The Benedetto Chianti DOCG 2015 is an ALDI $4.99 import exclusive. Benedetto translates to “blessed” in Italian and this Chianti is Sangiovese with maybe a little Canaiolo blended in from grapes grown in the Chianti region of Tuscany in Italy. If you are not familiar with Italian wine a DOC is approximately the same as…
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The Barefoot Pinot Grigio (with maybe some Muscat of Alexandria and Viognier blended in) is sourced from vineyards from more than one state, the label says American wine. Barefoot wines have been around in form or another since 1965 but really took off after E and J Gallo purchased the company in 2005. These are…
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The Barefoot Merlot is a non-vintage wine sourced from vineyards in various parts of California. Barefoot is one of the value priced brands from E & J Gallo (the largest family owned winery in the US). This is not one of those wines that has a great back story. This is mass-produced, well-priced wine, in…
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The Harken Barrel Fermented Chardonnay 2015 is sourced from grapes taken from vineyards in the Arroyo Seco AVA – inside the Monterey AVA, which is in turn inside the Central Coast AVA. Got that? It is located in a valley off of Monterey Bay in a climate dominated by cool Pacific Ocean breezes. One thing…
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The Windy City Wine Festival is coming to Grant Park on September 9 and 10… here is a link for more information and tickets: WINDY CITY WINE FESTIVAL It’s an outdoor end-of-the-summer celebration and what I love about it isn’t necessarily the wine (but the wine is important). First, the site is ideal. The event wraps…
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The Broken Clouds Chardonnay 2014 is an $8.99 ALDI exclusive sourced from vineyards in the Sonoma Coast AVA north of San Francisco. Normally when checking the internet for information about an ALDI wine there is virtually nothing to be found, maybe a bottle shot and a vague sentence. But with the Broken Cloud wine, ALDI has vineyard photos…
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The Diseño Old Vine Malbec 2014 is a collaboration by 2 Wineries (both unnamed) in the Uco Valley and the Lujan de Cuyo Valley (both high-altitude growing areas) in the Mendoza region of Argentina. Diseño is one of Constellation Brands family of wines, they include Kim Crawford, Mark West, Mouton Cadet, Rex Goliath, Robert Mondavi, Ravenswood and many others….
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The Brancott Estate Marlborough Pinot Noir 2013 is sourced mainly from 2 Estate vineyards, the Fairhall and Kaituna vineyards (here is a wine where Estate on the label actually means something), along with grapes from the Awatere Estates, all located in the Marlborough growing region on the northern tip of the South Island of New Zealand. This…
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The DeLoach California Chardonnay 2014 is sourced from vineyards in the delta region of California. Which include Clarksburg and Lodi, they a warm weather growing region, but they are in line with the San Francisco Bay and receive cooling winds in the morning and evening. DeLoach is one of the labels for the Boisset Collection, a family owned business that has properties…
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The Angeline Vineyards Pinot Noir 2015 is sourced from multiple AVA’s in California, but mainly from the Central Coast and the Northern Coast. The Angeline line of wines is the everyday value brand for family owned (since 1990) Martin Ray Wines and Courtney Benham Wines (he is the owner). The 2015 vintage showed the effects of…
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The Robert Mondavi Heritage Red Bland 2013 is a blend of 64% Syrah, 31% Merlot, 3% Zinfandel, 1% Thompson Seedless, and 1% Petite Sirah sourced from 82% Monterey County, 13% Paso Robles, 3% Valley South, and 2% Santa Barbara County, all of these inside the larger Central Coast AVA in California. Most table grapes (the ones you…
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The Firefly Ridge The Red Flash 2014 is a blend of Petite Sirah, Merlot, and Zinfandel sourced from vineyards in more than one California grape growing AVA. Firefly Ridge is a label produced by The Wine Group whose wines include, Benzinger, Concannon, Cupcake, Fisheye, Franzia, and MD 20/20, along with several others. This brand isn’t listed…
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The Cono Sur Reserva Especial Pinot Noir 2014 is 100% Pinot Noir sourced from 2 estate vineyards in the San Antonio Valley region of Chile. San Antonio Valley is the newest growing region in Chile, the vineyards are located on the coast near the Pacific Ocean. The ocean winds provide a cool climate, rainfall is sparse…
