Fast facts: Sho Chiku Bai Sake, Berkeley, Californa ($3.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) How good is the QPR on this (rice) wine? Well, a local high-end supermarket (which shall remain nameless) sells it for twice the price. It’s less than a mile away from our local Trader Joe’s, so yeah, it is worth the … Read moreTrader Joe’s has Good Sake for Goodness’ Sake
Fast facts: 2020 Trader Joe’s Reserve Merlot Lot #227, Sonoma Valley, Sonoma County, California ($9.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) We hope our subject line extrapolating the price per gallon (there are five standard 750ml bottles in a gallon FWIW) for this wine makes you feel better about the last time you filled up your … Read moreGreat Mmmerlot for Just $50 per Gallon!
Fast facts: 2019 Syrah, Columbia Valley, Washington ($5.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) Before we start waxing about the grape, the vinification, the history…let’s say this: this is a great bottle of wine for $5.99! I entered the wine business – at least as a professional, hehe – in the early nineties. It … Read moreA Whole Lot of Red Wine Goodness for $5.99 from Trader Joe’s
Fast facts: 2020 Chardonnay, Esprit des Lieux Mâcon-Verzé, Mâconnais,France ($9.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) Usually when you are buying a bottle of French Chardonnay and it says Vin de Bourgone on the label, you would be paying more than $10. A lot more. After all, white Burgundy is one of the most sought after … Read moreBargain White Burgundy from Trader Joe’s?!
Fast facts: 2019 Ile de Conas Rouge Soupplesse, Pays d’Oc, France ($7.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) You could go down a rabbit hole learning about “dried grape wines” which have literally been around since antiquity, but we hope to spare you from needing to do so. That is, unless you are itching to! … Read moreA Delightful French Wine, Which Borrows from Italian Winemaking Traditions
Fast facts: 2020 Trader Joe’s Reserve Chalone Pinot Noir, California ($9.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) Astute readers may recall that once before (July of 2021 to be precise) we annointed a different wine as the best $10 Pinot Noir in America. But you may recall that one was from Costco. Nonetheless, this one may … Read moreIs this the Best $10 Pinot Noir in America?
Fast facts: 2019 Levesque Estates Reserve Vidal Ice Wine, VQA Niagara On the Lake, Canada $14.99 (@Trader Joe’s; California) Before my wife and I relocated to California, we lived in Bolton, Massachusetts. You’d be forgiven for not knowing where this town is located. Carved out of the woods in Central Massachusetts, most people in … Read moreIce is for Skating – and Winemaking?
Fast facts: 2020 Trader Joe’s Diamond Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Stags Leap District, Napa Valley, California ($19.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) Some of you may be familiar with unoaked Chardonnay bottlings. These are wines that are not fermented or aged in oak casks. Most Chardonnay is. The winemaker’s motivation is to let the resulting wine … Read moreJonesing for a Great Napa Cab? Look to Trader Joes’s
Fast facts: 2020 Ocean View Pinot Noir, San Luis Obispo County, California ($14.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) 2019 Opolo Summit Creak Vineyard Zinfandel, Paso Robles, California ($12.99 @Costco, California) We say “finally” in our subject line not to imply that we have been keeping you waiting for our red wine picks for the Thanksgiving holiday, … Read moreFinally, a Pair of Thanksgiving Red Wines – one each from TJs and Costco
Fast facts: 2019 Chateau Ste. Michelle Gewurtztraminer, Columbia Valley, Washington ($7.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) 2020 Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc + Viognier, Napa, California ($11.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) Trader Joe’s has a pair of perfect Thanksgiving white wines. Neither will break the bank and both are delicious. For starters, let’s address the qualifier in the … Read moreTJs has a Perfect Pair of White Wines to Pair with Traditional Thanksgiving Fare