Send us Fan Mail Michael and David Petite Petit 2019-Reet Petit Red Wine Reet Petie is a Jazz Age term that means fine or primo. This is a blend of Petite Sirah and Petit Verdot. Two petite grapes with different spellings that are not in any way related. There is a story here, but you…
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The Michael and David Petite Petit 2019 is 85% Petite Sirah, and 15% Petit Verdot sourced from vineyards in the Lodi AVA of California. This is technically a Petite Sirah single varietal wine since more than 75% of this wine is Petite Sirah. But the Petite Petit name is more fun. Michael and David Phillips…
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Send us Fan Mail Santa Rita 120 Sauvignon Blanc 2020-Everyday Sauv Blanc From Chile There ain't nothing wrong with a bottle of good everyday wine! I think making excellent value-priced wine is harder than making fancy wine where they spare no expense. And who does not like a good Sauvignon Blanc? It is one of…
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The Santa Rita 120 Sauvignon Blanc 2020 is a wine sourced from vineyards in the Central Valley of Chile. The Central Valley is an Intermediate Depression between the Andes Mountains and the Coastal Mountain Range. The Santa Rita Winery was founded in 1880, and their 120 brand of wines (which has been around for 50…
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Send us Fan Mail Tanner Park Carneros Chardonnay 2019-TJ's $9.99 Fancy Chardonnay You do not always know the pedigree for these Trader Joe's exclusive wines. But they gave us a few clues for the Tanner Park Carneros Chardonnay 2019. Read the review on the cheapwinefinder website, or check out the podcast for all the details….
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The Tanner Park Carneros Chardonnay 2019 is $9.99 for Trader Joe’s wine. In doing what research you can do on a Trader Joe’s wine, it seems that the Tanner Park brand may be an older defunct brand, and Trader Joe’s is reusing the name. This Chardonnay uses grapes grown on the Sonoma side of the…
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Send us Fan Mail Grifone Primitivo – Trader Joe's 5 Buck Fun Italian $5 wine should not be drinkable. Especially when a part of that five dollars is used to ship the wine to America and then to a Trader Joe's near you. But the Grifone Primitivo 2020 drinks just fine; it is an enjoyable…
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The Grifone Primitivo 2020 is a $4.99 Trader Joe’s import exclusive sourced from vineyards in Puglia, the heel of Italy’s boot. The Primitivo grape and the Zinfandel grape are two separate clones of a grape from Croatia named Crljenak Kasteljanski. That grape is extremely obscure, so, amazingly, it found its way to Italy and California,…
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Send us Fan Mail Gruet Sauvage Rosé- Excellent “No Dosage” Bubbly Bubbly Season is between Halloween and New Year's Eve. I think Bubbly is appropriate year-round, but the fact remains most Sparkling wine is purchased in the last 3 months of the year. This is a No Dosage Bubbly, meaning they did not add sweet…
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The Gruet Sauvage Rosé Bubbly is 100% Pinot Noir produced from grapes grown in New Mexico, Washington, and California. The Sauvage is a French word meaning wild and free, outside of modern society, something in its natural state. This Bubbly is a no dosage Sparkling wine. The dosage is typically the last production detail performed…
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Send us Fan Mail Louis Jadot Mâcon-Villages Chardonnay- Drink Like The French This is a Burgundian Chardonnay from Louis Jadot, a producer in the wine business since the 1850s. The wine sells for around $13, less on sale, and they make enough to find this wine in grocery stores and wine shops. Even California Chardonnay…
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The Louis Jadot 2020 Mâcon-Villages Chardonnay is sourced from vineyards in the Mâconnais region of Burgundy in France. Chardonnay is THE grape of this area in southern Burgundy. For reference, Beaujolais is the southernmost region of Burgundy and Champagne in the north. Loius Jadot has been in the wine business since the 1850s. They traditionally purchased…
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Send us Fan Mail Trader Joe's Reserve Dry Creek Zinfandel 2020-A Tale Of Fire & Smoke? There seem to be fires in California wine country every year. In 2020, Dry Creek AVA had its fire and smoke issues. So is this Trader Joe's Reserve Dry Creek Zinfandel 2020-A Tale Of Fire & Smoke? and smoke…
