What if your next supermarket wine find had a secret story hidden in its cork? That’s exactly what happened when I discovered the Mark Hill Pinot Noir at Aldi. This episode unfolds the curious tale behind this $7.99 wine, crafted by the giant Trinchero Family Estates for Aldi, and the unexpected twist of a Menage a Trois cork inside. Was it a simple bottling mishap, or does this budget-friendly Pinot share more with its cork counterpart than meets the eye? Join me, Dave from CheapWineFighter.com, as I untangle the mystery and savor the budget-friendly yet surprisingly delightful flavors of this intriguing bottle.
Explore the world of affordable wines with me, and find out what makes the Mark Hill Pinot Noir a worthy contender for your next cozy night in. With its fruit-forward notes of spice, cherry, and plum, this Pinot is a charming companion for comfort foods like tacos. While it may not boast the depth of pricier wines, it’s a smooth sipper that promises more than just an intriguing origin story. Whether you’re a wine enthusiast on a budget or simply curious about the quirks of wine branding, this episode promises an entertaining journey into the nuances of affordability and quality in the wine world.
Check us out at http://www.cheapwinefinder.com
or email us at [email protected]
Speaker 1
0:05
welcome
.
It's
a
domain
dave
.
Again
cheapwinefightercom
with
another
wine
review
,
like
always
,
like
we've
been
doing
for
a
while
now
,
a
long
while
now
and
this
one
was
a
wine
.
Actually
,
I
picked
it
up
at
aldi
.
Aldi
hasn't
had
too
many
new
wines
lately
and
I
saw
one
and
I
grabbed
it
,
and
it's
called
the
mark
hill
pinot
noir
.
Cal
California
Pinot
Noir
2022
,
I
believe
,
which
is
a
little
bit
older
.
For
a
$7.99
wine
.
It's
got
a
little
bit
of
age
to
it
.
Speaker 1
0:34
One
thing
that
caught
my
eye
is
that
the
label
looks
a
lot
like
Mark
West
Pinot
Noir
,
which
is
made
by
E&J
Gallo
,
and
it's
not
an
Aldi
wine
.
The
color
and
the
general
shape
was
like
that
.
Okay
,
what's
going
on
here
?
And
I
?
So
I
pick
it
up
and
turns
out
that
,
uh
,
chinchero
Family
Estates
,
which
is
a
huge
wine
company
and
they
have
50
different
brands
of
spirits
and
wine
and
all
that
kind
of
thing
.
They're
a
large
one
and
have
a
bunch
of
labels
.
You
know
made
this
wine
for
Aldi
,
so
okay
,
so
the
Mark
West
thing
doesn't
really
matter
because
Chinchero
is
a
completely
different
company
.
So
I
pop
the
top
on
this
wine
and
it's
got
a
Menage
a
Trois
.
Cork
Menage
a
Trois
is
one
of
Trinchero
Family
Estates'
wines
.
So
that
adds
another
thing
.
Why
is
the
label
like
Mark
West
or
kind
of
reminds
me
of
Mark
West
?
At
least
it's
not
that
it's
Trinchero
.
And
now
I
got
a
cork
that
says
Menage
a
Trois
,
which
is
a
label
that's
been
around
a
long
,
long
time
.
Speaker 1
1:50
The
Ménage
à
Trois
label
originally
was
the
value
price
label
for
Fully
Dew
,
I
think
it
was
.
They're
now
part
of
a
bigger
wine
conglomerate
,
but
whatever
three
red
grapes
they
had
left
over
,
every
year
they
put
them
together
and
that
would
be
the
three
grapes
,
the
menage
a
trois
,
the
interplay
between
those
three
grapes
.
Nowadays
,
like
menage
a
trois
wines
might
have
seven
grapes
in
there
.
They
kind
of
that
old
way
of
doing
things
is
gone
.
But
does
this
mean
that
and
it's
entirely
possible
that
the
Mark
Hill
Pinot
Noir
,
which
is
the
Aldi
one
,
was
using
the
same
bottling
line
as
Menage
a
Trois
and
someone
just
forgot
to
switch
out
the
corks
Menage
a
Trois
and
someone
just
forgot
to
switch
out
the
corks
.
