapes (mostly…
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The Onx Moon Dark Red Blend (the label reads MOONX) is a non-vintage $6.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. It is a blend of Zinfandel, Merlot and Syrah sourced from more than one California grape growing AVA and made for Trader Joe’s by one of the larger wineries in Lodi, California. The Onx Moon is one of…
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The Bouchaine Estate Vineyard Carneros Chardonnay 2013 is a $12.99 Trader Joe’s special buy. Bouchaine Vineyards is the oldest continuously operating winery in Carneros (the Carneros AVA is partly in Sonoma and partly in Napa, Bouchaine is on the Napa side) and this bottling sells on their website for $30 and can be found on…
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The Rabbit Ridge Allure de Robles 2013 is a Rhone inspired wine blend, available for $6.99 at Trader Joe’s, but it does not seem to be an exclusive wine, sourced from vineyards in Paso Robles inside the Central Coast AVA of California. Northern Rhone wines are Syrah based wines and Southern Rhone Reds are Syrah…
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The Skeleton Malbec 2014 is sourced from grapes grown in the Mendoza region of Argentina. Mendoza is located in the middle section of Argentina on the eastern side of the Andes and Mendoza produces the majority of Argentinean wine. Skeleton Malbec is part of Skeleton Wine Co. who also import a Austrian Red and White…
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The Woop Woop Shiraz 2013 is sourced mainly from vineyards in McLaren Vale and Wrattonbully (inside the Limestone Coast), both in the South Australia wine region. Back when we started the CWF website, back when it wasn’t so easy to find a real good wine in the $10 range, Woop Woop was one of our…
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The Rockmill Brewery Witbier is a Belgian style spiced Wheat Ale produced by a small brewery in Lancaster, Ohio (near Columbus, Ohio). One of the owners Matthew Barbee, converted the family farm into a brewery. He had the water tested to see which style of brewing matched its characteristics and found the Lancaster, Ohio water…
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The Pampa Estate Malbec 2014 is a $4.99 ALDI import exclusive sourced from vineyards in the Mendoza region of Argentina. Mendoza is the largest grape producing region in Argentina and is located on the eastern side of the Andes Mountains (the wine regions of Chile are on the western side). ALDI doesn’t give much information…
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The Marvelous Red 2013 (yes, this is a Red wine, but Marvelous Wines are named by color, the White Blend is Marvelous Yellow and the Bordeaux Blend is Marvelous Blue) is a blend of 42% Syrah, 41% Cinsault, 7% Mourvedre, 6% Grenache and 4% Viognier sourced from carefully chosen vineyards in the Western Cape Region…
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The Cycles Gladiator Chardonnay 2013 is sourced from vineyards in the Arroyo Seco AVA (inside the Monterey AVA) and the Livermore Valley AVA (near the San Francisco Bay), both inside the Central Coast AVA of California. The Cycles Gladiator brand was started in 2005 by Hahn Family Wines, Hahn recently decided to overhaul their wine…
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The Sargent Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 is a $6.99 ALDI’s wine sourced from vineyards in the Central Coast AVA of California. The Sargent Canyon Cabernet is Estate grown and sustainably farmed. So who or what is Sargent Canyon? A quick check with Google shows that Sargent Canyon is a trademark owned by Scheid Vineyards, vineyards and winery…
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The Smoke Daddy Smokin’ Mary Bloody Mary Mix is the pre-mixed, bottled version of the Bloody Mary’s from Chicago’s (and Wicker Park’s) Smoke Daddy, a BBQ institution since 1994. Smoke Daddy hasn’t been around as long as some of Chicago’s south and west side old school BBQ joints and is more upscale (now, it wasn’t…
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The Jargon Pinot Noir 2012 is 76% Pinot Noir, 18% Syrah and 6% Petite Sirah, the Syrah is sourced from the Monterey AVA, the Pinot and the Petite Sirah are sourced from more than one California grape growing AVA. Jargon is one of Trinchero Family Estates (founded in 1974) line of wines, other brands include…
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The Avant Garde Blanc 2012 is 100% Sauvignon Blanc sourced from AOC vineyards in Bordeaux, France. There three White grapes permitted in Bordeaux, Sauvignon Blanc is the main grape along with Semillion and Muscadelle ( a local grape not related to the sweet Moscato grape). The Avant Garde is a young wine (no oak conditioning…
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The Roccafiore Prova D’Autore 2012 is 40% Sagrantino, 30% Montepulciano and 30% Sangiovese sourced from Cantina Roccafiore certified organic vineyards near the town of Todi in the Umbria region of Italy. Sagrantino is a grape that is indigenous to Umbria. Umbria is a landlocked area south of Tuscany and about 90 miles north of Rome….
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The La Granja 360 Cava Brut is a $6.99 Trader Joe’s import exclusive, 70% Xarel-lo and 30% Parellada (these, along with Macabeo, are the grapes traditionally used in Cava) sourced from vineyards in the Penedes district of Catalonia (near Barcelona) in northeast Spain. The La Granja 360 Cava is made by Parxet, who have produced…
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The Emma Pearl Pinot Noir 2013 is a $3.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive sourced from vineyards in more than one California grape growing AVA. The Emma Pearl Pinot is 85% Pinot Noir and 15% Petite Sirah. Now, California Pinot Noir does not usually sell for under 4 bucks, there is a story to tell here. Treasury…
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The Green Fin Grenache Rose’ 2013 is 76% Grenache, 20% mixed Red grapes and 4% mixed White grapes sourced from certified organic (the Green Fin is Vegan friendly, too) vineyards located in more than one California grape growing AVA. Green Fin is a $4.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive, produced by Bronco Wines (the makers of Two…
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The 2013 Oak Ridge Winery OZV Red Blend is Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah and Merlot sourced from vineyards in more than one California grape growing AVA. Oak Ridge Winery is the oldest winery in the Lodi AVA, started as part of a Co-op (a wine Co-op is where a group of vineyard owners band…
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The 2013 Woodwork Pinot Noir is sourced from vineyards in coastal regions of the Central Coast AVA of California. Woodwork is one of The Wine Bars brands of wine that include Snap Dragon, Ensemble, Uppercut and many others. The key to the Woodwork line of wines is their use of oak staves, instead of oak…
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The 2012 Lander Jenkins Chardonnay is one of Rutherford Wine Companies brands of wine, they also produce Rutherford Ranch, Predator and Round Hill wines, among others. The grapes are sourced the Central Coast, the Central Valley and the North Coast, as well as Rutherford Wine Company estate vineyards (and long-term grower vineyards) in Napa, Monterey…
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The 2012 Maryhill Sauvignon Blanc is sourced from 2 vineyards in the Columbia Valley AVA of Washington. Maryhill Winery is family owned and was founded in 1999, by 2009 they were named Washington Winery of the Year and in 2015 were named Pacific Northwest Winery of the year. This Sauv Blanc was fermented and aged…
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