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The Trader Joe’s Reserve Dry Creek Zinfandel 2020 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. TJ’s sells many versions of these Reserve wines every year. They are wines sourced from vineyards in high-end AVAs that sell at a bargain price. You never get much information on the wine, so just how exclusive these vineyards are never…
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Send us Fan Mail TJ's Reserve Central Coast Rosé- A Negociant Rosé Trader Joe's says this is a $14 Rosé selling for $7.99, and I believe them. It is well-balanced, dry, and full of interesting flavors. The podcast talks about just what are Trader Joe's wines and how we can all drink bargain wine! Check…
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The Trader Joe’s Petit Reserve Central Coast Rosé 2020 is a $7.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. The Petit Reserve designation indicates that this is a one-time deal with limited quantities. These Trader Joe’s Reserve wines are California versions of French Negociant wines. A Negociant buys leftover or excess wine from wineries and sells them under their…
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Send us Fan Mail Estancia Monterey Pinot Noir 2018- A Special Bargain Wine The Estancia is part of the huge wine brand sale between Constellation Brands and E & J Gallo. The sale was finalized in early 2021, and these 2018 vintage by the brands that were sold are sort of orphan wines. They will…
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The Estancia Monterey Pinot Noir 2018 is another wine brand that was a part of Constellation Brands sale of its value-priced wines to E and J Gallo. The sale was finalized in early 2021, so these brands will not be fully Gallo wines until the 2021 vintage. These are brands that are currently caught in…
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Send us Fan Mail Chateau Ste Michelle Chardonnay 2019- A Tasty Chard For Fall Chateau Ste Michelle is by far the largest winery in Washington State. They make half of the wine produced there. But, even though they are best known for value-priced wine, they make top-quality wine. Check out the review on http://www.cheapwinefinder.com and…
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The Chateau Ste Michelle Chardonnay 2019 is sourced from various vineyards in the Columbia Valley of Washington State. This is a wine that you should find for around ten bucks; I purchased a bottle for $8.99 on sale. The Columbia Valley comprises the vast majority of Washington’s vineyards, and there are 11 different sub-AVAs inside…
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Send us Fan Mail Tailslide Pinot Noir 2019-$7 ALDI Pinot-Any Good? We are jaded. CWF is so used to Bang-For-Buck value-priced wines that a wine that delivers at its price point and no higher seems like a failure. But that is stinking thinking. I forgot where I got that from. A $6.99 Pinot Noir that…
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The Tailslide Pinot Noir 2019 is a $6.99 ALDI wine, and that is all I know about this wine. If you go to this link and search by Tailslide, you will find out which winery produced the wine. Since the winery name is not on the bottle, I do not like to say that this…
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Send us Fan Mail Franciscan Monterey Cabernet Sauvignon-How To Find Wine Bargains This wine was part of the $800,000,000 deal between Constellation Brands and E & J Gallo. Constellation decided to part with its value-priced wine portfolio. Franciscan is not value-priced; the Monterey County AVA Cabernet Sauvignon lists for $22.99. We have a link on…
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The Franciscan Monterey Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is a wine with a very particular story. The Franciscan winery was founded in the 1970s, started with humble beginnings, and rose to become a well-respected winery. Over the years, ownership has changed hands several times, and the last change is the subject of this story. Franciscan Estates is…
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Send us Fan Mail Brancott Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2020-1st Marlborough Sauv Blanc In 1973, Brancott, then known as Montana Wines, planted the first Marlborough South Island New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc vineyard. It took them a few years to get it right, but in 1979 they bottled the first Marlborough Sauv Blanc! The Brancott Marlborough Sauvignon…
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