Tag: 2021
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Changes in Latitude, Changes in Palate, Dude
Fast facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon $12.99 (@Costco, California, Item# 975274) Why yes, we are riffing on the Jimmy Buffet album title in our subject line. But we are not here to conjure up Margaritaville. Far from it. Champions of wines from the Pacific Northwest (raising my hand…
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Notes of blueberry pie and graham crackers? Sign me up!
Fast facts: 2021 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Lot #109 Shiraz, Barossa Valley, Australia ($12.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) Let’s clear one thing up to start. Shiraz is the Australian name for the Syrah grape. Even though they are genetically the same, the word Syrah on a wine label is sometimes used to denote a lighter,…
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When Dusty is a Compliment…
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in 2021, best costco wine deals, best costco wines, best wines at Costco, best wines under $20, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Wines, Costco, costco wine blog, Costco Wines, food and wine, Kirkland Signature, Kirkland Signature Series, Napa Valley, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, rutherford, Wine, wine blog, wine reviews, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Cabernet Sauvignon, Rutherford, Napa Valley, California ($18.99@Costco, California, Item# 1265184) The term “Rutherford dust” routinely gets applied to tasting notes of wines from this part of the Napa Valley. But what theories explain why grapes and wines from this AVA tend to share this characteristic? The best – and most…
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RRV PN from TJs
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in 2021, best wines under $20, California Wines, costco wine blog, food and wine, Lot #122, Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, russian river valley, Russian River Valley, russian river valley, Sonoma County, Sonoma County, Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve, Trader Joe’s wine, Trader Joe’s Wine, Wine, wine blog, wine reviews, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast facts: 2021 Trader Joe’s Grand Reserve Lot #122 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California ($12.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) Let’s start by unpacking the alphabet soup in our subject line, shall we? The Russian River Valley (RRV) is an important part of Sonoma, and Pinot Noir (PN) is an important part of …
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High QPR Chablis Fan? Better Act Fast!
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in 2021, best costco wine deals, best costco wines, best wines at Costco, best wines under $20, chablis, Chablis, Costco, costco wine blog, Costco Wines, food and wine, French Wine, French Wines, Kirkland Signature, reverse wine snob, sparkling wines, White Wine, Wine, wine reviews, Wines of France, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Premier Cru Chablis, Burgundy, France $18.99 (@Costco, California, Item# 1043144) Happy new year vino peeps! This perennial favorite has arrived in California a bit earlier than last year, when we reviewed it in March. The price has inched up from the odd (for Costco) price of $17.49 for the…
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A Good Shoulder Season Wine for the Final Weeks of Autumn
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in 2021, best costco wine deals, best costco wines, best wines at Costco, best wines under $20, Costco, costco wine blog, Costco Wines, French Wine, French Wines, Gigondas, grenache, GSM, Kirkland Signature, Kirkland Signature Series, morvedre, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, syrah, wine blog, wine reviews, Wines of France, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast Facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Gigondas, France ($13.99 @Costco in California – Item #1134102) Time and again, we keep reminding you how much we enjoy a good GSM. The melange of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre (GSM) consistently delivers high QPR. Or should we say G+S+M = QPR squared? We have reviewed this particular bottling…
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Red Alert – Exciting New Platinum Reserve Wine at TJs
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in 2021, best trader joes wine deals, best trader joes wines, best wines at Trader Joes, best wines under $20, Bordeaux, Bordeaux Blend, Bordeaux Blends, Bordeaux Red Blend, Chateau Tour Baladoz, costco wine blog, food and wine, French Wine, French Wines, merlot, red blend, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, Saint Emilion, Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve, Wine, wine blog, wine reviews, Wines of France, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast facts: 2021 Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve Saint-Emillion Grand Cru, Bordeaux, France ($16.99 @Trader Joe’s, California) When I meet new people and they learn that I spent three decades – and counting! – in the wine business, they often ask me what my favorite wine is. I quickly qualify the question with: “white wine…
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One Last TJs Wine Pick for your Thanksgiving Table
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in 2021, best trader joes wine deals, best trader joes wines, best wines at Trader Joes, best wines under $20, California Wines, Central Coast, costco wine blog, food and wine, Monterey County, Monterey County, Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, santa lucia highlands, Thanksgiving wines, Thanksgiving wines at Trader Joe’s, Trader Joe’s wine, Trader Joe’s Wine, Uncategorized, Upper Eden, Wine, wine blog, wine reviews, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast facts: 2021 Upper Eden Pinot Noir, Santa Lucia Highlands, California ($12.99 @ Trader Joe’s, California) It’s hard to believe it’s been four years since we recommended the 2018 vintage of this wine for your Thanksgiving table. When we spied it again this year at Trader Joe’s in the run-up to Turkey Day, we…
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Kirkland Signature RRV Chardonnay – Bingo!
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in 2021, best costco wine deals, best costco wines, best wines at Costco, best wines under $20, California Wines, Chardonnay, Costco, costco wine blog, Costco Wines, Kirkland Signature, Kirkland Signature Series, reverse wine snob, Russian River Valley, russian river valley, russian river valley, Sonoma County, Sonoma County, White Wine, Wine, wine reviews, Wines Under $15, wines under $25Fast Facts: 2021 Kirkland Signature Chardonnay, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County, California ($12.99 @Costco in California – Item #789895) In her encyclopedic The Oxford Companion to Wine, author Jancis Robinson refers to Sonoma’s Russian River Valley as a “high quality California wine region and AVA west of Healdsburg along that portion of river that meanders through…
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Think You Can’t Find High QPR Pinot Noir Under $10? Think again…
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in 2021, best wines at Trader Joes, best wines under $20, California Wines, costco wine blog, food and wine, Lot #241, Pinot Noir, Red Wine, reverse wine snob, Santa Barbara County, Trader Joe’s Reserve, Trader Joe’s Wine, Trader Joe’s wine, Wine, wine reviews, wines under $10, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, wines under $25Fast Facts: 2021 Pinot Noir, Trader Joe’s Reserve Lot #241, Santa Barbara County, California ($9.99 @Trader Joe’s in California) Pinot Noir has a problem. It’s being loved to death. Its precise rank varies by which list you consult, but it remains securely in the top 5 of all wine grapes, and second only to…