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The Los Andicos Malbec 2015 is a $6.99 ALDI import exclusive sourced from vineyards in the Mendoza Province of Argentina. Mendoza produces most of the wine coming out of Argentina, it includes some of the highest altitude vineyards in the world. Because of the lofty altitudes, the vines receive hours of intense sunlight and the higher elevations keep most…
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The Sterling Vintner’s Central Coast Chardonnay 2014 is sourced from multiple vineyards in the Central Coast AVA of California. The Central Coast AVA is large, it includes 6 Counties, 27 sub-AVA’s and over 90,000 acres of planted grape vines. The Sterling Vintner’s Chardonnay underwent malolactic fermentation and was at least partially aged in oak barrels. Malolactic changes…
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The VINTJS Mendocino County Carignane 2013 is a Trader Joe’s exclusive (I found it for $4.99, but it seems to have sold for $8.99 a few months ago). Carignane (sometimes spelled with an “e” sometimes without) is a grape widely planted in Spain and in the Languedoc region of France. It was only a few years ago that…
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The Prophecy Sauvignon Blanc 2015 is sourced from vineyards in the Marlborough region on the northeast corner of New Zealand’s South Island. Prophecy Wines feature varietals from different locations, a Pinot Noir from California, a Pinot Grigio from Veneto, Italy and a Red blend from both California and Washington. All value priced, within a few bucks of…
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The Springwood Chardonnay 2015 is a $4.99 Trader Joe’s import exclusive, sourced from vineyards in the Murray Darling region of Australia. The Murray River and the Darling River are the 2 main rivers in the area, which is located east of Adelaide and north of Melbourne. It is a hot, dry growing region that depends on…
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The Beau Jardin Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 is a $8.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive, or maybe not. The back label shows that Chateau St. Jean (Sonoma) vinted and bottled this Cabernet. While vinted and bottled only indicates that Chateau St. Jean produced less than 10% of this wine and bottled it at their facility, it does not rule…
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The Chateau Ste Michelle Chardonnay 2014 is 100% Chardonnay sourced from multiple vineyards throughout the Columbia Valley in Washington State. Chateau Ste Michelle is the largest winery in Washington, their 2nd label Columbia Crest won the Wine Spectator Wine of the Year for a 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon (sold for $40), another label, 14 Hands makes one…
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The Meiomi Pinot Noir 2014 is composed of 100% Pinot Noir grapes from 48% Monterey County, 27% Sonoma County and 25% Santa Barbara County. Meiomi (translates to “coast” in the language of the local native people) is a brand started by Joe Wagner, part of the Wagner Family who are well-known for Caymus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon….
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The Floriana Grüner Veltliner 2014 is a $5.99 Trader Joe’s import exclusive, produced from vineyards in the Pannon region of Hungary. Hungary has a wine tradition that dates back to when the Romans planted vines in the 400s and more recently the Hungarians and the Austrians had empire where they were a military and economic powerhouse…
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The Vin du Sud Collection Domaine de Courtal Fitou 2013 is part of a 4-pack of 375ml (half bottles) featuring 3 Red wines and 1 White wine from different growing areas inside the Languedoc region of southwest France. The Languedoc is the region where the everyday wines or the more affordable wines are produced. Fitou AOP…
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The Reginato Sparkling Malbec Rose’ is a non-vintage Sparkling wine (100% Malbec) sourced from estate vineyards in the San Carlos district of the Mendoza Province of Argentina. The Reginato family grows and harvest the grapes, ferment the base wine and complete the 2nd fermentation all at their own estate. This Bubbly is made with the Charmat Method,…
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This is something a little different. It is a 4 bottle sampler pack of wine from the Languedoc. The bottles are 375ml, which equals a half bottle or 2 full glasses. There is one White wine, a Muscat from the Minervois AOC and 3 Red blends, one from Fitou AOC, another simply from the Languedoc…
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