reverse wine snob

A Delicious Pair for Your Next BBQ – Each Just $7.99 at Trader Joe’s

Bottles and glasses of Roustabout Meritage and Alamos Malbec from Trader Joe's

Fast facts: 2019 Alamos Malbec, Mendoza, Argentina ($7.99 @Trader Joe’s,  California) 2019 Roustabout Meritage, Paso Robles, California ($7.99 @Trader Joe’s, California)   Daylight saving time – check! Spring arrives – check! Temperatures moderate – check! As North America thaws, our food and wine preferences change with the temperatures, which have crept well up into the 80s … Read moreA Delicious Pair for Your Next BBQ – Each Just $7.99 at Trader Joe’s

Spring Into Stocking Up on Great SauvBlanc – With Help from TJs and Costco

Bottles and glasses of Kirkland Signature 2019 Sancerre (left) from Costco and Fleur de Napa 2019 Sauvignon Blanc from Trader Joe's

Fast Facts: 2019 Kirkland Signature Sancerre, Loire Valley, France ($15.79 @Costco in California – Item #1476058) 2019 Fleur de Napa Sauvignon Blanc, Napa Valley, CA ($6.99 @Trader Joe’s in California)   Move over red-breasted robins, daffodils and crocuses.  From here on out, the harbinger of Spring for lovers of Sauvignon Blanc may well be the … Read moreSpring Into Stocking Up on Great SauvBlanc – With Help from TJs and Costco

All You Need is Love – a groovy Costco wine that is perfect for BBQ

Bin display of McClean Vineyards Love red wine blend at Costco

Fast Facts: 2019 McClean Vineyards, Love Red Blend, Paso Robles, California  ($11.49 @Costco in California – Item #1528847)   So I admit that it was the “packaging” that stopped me in my tracks for this wine. I am so shallow sometimes.  In lieu of a traditional paper label, this wine comes in a gorgeous silk-screened … Read moreAll You Need is Love – a groovy Costco wine that is perfect for BBQ

Celebrate the Arrival of DST with Two Springy Wines from Costco – both under $10!

Bottles and glasses of 2019 Sacrata Alvarinho and 2020 Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc, both from Costco

Fast Facts: 2019 Sacrata Alvarinho, Minho, Portugal ($8.99 @Costco in California – Item #1535819) 2020 Villa Maria Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough, New Zealand  ($6.99* @Costco in California – Item #343916) *net price after $2 discount After months of days that were literally and figuratively dark, we have arrived on the doorstep of Daylight Saving Time (DST) and … Read moreCelebrate the Arrival of DST with Two Springy Wines from Costco – both under $10!

Two Zins from the Land of OVZ

Bottles and glasses of Old Vine Zinfandel

Fast Facts: 2018 Kirkland Signature Old Vine Zinfandel, Sonoma, CA ($9.99 @Costco in California – Item #908097) 2017 Pure Bred, Old Vine Zinfandel, Lodi, CA ($6.99 @Trader Joe’s in California)   OVZ is, of course, shorthand for Old Vine Zinfandel. And we have two good ones for you to explore this week – one from … Read moreTwo Zins from the Land of OVZ

TJs Delivers Spring in a Wine Bottle

Bottle and glass of Pine Ridge 2020 Chenin Blanc + Viognier - and a vase of yellow Gerberra Daisies

Fast facts: 2020 Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc + Viognier (California) $11.99 (@Trader Joe’s; California)   I have to admit that the first time I encountered this wine in the wilds of the Trader Joe’s wine section, I was puzzled. I knew Pine Ridge well, but exclusively as a producer of fine and expensive ($65 to … Read moreTJs Delivers Spring in a Wine Bottle

Two Malbecs from Up High, at Prices that are Costco Low

Bottle of Ben Marco 2018 Malbec (left)and Piatelli Vineyards 2019 Malbec. Both from Argentina and Costco.

Fast Facts: 2019 Piatelli Vineyards Reserve Malbec, Cafayate Valley, Salta, Argentina ($9.89 @Costco in California – Item #1316321) 2018 Ben Marco Malbec, Valle de Uco, Mendoza, Argentina ($9.99* @Costco in California – Item #101580) *net price after $5 discount     Black Skins Matter There are basically three “colors” of wine grapes here on earth: white, grey … Read moreTwo Malbecs from Up High, at Prices that are Costco Low

Kirkland Signature Gigondas. It Only Sounds Expensive.

Bottle and glass of Kirkland Signature Gigondas 2018 before an open fire.

Fast Facts: 2018 Kirkland Signature Gigondas, France ($14.99 @Costco in California – Item #11341020)   This blend (Grenache 85%, Syrah 10% and Mourvedre 5%) is crafted from the fruit of old vines grown in the Grand Cru appellation of Gigondas, on some of its highest limestone vineyards in the Southern Rhone Valley. A GSM, it’s a … Read moreKirkland Signature Gigondas. It Only Sounds Expensive.

Chalk Hill Sonoma Mmmerlot from Trader Joes

Front label of bottle of 2018 Trader Joe's Reserve Chalk Hill Sonoma County Merlot

Fast facts: 2018 Trader Joe’s Reserve Merlot Lot 213, Chalk Hill, Sonoma County, California ($9.99 @Trader Joe’s,  California) I love a well put-together Merlot, and this one from Trader Joe’s fits the bill. It’s a lot of wine for under $10, making it a good daily drinker. France (including the famed wines of the “right … Read moreChalk Hill Sonoma Mmmerlot from Trader Joes

Two Premium Kirkland Signature Wines to Quietly Toast the New Year

Costco bin of Kirkland Signature Premier Cru Chablis 2018

Fast facts: 2018 Kirkland Signature Premier Cru Chablis, Burgundy, France $19.99 (@Costco, California, Item# 1043144) 2018 Kirkland Signature Series Cabernet Sauvignon, Rutherford, Napa, California $18.99 (@Costco, California, Item# 1265184)   Happy New Year friends! In the strangest of years, we have made it to the doorstep of 2021. That which doesn’t kill you makes you … Read moreTwo Premium Kirkland Signature Wines to Quietly Toast the New Year