The Lindeman’s Bin 80 Cabernet Merlot 2013 is 58% Cabernet Sauvignon and 42% Merlot sourced from multiple vineyards in Southeastern Australia. Southeastern Australia is a huge area encompassing 3 Australian States that have diverse climates and growing conditions, it is the equivalent to seeing California on the label of an American wine, and not Sonoma…
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The Pere et Fils Cinsault Syrah Rose 2013 (Pere et Fils translates to father and son) is a blend of 70% Cinsault and 30% Syrah grown in the estate vineyards in the hills of the Languedoc of Laurent Miquel, an 8th generation winemaker. Cinsault is a grape that is commonly used in the Languedoc and…
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The Fortant Hills Reserve Viognier 2012 is sourced from hillside vineyards in the Languedoc comprising three different soil conditions. The Languedoc is located in Southwest France and is the leading wine-producing region in the world, in terms of production. The temperature is hot during the day in the summer, but cool at night. The grape lots…
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The Coppola Director’s Sonoma County Chardonnay 2012 is sourced from vineyards located in several of Sonoma’s 16 sub-AVA’s. There are two Director’s Chardonnay, this one, sourced from all over Sonoma County and another sourced from a single AVA, the Sonoma Coast. The Sonoma County Chard lists for $17 (and is often discounted) the single AVA Sonoma…
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The Trader Joe’s Coastal Sauvignon Blanc 2012 is a $4.99 TJ’s exclusive, sourced from grapes grown in California’s Central Coast AVA. Vinted and bottled by Castoro Cellars, who have grown grapes and produced wine in Paso Robles since the early 80s. Vinted and bottled by indicates that Castoro aged the wine and bottled the…
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The Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 is 94.8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4.4% Petit Verdot, 0.5% Merlot and 0.2 Cabernet Franc sourced from Kendall Jackson estate vineyards (about 2/3’s from Alexander Valley and the rest from Knights Mountain) in Sonoma County, California. The grapes selected are in the top 7% of all grapes grown on KJ’s…
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The 2012 Garnet Monterey County Pinot Noir is sourced from Garnet Vineyards estate vineyards near the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA in Monterey County, California. This Pinot Noir lists for $14.99, but its tech sheet reads like a far more expensive Pinot. First, Garnet grew the grapes themselves, then they aged the Pinot Noir in 100% French…
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The 2008 La Villa Real Crianza is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and 50% Merlot from grapes grown in the La Mancha DO of Spain. La Villa Real is produced by Bodegas La Remediadora a co-op of 350 vineyards (covering 3,700 acres) who band together to build their own winery, hire a wine-maker and…
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The 2008 AllozO Tempranillo Reserva is sourced from grapes grown near the town of Tomelloso in the Ciudad Real Province of Castilla La Mancha in Spain. AllozO is produced by Bodegas Centro Espanolas (they also make exceptional Reserva, 25 and 100-year-old Brandy), even though Tempranillo is The Red wine of Spain, it was not…
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The Gnarly Head Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 is sourced from vineyards located in 6 of the 7 sub-AVA’s in Lodi, California. The bottle says the grapes are sourced from California, which means that more than one AVA is involved with no AVA producing 85% of the grapes, but Gnarly Head’s technical information says this is…
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The 2012 Gnarly Head Pinot Noir is sourced from vineyards in Monterey, the North Coast AVA (includes Mendocino, Napa Valley, Sonoma And Lake County) as well as vines from Lodi. Delicato Family Vineyards, the makers of Gnarly Head as well as BraZin, Bota Box and others is located in Lodi, California. The name Gnarly…
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The 2012 Natura Cabernet Sauvignon is 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Merlot sourced from certified organic and sustainably farmed vineyards in the Rapel Valley in the northern half of Chile’s Central Valley. The Natura label is one of Emiliana Organic Vineyards line of 100% organic, sustainable frown and sometimes bio-dynamic wines. The Rapel Valley…
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The 2012 DeLoach Cabernet Sauvignon Heritage Reserve is sourced from sustainably farmed grapes grown in more than one California grape growing AVA. DeLoach was founded in 1975 in the Russian River Valley of the Sonoma AVA and the Heritage Reserve line is their value wine. DeLoach is part of the Boisset Family Vineyards group of…
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The 2012 Left Foot Charley Pinot Gris is sourced from a 2 acre vineyard (Tale Feathers) in the Old Mission Peninsula AVA near Traverse City on Lake Michigan in Upper Michigan. They have been growing grapes on the Peninsula since 1870, but didn’t really get serious about it until the 1970s. The Old Mission Peninsula…
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The flipflop Pinot Noir is sourced from grapes that are, according to the front label, from the Left Coast of Chile. The last time we tried a flipflop Pinot Noir is was a vintage designated (2010) California wine, this time around it is a non-vintage wine from Chile. As a California wine it was $7…
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The 2011 Raimat Tempranillo is sourced from Estate vineyards in the Costers del Segre DO in the Province of Lleida of Catalonia near Barcelona in Northeast Spain. The climate in Coster del Segre is hot during the day and cold at night and that wide daily variation in temperature allowed the grapes ample time to…
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The 2013 Domaine Berrien Cabernet Franc is sourced from grapes grown on their 40 acres of Estate vineyards near the town of Berrien Springs, Michigan in the Michigan Shores AVA along Lake Michigan. Berrien Springs is 94 miles from Chicago on the opposite site of Lake Michigan and is probably not the first place…
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The 2013 Septima Chardonnay is sourced from (50%) two areas in the Uco Vally (one of the elite growing regions in Argentina) and (50%) vineyards near the region of Agrelo in the Lujan de Cuyo district inside the larger Mendoza grape growing area of Argentina. One thing I commonly hear when people talk about Chardonnay is that they do not…
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The 2012 Belle Ambiance Chardonnay is sourced from more than one California grape growing AVA. Belle Ambiance is a new label from Delicato Family Vineyards, they also produce Gnarly Head, Bota Box and HandCraft along with several others. Chardonnay is the wine makers wine, it can be light and crisp or full-bodied and buttery…
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The 2012 Belle Ambiance Pinot Noir is sourced from grapes grown in more than one California grape growing AVA. Belle Ambiance is a new label, suggested list price $9.99, from Delicato Family Vineyards, who have been in business for over 80 years. DFV also produce Gnarly Head, Brazin, HandCraft and Bota Box, along with…
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The 2012 Magnolia Court Pinot Noir is sourced from vineyards located inside several Central Coast grape growing AVA’s. Magnolia Court is part of the Thornhill Company who own some of the best vineyards in the Central Coast AVA, though they do not say if any of those vineyards are used for the Magnolia Court. This…
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The 2012 PoiZin California Zinfandel is 75% Zinfandel, 19% Petite Sirah and 6% Grenache sourced from more than one California grape growing AVA. There are actually 2 different PoiZin bottlings, this one, sourced from California vineyards, which has the black skull and crossbones on the label (should sell for a little over $10) and the…
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