(the cheap REDS we’re diggin’ on lately)
The Rodney Strong Russian River Pinot Noir 2018 is an estate-grown 100% Pinot Noir. For a little bit of background, Rodney Strong was a dancer on Broadway who came to Sonoma in 1959 and became a modern pioneer of California wine. He was one of the first to plant Pinot Noir in the Russian River…
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The Reserve des Chastelles Tavel 2020 is an $8.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive Rosé wine sourced from vineyards in the Tavel AOC of the Rhone Valley in the south of France. The Tavel district is located across the river from the Chateauneuf-du-Pape region and is the only Rhone Valley AOC to produce Rosé wines. This Rosé…
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The Louis Jadot Beaujolais-Villages 2020 is 100% Gamay grape sourced from vineyards surrounding some of the 38 approved villages in the Beaujolais region. There are 96 villages where grapes are grown, then 38 are approved to be part of the Beaujolais-Villages designation. Then there are 10 Cru designated villages whose wines will show the village…
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The Lazy Bones Paso Robles Cabernet Franc 2020 is a $6.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. It has been $6.99 for years we first reviewed the 2013 vintage, here s a link. This Red was produced by the Central Coast Wine Warehouse back then. Today the producer on the back label is Miller Family Wine Company. It…
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The Originals Syrah 2019 is $5.99 Trader Joe’s wine sourced from grapes grown in Washington State. The Originals wine brand started as a brand from Charles Smith/K Vintners along with Precept Wine Company the largest independently owned wine company in Washington. Ten or twelve years ago this was a single vineyard wine from a vineyard…
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The Exquisite Collection Cotes de Provence Rosé 2020 is a $9.99 Aldi exclusive from the south of France. This is the 2020 release of a Rosé that is a cult wine in Europe. It has won awards as the best value-priced wine and typically sells out in days. This Rosé was finally made available in…
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The Hook Or Crook Cellars Field Blend 2018 is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Merlot, and Petite Sirah sourced from a vineyard in the Lodi AVA of California’s Central Valley. This is a brand of wine from Thomas Allen Wine Estates (Lodi). They produce over 1,000,000 cases (12,000,000 bottles) for well-known brands. This brand…
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The Michael David Freakshow Zinfandel 2019 is 86% Zinfandel, 8% Petite Sirah, and 6% Petit Verdot sourced from vineyards in the Lodi AVA. Petite Sirah is often found blended with ZInfandel, it is almost a surprise if no Petite Sirah is added. Petit Verdot is one of the Red grapes approved for wines in Bordeaux….
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The Caretaker Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 is $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive produced for them by Miller Family Wine Company. The Caretaker brand has been available at Trader Joe’s since at least the 2009 vintage when CWF reviewed their Pinot Noir. In the past, the Caretaker wines had the Central Coast Wine Warehouse as the…
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Paso Robles Syrah 2019 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. Most of these Trader Joe’s Reserve wines are one-offs. Wines that disappear after the run sells out, but this wine, Lot 100, has been offered since the 2013 vintage. The back label says this Syrah was produced by Familia Neuva Vineyards,…
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The Trader Joe’s Grower’s Reserve Paso Robles Organic Zinfandel 2020 is a $5.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. This is a wine that seems to be available every year, most Trader Joe’s Reserve wines are one-off wines. TJ’s does not offer information concerning the vineyard selection or the production techniques but there are details that we can…
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Chalone Pinot Noir 2020 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. The interesting part of the last sentence was the reference to the Chalone AVA. The Chalone AVA is perched about 1,200 to 2,300 upon a plateau in the Monterey coastal mountains. There are only 300 acres of vines planted with only…
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Sonoma Valley Merlot 2020 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive sourced from grapes farmed in the Sonoma Valley AVA and produced for TJ’s by William Knuttel Winery. They make their own high-end wine along with custom wine for folks like Trader Joe’s. Tj’s Fearless Flyer mentions William Knittel Winery as one…
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The Don Rodolfo Mendoza Pinot Noir 2019 is a wine sourced mainly from the Lujan de Cuyo Valley inside the greater Mendoza region of Argentina. The Don Rodolfo Winery was founded in 1870. The Lujan de Cuyo Valley is located in western-central Mendoza and the vineyards are situated 3,300 to 5,000 feet. Lujan de Cuyo…
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The Chocolate Cellar Red sells for $7.99 at Aldi but is available on the web at other wine outlets. This is a non-vintage Red wine (they do not mention the grape or grapes used) with added chocolate flavors. Aldi seems to be the go-to location for flavored wines. They have a wine-based chocolate drink from…
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The Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Carneros Pinot Noir 2020 s a $12.99 TJ’s exclusive. The 2020 vintage is the 12th edition of this Pinot Noir, here is a link to a CWF review of the 1st edition, it was ten bucks then. Every Carneros Grand Reserve is Lot #23, so it seems all 12 vintages…
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The Stormchaser Wild Ride Red 2019 is a $7.99 Aldi exclusive farmed from grapes grown in the Columbia Valley AVA of Washington. It seems to be produced for Aldi by the largest privately owned wine company in Washington. I checked the California Wine COLA website for the lister producer. They do not show this wine…
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The Union and Branch Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 are a $14.99 Aldi wine exclusive produced for them by a large family-owned wine estate located in the Monterey AVA of California. The $14.99 price point is a stretch for Aldi wine. They have an excellent $19.99 Champagne that they release every year for the holidays,…
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The Paso Dragon Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 is a $7.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive sourced from grapes farmed in the Paso Robles AVA inside the larger Central Coast AVA. The Paso Dragon name comes from Lake Nacimiento, which shoreline does resemble a dragon. Check out the label for an artistic representation. I found a website that exports…
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The 14 Hands Hot To Trot Red Blend 2018 is a blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, 19% Syrah, 2% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot sourced from vineyards through the Columbia Valley AVA in Washington. The name 14 Hands refers to the wild horses that at one time roamed free in the area….
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The Grifone Sangiovese 2018 is a $3.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive sourced from grapes farmed in the Puglia region of Italy. Puglia is the heel to Italy’s boot shape and this is the area where much of Itay’s affordable everyday wines come from. This Sangiovese has rated an IGT wine which means that its characteristics conform…
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The Sobon Estates Old Vine Amador County Zinfandel 2019 is sourced from estate vineyards in the Amador County AVA, east of Napa, north, and east of Lodi, and east of Sacramento, California. Amador County is one of the oldest wine regions in California. The Sobon family started Shenandoah Vineyards in 1977 and 1989 purchased the…
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The Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir 2020 is a $14.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. I am not sure about the difference between a Platinum Reserve, a Diamond Reserve, and the good old Grand Reserve Trader Joe’s wines. But they do have a track record of being solid bang-for-the-buck wine. The Santa Lucia…
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The Dancing Flame Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 is an Aldi $6.99 import exclusive. Vina Luis Felipe Edwards produced this wine, a winery founded in Chile in 1976, and sourced from grapes grown in the Colchagua Valley. We first reviewed the 2012 vintage back in 2014, that wine sold for $4.99. The Dancing Flame name refers…
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The Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 is a $19.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. The Diamond Reserve wines are their double-secret super rare wines; if you are interested, do not wait to try one because when they are gone, they are gone forever. Twenty bucks are beyond the usual price range for…
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