Category: 2021
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Beyond “The Usual Suspects” in New Zealand
Fast facts: 2021 Elephant Hill Le Phant Rouge (Red Blend), Hawkes Bay, New Zealand ($13.97 @Costco, California, Item# 1888961) Well this was a nice surprise…92 points and 1/3 off of retail prices elsewhere? When wine consumers think of New Zealand wines, their minds usually go first to Sauvignon Blanc (the country’s most…
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Costco Has Your Thanksgiving Splurge Wine
Fast Facts: 2021 Joseph Drouhin, Chorey-les-Beaune, Burgundy, France ($35.99 @Costco in California – Item #684760) Let’s start with the elephant in the room: how do you correctly pronounce the name of this wine? Well, let’s put it phonetically in the context of a hypothetical convo with a troublesome relative at your Turkey Day…
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Is our WoW! Your Thanksgiving Secret Wine?
Fast Facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Saint-Julien, Bordeaux, France ($17.69 @Costco in California – Item #1494198) As a person that has spent the bulk of his career in the wine business, I often get asked to name my favorite wine. It is a bit like being asked to name your favorite child. But if pressed…
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Liquid Sunshine is as Close as Your Local Costco
Fast facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Toscana IGT, Italy ($13.99 @Costco; California – Product #1181768) I’ve decided that the imports in the Kirkland Signature program are far better than the domestic wines. There. I’ve said it. Sure, there are exceptions. But on balance, the deck is stacked with wines like this Toscana, the Sancerre, Barolo,…
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We’re Taking you On a Washington State Road Trip
Fast Facts: 2021 DeLille Cellars Métier Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, Washington ($19.99 @Costco in California – Item #1699463) When you think of the Pacific Northwest (PNW) do you think of cool, moist, and overcast? Well, much of it is. But not all of it… Fact is, the Columbia Valley is a sun-soaked part of…
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I’ll Take Fermented Grapes for $1,000, Alex
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in 2021, best trader joes wine deals, best trader joes wines, best wines at Trader Joes, best wines under $20, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Wines, Central Coast, costco wine blog, food and wine, Meritage, Paso Robles, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve, Trader Joe’s Wine, Wine, wine reviews, Wines Under $15, wines under $25Fast Facts: 2021 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Meritage, Lot# 129, Paso Robles, California ($12.99@ Trader Joe’s, California) Let’s just say you went back in time and were playing Jeopardy with host and winemaker Alex Trebek. (Yep, Alex once owned the Creston Winery – in Paso Robles, no less.) The answer for your $1,000 wager…
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Wine’s Dirty Little Secrets – Revealed!
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Fast Facts: 2021 Torbreck “Woodcutter’s” Shiraz, Barossa Valley, Australia ($19.99 @ Costco, California – Item # 693544) It’s pretty well-documented that when it comes to critically assessing all things taste and smell, that women tend to have an advantage over us men. Here is a scenario that sometimes plays out in my home when…
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Another WoW in our BBQ Series
Fast facts: 2021 Pedroncelli Mother Clone Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma California ($16.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) For years we American’s proclaimed Zinfandel to be uniquely ours. Then DNA testing arrived in the wine world and we discovered that the grape’s genetic roots can be traced to modern-day Croatia, where it’s known as Crljenak or…
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Hiding in Plain Sight – this California Wine Region Rivals Sonoma for Diversity, and QPR
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in 2021, andrew murray, best costco wine deals, best wines at Costco, best wines under $20, California Wines, Costco, costco wine blog, Costco Wines, food and wine, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, Santa Barbara County, syrah, tous les jours, Wine, wine blog, wine reviews, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast facts: 2021 Andrew Murray Vineyards Tous les Jours Syrah, Santa Ynez Valley, California ($13.89 @ Costco, California – Item # 636736) Here we are nearly a month into Spring so it’s time to start leaning into wines that would be perfectly at home with BBQ. Syrah is high on that list. Tous les…
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Have Your Passports Ready, We are Boarding for Spain
Fast facts: 2021 Esteban Martin Garnacha-Syrah Cariñena, Spain ($10.99 @ Costco, California – Item # 512107) We have reviewed this wine once before, and it is interesting that they have changed up the blend to emphasize Syrah. Where it was just 15% of the cuvee in 2018, the 2021 rendition has upped it…