(cheap wine articles & info)
The Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve Napa Valley Brut Rosé is a $14.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. It is produced and bottled by Rack and Riddle, located in Healdsburg, California. The Story The Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve Napa Valley Rosé Brut is made entirely from 100% Pinot Noir. If this wine were not a Rosé, it would…
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The Sonoma-Cutrer Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2023 is a wine I found on sale for $15.99; it typically sells for $20 or more. The Sonoma-Cutrer winery is part of the Duckhorn family of wines. The Story The Sonoma-Cutrer Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2023 is their “entry-level” Chardonnay. It is 100% Chardonnay sourced from 4 sustainably farmed estate…
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The Wittenberg Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s wine. It was produced and bottled by Northwest Collective, which is an entity of Precept Wine and Spirits. The Story Precept Wine and Spirits is the largest wine company in the Northwest with 4,000 acres of vines, multiple wineries, and 25+ brands. They routinely…
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The Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve Napa Valley Blanc De Blancs is a $14.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. It was produced and bottled by Rack and Riddle of Healdsburg, California. The Story Rack and Riddle is a large custom Sparkling wine producer serving California. They produce both the Traditional Method (think Champagne) and the Charmat Method (Prosecco)….
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The Elliot Cooper California Chardonnay is a non-vintage $10 Aldi exclusive. Aldi owns the brand name, but a subsidiary of Trinchero Family Wine and Spirits produced the wine. The Story Aldi tends to own the brand names in case the need to change the producer arises. A popular product can continue and have several producers…
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The Freakshow Lodi Chardonnay 2021 is a wine I found at a local grocery store for $15. This wine is from Michael David Winery of Lodi, California. The Story Michael and David are brothers, and Phillips is the family name. They are fifth-generation grape growers. The family has farmed the land since the 1860s and…
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The Lapis Luna North Coast Sauvignon Blanc 2024 s a wine I found at Trader Joe’s selling for $10.99. It is not a Trader Joe’s exclusive and a quick check of the internet found it selling in the $10 to $14 range. The Story Lapis Luna is Latin for the Stone and Moon. It is…
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The Willia Creek Willamette Chardonnay 2023 is a $12.99 Trader Joe’s wine. The Willia Creek Cellars trademark is held by Precept Wine & Spirits. The Story The back label shows this Chardonnay was ” produced and bottled by” Willia Creek Cellars of Dundee, Oregon. Produced and bottled by indicates the aforementioned winery may not have…
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The Intermingle California Dark Red Blend 2023 is a $6.99 Aldi exclusive. The Story The Intermingle brand is produced for Aldi by a division of Sutter Home Family Vineyards. Sutter Home was founded in 1890, and the original owners operated the winery until the onset of Prohibition. In 1948, the winery and vineyards were acquired…
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The Dearly Beloved I Thee Red 2023 is a $7.99 exclusive at Trader Joe’s. This wine has been produced since at least the 2009 vintage, with several different producers involved. It was a Central Coast AVA for most of its existence, but the last few vintages have been from the Lodi AVA. The Story Over…
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The Wente Morning Fog Central Coast Chardonnay 2023 is a wine I found at a local grocery store, selling for $11.99. This is the entry Chardonnay for Wente Family Vineyards, who have a unique history with the Chardonnay grape. The Story Wente was founded in 1883 and is the oldest continuously operated family-owned vineyard and…
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir 2023 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. This is a repeat wine for Trader Joe’s. We reviewed the 2021 vintage here. The Story This wine is produced and bottled by Bozzano & Company, who also made the 2021 vintage. They are a bulk and custom wine…
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The Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Oak Knoll Chardonnay 2024 is available for $12.99. The back label tells that it was “Cellared and Bottled by” DNA Vineyards. The Story DNA stands for Dennis Patton and Andrea Silverstein, who together have more than 40 years of experience in the wine industry. They have made multiple wines for…
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The Aldi Specially Selected Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2024 is an exclusive Aldi offering at $12.99. The Willamette Valley is one of the premier Pinot Noir regions in the world. The Story Aldi’s Specially Selected series of wines is a collection of affordable wines from some of the best wine-growing regions—quality at a value price….
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The Twin Suns Lodi Mevushal Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 is a wine I discovered at Trader Joe’s, although it is not an exclusive wine to Trader Joe’s. I paid around $10 for it, but prices on the web are all over the place. The Story This is a Kosher wine from Gabriel and Shimon Weiss, who…
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The Bonflor California Organic Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 is a $7.99 wine found at Aldi stores. The name Bonflor translates to “Good Flower, which is “likely a reference to the type of plants grown in the organic vineyard to attract the kinds of insects and birds that feed on the insects detrimental to the vines. The…
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The Aldi Castellore Gavi DOCG 2024 is an Aldi wine, priced at $9.99. We previously reviewed the 2022 vintage and were impressed, so we sampled a newer vintage to see if the quality is maintained. The Story Castellore is the brand name Aldi uses for value Italian wines. The brand is used for Chianti, Pinot…
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The Aldi Specially Selected Napa Valley Brut is $17.99 in-store, but the Aldi website lists it at $19.99. The Story The back label shows that this Bubbly was produced and bottled by Rack and Riddle. Rack and Riddle is a custom Sparkling wine producer. They have many Sparkling wines in the value-price category, including Peaks…
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The Seek to Find Central Coast Sauvignon Blanc 2023 is sold at Trader Joe’s for $7.99. It was made for Trader Joe’s by a branch of Treana wines, which is a brand owned by Hope Family Wines from Paso Robles in California’s Central Coast. The Story Hope Family Wines is an excellent family-owned winery that…
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The Aldi’s Peaks & Tides Sonoma Brut is a Sparkling wine sold at Aldi stores for $13.99. This Bubbly was produced by Rack and Riddle. The Story Rack and Riddle (these are terms used in making Bubbly) is a custom Sparkling wine producer located in several locations in Sonoma and Lodi. If you have tasted…
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The Emile Cheysson Cremant De Bourgogne Brut is a Sparkling wine I found for $9.99 at a local wine shop. The average price on he internet is $17 and up. Wine sales have been down for the last years, and shops have been having sales to get folks in the door, so keep an eye…
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The Seaglass Central Coast Pinot Grigio 2024 is a wine that should be found for around $10. It was one of the 50+ brands of wines and spirits from Trinchero Family Vineyards. The Story Trinchero Family Vineyards is the 4th family-owned winery. They were founded in Napa Valley in 1948 and are still going strong….
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The Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 is a $12.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. The back label indicates that it was “vintage and bottled” by Ashford Court from American Canyon, located in the southern part of Napa Valley. The Story Ashford Court is a part of Plata Wine Partners, which is a versatile…
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The Delicious Monster White 2024 is a wine available at Trader Joe’s, selling for $5.99. CWF reviewed the 2023 vintage of this wine and was impressed. How do they create a worthwhile wine at the southern tip of Africa and ship it all over the US for less than six bucks? The Story The Delicious…
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The Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Carneros Pinot Noir 2023 is a $12.99 exclusive to Trader Joe’s. This is the 15th vintage of this wine, and they seem to offer a Platinum Reserve Carneros Pinot Noir during the Holiday months. The Story The back label says Carneros Cellars bottled this wine. I looked up who owns…
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