Or
is
this
the
same
wine
as
Menage
a
Trois
and
someone
forgot
to
?
And
again
someone
forgot
to
.
They
switched
the
label
but
they
didn't
switch
the
cork
.
I
don't
know
.
I
mean
not
,
and
plus
I'm
not
really
going
to
go
into
.
I'm
not
going
to
buy
a
Menage
a
Trois
Pinot
Noir
just
to
check
it
out
,
because
I'm
not
that
crazy
about
Menage
a
Trois
wines
.
I
don't
dislike
them
,
but
they're
fully
due
wine
.
That
brand
is
a
step
up
and
that
stuff's
legitimately
good
.
That
wine
,
those
brands
,
I
like
.
Speaker 1
3:16
This
one
,
eh
,
I
don't
know
,
I
mean
Menage
a
Trois
,
but
so
what's
up
with
the
Markel
?
It
with
the
Markel
.
It's
actually
not
too
bad
.
It's
$7.99
.
It's
fruit
forward
.
It's
got
some
real
Pinot
Noir
things
going
on
.
Speaker 1
3:32
I'm
going
to
take
a
sip
.
Got
the
spice
,
it's
got
the
cherry
.
It's
got
plums
,
maybe
black
cherry
more
than
tart
cherry
.
It's
a
little
bit
more
rounded
,
a
little
bit
nicer
,
maybe
some
stone
fruit
,
not
super
complicated
,
but
it's
not
bad
at
all
.
Speaker 1
4:01
What's
in
your
glass
is
actually
very
,
very
sippable
.
You
know
,
like
pinot
noir
can
be
one
of
those
wines
where
every
sip
is
a
different
experience
.
And
now
this
isn't
it
.
But
it's
also
$7.99
and
that
experience
you
don't
get
for
$7.99
.
That's
usually
in
the
more
expensive
bottles
,
very
much
more
expensive
bottles
.
But
when
you
you're
paying
um
eight
bucks
for
supermarket
wine
,
you
want
a
one
you
can
drink
,
and
you
can
here
,
and
this
is
perfectly
good
to
pair
with
um
comfort
food
tacos
.
I
mean
nothing
too
heavy
.
Yet
you
know
,
maybe
uh
barbecue
with
a
lot
of
uh
barbecue
sauce
on
it
might
be
a
bit
too
heavy
for
this
one
.
But
it's
got
13.7
on
the
alcohol
,
so
it's
not
a
light
wine
but
it
would
work
for
a
lot
of
different
foods
.
Plus
,
it
just
sips
well
.
It
doesn't
cost
much
,
it's
easy
to
drink
.
So
there
you
go
.
Speaker 1
4:59
So
why
does
it
have
a
Mark
West
,
to
me
inspired
label
?
I
don't
know
.
Why
does
it
have
a
Mark
West
to
me
inspired
label
?
I
don't
know
why
does
it
have
a
Menage
,
a
Trois
cork
?
I
don't
know
,
it
doesn't
matter
.
It's
$7.99
.
It's
a
Pinot
Noir
that's
worth
drinking
and
taking
another
sip
.
Here
you
go
.
If
you
see
it
,
buy
it
.
If
you
like
an
inexpensive
Cali
Pinot
Noir
,
$8
is
a
good
price
and
this
one
does
well
.
It
stands
on
its
own
.
It
doesn't
need
the
Mark
West
or
the
Menage
,
a
Trois
relationship
or
anything
.
It
does
fine
.
So
there
you
are
.
So
that's
it
for
me
.
Domain
Dave
CheapWineFettercom
.
Like
us
where
you
like
your
podcasts
or
whatever
,
push
the
button
.
I
got
more
wines
coming
,
so
I'll
be
talking
to
you
in
a
couple
of
days
.
Adios
,
keep
it
cheap
and
like
always
,
keep
warm
and
safe
.
