The Table Santa Barbara Red 2024 is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive produced for them by Field Recordings, a well respected winery.
The Story
Field Recording is an eclectic winery from Paso Robles. They started off scouring the coastal countryside looking for neglected, but promising vineyards. They we make a deal with the owners where they would rehab the vineyard in exchange for grapes.
They make interesting, uncompromising wines that are tasty and accessible. Trader Joe’s also offers their Super Happy line of wines from Happy Canyon in Santa Barbara.
The Table Santa Barbara Red 2024 is an homage to the wines people in the Rhone Valley of France drink everyday. Good wines, but unpretentious.
The Bland for Table is 54% Syrah, 24% Carignan, 12% Grenache, and 12% Mourvèdre. This wine is aged in oak barrels for a year with 1/2 of the barrels being neutral. A Neutral barrel offers no oak flavoring, but wines aged in a barrel have different characteristics than Stainless steel aged wines. It was fermented with natural yeasts.
The grapes are sourced from vineyards in the Santa Barbara AVA. The vineyards closer to the Pacific typically grow Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes. The vineyards back in the mountain valleys where the weather is warmer often grow Souther Rhone Valley varietals.
The alcohol content is 14.7%. There is an ingredient list on the back label, its says grapes and sulfur dioxide, it keeps wine from going bad by killing bacteria and preventing oxidation. This is a liter bottle, not the usual 750ml.
The Table Santa Barbara Red 2024 Tasting Notes
The color is black cherry red with black highlights. The nose is earthy and smokey, raspberry, spice, herbs, blackberry, and sour cherry. This is a complex nose. The Table Santa Barbara Red 2024 is a rich, spicy, and flavorful Red Blend.
This Red Blend tastes like sour cherry and sharp spice, followed by slightly fizzy blackberry, pomegranate, a slap o herbs, and blueberry. This wine has flavor to spare.
The tannins have their place a provide solid structure and the acidity gives this wine good length.
The Summary
- The Table Santa Barbara Red 2024 is no mere table wine, it is complex and delicious. This a proper wine for a well cooked steak.
- This is a lot of wine for ten bucks, a real Trader Joe’s bargain.
