(the cheap REDS we’re diggin’ on lately)
The Kirkland Signature Rioja Reserva 2018 is a $7.89 Costco exclusive. This Tempranillo is produced for Costco by Vina Egula a Rioja winery with over forty years of experience. The Vina Egula Reserva sells under its own label for $13 to $19. The Kirkland Signature Rioja Reserva 2018 is 100% Tempranillo and was aged for…
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The Exquisite Collection Cotes de Provence Rosé 2021-Aldi is a $9.99 Aldi exclusive. This is a wine that in Aldi Europe and for a couple of years in the US sold out in a matter of hours. The 2016 vintage of this wine won an award for one of the best Provence Rosé wines in…
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The Firesteed Oregon Pinot Noir 2020 is produced from grapes from several growing Oregon regions. Willamette Valley is the most well-known, but there are 23 AVAs, including Rogue Valley and Umpqua Valley. The Firesteed Winery (founded in 1992) is located in Dundee, Oregon. This is their entry-level offering with their wines focusing on different areas…
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The Bar Dog Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 is 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2% Petit Verdot, 2% Petite Sirah, and 1% Merlot sourced from vineyards in California. Bar Dog is one of the family of wine brands from Vintage Wine Estates that has an excellent assortment of brands, they have high-end wines, affordable, and specialty wines. I like…
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The Rough And Ready Cabernet Franc Vs Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 is an $8.99 Trader Joe’s wine, but in places that don’t have a Trader Joe’s this wine sells for $15 to $18. It is a wine made for Trader Joe’s by Bozzano & Co., they have produced other quality wine for TJ’s in the past….
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Paso Robles Meritage 2021 is a $9.99 TJ’s exclusive. The back label says this Red was “vinted and bottled by Healdsburg Wine Cellars.” That is a division of Delicato Family Wines, they make Gnarlyhead wines, along with many other brands. They recently purchased Coppola WInes and also have holdings in Napa….
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The Woop Woop Shiraz 2020 is an Australian Red wine you should be able to find in the $12 range. In the early 2000s value-priced Aussie Shiraz wines were the rage and Woop Woop was always a bang-for-the-buck bargain. Here is a link to a write-up on the 2013 vintage, the last time we featured…
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The Kirkland Signature Extra Dry Prosecco Rosé 2021 is a 7.99 Costco exclusive. The traditional Prosecco grape, Glera, and Pinot Noir are used for additional flavor and color. This is an Extra Dry or slightly sweet wine, which is the way the Italians prefer it. The natural acidity balances the extra sugar, so this is…
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The Cloudline Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2021 is 100% Pinot Noir sourced from several vineyards in the Willamette Valley AVA of Oregon, about an hour south of Portland. Cloudline is a brand (this is its 20th year) from Domaine Drouhin in collaboration with their importer Dreyfus, Ashby, and Co. The Drouhin Family has one of…
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The Outlander Meritage Paso Robles 2021 is a $7.99 Aldi exclusive. The Meritage in the name indicates that this is a Bordeaux blend, with Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Merlot, and Malbec grapes. To be a Meritage wine a license is purchased from the Meritage Alliance. They are an industry group promoting education and working on…
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The Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 is a $12.99 TJ’s exclusive. The back label says it was vinted and bottled by Ashford Court, which is a faux winery. These Trader Joe’s Reserve wines are negociant wines; negociants never tell where they got their wines. The Alexander Valley is the upper half…
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The Kirkland Signature Cotes de Provence Rosé 2022 is a $7.99 Costco exclusive. It is produced for Costco by Oliver Sumeire (winemaker) for Famille Sumeire a winemaking family with roots in Provence that go back to the 1200s, though the history of the modern wine business dates to the 1880s. The Cotes de Provence is…
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The Caretaker Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive bottled for them by Miller Family Wines. Bottled for them means just that, they officially bottled the wine, and who knows who did the rest. Miller Family Wines are the parent company of the Central Coast Wine Warehouse which 10 to 15…
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The Kirkland Signature K Vine Syrah 2021 is a $9.99 Costco exclusive produced especially for them by House of Smith/Charles Smith Wines from Washington State. This wine is sourced from a single vineyard, Frenchman Hills Vineyard, located in the newly formed Royal Slope AVA (2020). K Vintners has a history of making 100-point Syrah wines,…
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The Rabble Paso Robles Red Blend 2020 Costco is $10.89 at Costco and between $15 and $20 elsewhere. The blend seems to be Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot, Petite Sirah, Tannat, Tempranillo, and Malbec sourced from “carefully selected vineyards in Paso Robles.” The reason I say that seems to be the blend is that…
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