The 2012 Cosmia Sonoma County Pinot Noir is an $8.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive. This Pinot Noir was produced by Our Cellars (not a real winery, but a front name for the actual winery) who also produced Trader Joe’s Lost Sonnet and several other quality TJ’s wines. Sonoma County includes the Russian River Valley AVA and…
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The 2011 Scarlet of Paris Pinot Noir is an IGP IIe de Beaute (Isle of Beauty) wine from Corsica, which is about 105 miles off the coast of Southeast France in the Mediterranean. IGP wines (Indication Geographique Protegee) are the classification that replaces the Vin de Pays wines, it basically refers to wines that are…
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The 2011 Block Nine Pinot Noir is a great value for a Pinot Noir under $20. Depending on your locale you might be able to secure it for close to $10. By introduction, Caiden’s Vineyard’s Block Nine is a small production Napa Valley winery that produces only Pinot Noir. It is a niche they have handsomely mastered. The…
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The 2011 Blackstone Pinot Noir is sourced from vineyards in more than one California grape growing AVA, they also add 6% Syrah and 5% Petite Sirah to make up for whatever the Pinot Noir grapes lack. This Pinot Noir is aged in mostly new (90% new) French and American oak barrels for 5 months. This…
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The 2011 Laforet Bourgogne Pinot Noir is sourced from 12 different area’s in Burgundy, but mainly Cote Chalonnaise and Cote de Nuits. The Laforet Bourgogne is Joseph Drouhin’s entry level Burgundy wine, Joseph Drouhin is a well respected family owned Estate founded in 1880. It is thought that Pinot Noir has been gown in Burgundy…
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The 2012 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Russian River Pinot Noir Lot 22 is one of the rare Trader Joe’s exclusive wines that is priced above $9.99, this Pinot is $12.99. The Lot 22 designation on the label is new, are there other Lot’s of TJ’s Russian River Pinots in the pipeline? The Russian River AVA…
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The 2012 VINTJS Willamette Valley Pinot Noir is an $8.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive label sourced from vineyards in Oregon. A non Trader Joe’s Willamette Valley Pinot Noir that sells for twice the price is considered to be ridiculously low priced, but TJ’s seems to make a habit of under 10 buck Oregon Pinot. The 2012…
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The 2012 Trader Joe’s Grower’s Reserve Organic Pinot Noir ($6.99) is sourced from one or more certified organic vineyards somewhere in California. This wine was “Produced and Bottled by” ASV Wines, San Martin, California (a custom, contract wine producer), they crushed, fermented and aged the wine, but did not grow the grapes. Now, most wine…
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The 2011 Garnet Vineyards Monterey County Pinot Noir is sourced from Estate vineyards located near (but not in) the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA in Monterey County, California. Garnet had been Saintbury’s value line, but they sold the brand name and the winery to the Silverado Wine Growers, who had been the main supplier for Garnet’s…
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The 2011 Bogle Vineyards California Pinot Noir is sourced from contracted vineyards in the Russian River Valley AVA (inside Sonoma County) and the Monterey AVA along with Bogle Estate grown grapes from the Clarksburg AVA (southwest of Sacramento and west of Lodi). Bogle is a 6th generation family owned winery with extensive vineyard holdings in…
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The 2010 O.P.P. Other Peoples Pinot Noir (Andre Mack of Mouton Noir is a negociant, he does not grow grapes, he buys them, so these grapes were other peoples Pinot grapes) is sourced from 3 vineyards in different areas of the Willamette Valley in Oregon. 40% of the grapes came from the Roserock Vineyard in…
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The Frontera Pinot Noir is 100% Pinot Noir non vintage wine sourced from vineyards in the Southern Region of Chile. Most Chilean wines you see on the store shelves are sourced from Chile’s Central Valley. The Southern Region sees more rainfall and has a cooler growing season, which is just the conditions Pinot Noir vines need to thrive….
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The 2011 Blue Fin Pinot Noir is a $3.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive made for them by Bronco Wines (2 Buck Chuck) at their Napa Valley facility. The Pinot Noir grapes are sourced from more than one California grape growing AVA. Pinot Noir grapes are very finicky and require very specific weather conditions, a long, cool growing…
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The 2011 Robert Mondavi Private Selection California Pinot Noir is 80% Pinot Noir, 12% Syrah, 7% Petite Sirah and 1% Thompson seedless (Thompson seedless is the most widely planted grape in California, these are the grapes you buy in the produce department and are made into those little boxes of raisins, they usually are used…
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The 2010 Vinum Cellars Pinot Noir is sourced from sustainably farmed long term contracted vineyards in Monterey, California. The label says this is a California Pinot Noir which means that the grapes came from more than one grape growing AVA, but their website says Monterey. Vinum Cellars is a virtual winery, they lease the facilities…
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The 2010 Wine by Joe Pinot Noir is 100% Pinot Noir sourced from contracted vineyards, mainly Willamette Valley with grapes also from Umpqua Valley.This isn’t a cutesy “Brand” wine, there is a Joe, he is Joe Dobbes, since 2002 he has owned and operated Joe Dobbes Wines in Willamette Valley, Oregon. 22 years ago he…
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The 2010 Once Upon A Vine Pinot Noir is sourced from multiple vineyards in several California grape growing AVA’s. The Once Upon A Vine brand is one of the family of wines (Snapdragon, Butterfly Kisses, Uppercut, Stark Raving and few others) produced by The Wine Bar, a division of Diageo Wines. This is a Brand…
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The 2011 Liberte’ Pinot Noir is a $9.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive, sourced from Estate vineyards in San Luis Obispo County in the southern part of the Central Coast grape growing AVA in California. The Liberte’ label and the winery, Familia Nueva is owned by Ancient Peaks Winery (Paso Robles), they have produced some of Trader…
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The 2011 Cloud Break Pinot Noir is sourced from vineyards in more than one California grape growing AVA. Cloud Break is a brand owned by O’Neill Vintners and Distillers, a contract maker of wines and Spirits. They own their own vineyard and have long term contracts on 15,000 acres of vines thru-out California. O’Neill also…
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