Posts Tagged ‘wine’
11/19/2016
November 18, 2016
This one is different. Read on.
There’s very little aroma when first uncorked. On first pour, the wine is ruby-red and much lighter than a typical red wine. The first sip reveals a mild semi-sweet fruity wine as the bottle claims. There’s nothing intricate in the taste and at the same time nothing bad in the taste.
This wine is all about your expectations. If you’re looking for something to savor and spend the night discussing the intricacies of Merlots and where this stands in that continuum, this wine is not for you. If you’re looking for something to have at home with dinner, or just want something to sip, relax with, and not have to in any way think about what’s in the glass, this will serve that purpose. With some mild red-sauced pasta, the wine worked well.
The key difference here, if you haven’t picked up on it, is the word semi-sweet. This is a style of wine not usually found on the shelves outside of Hungary where this wine is made. The sweetness of the wine is noticeable but not sickeningly sweet like some really horrible wines. This is a nice good quality wine with a different flavor profile. Price $5.99
Tags:2015, Balatonboglari, garamvari, hungary, merlot, price, review, reviews, St. Donatus, tj, tj's, trader joe's, wine
Posted in Trader Joe's, Wine | 17 Comments »
10/29/2016
October 29, 2016
If you like house white wines from an open bar at a convention or similar gathering, you’ll like this more than me. If that doesn’t appeal to you, leave this one on the shelf and look for a better white wine. In fact those past generally bad convention white wines are the main reason I avoid white wines today.
Lacking any sweetness and having a stomach churning acidity half the bottle ended up being recycled back to sea. Perhaps in a millennium it will come back as a red. We can only hope. Price: $3.99
Tags:2016, price, review, reviews, tj, tj's, trader joe's, Vinas Chilenas rose, white wine, wine
Posted in Trader Joe's, Wine | 4 Comments »
10/18/2016
October 18, 2016
This is surprisingly good for $2.89. But there are better out there for a few dollars more. A weak red color for a Cab, leads to a slightly fruity aroma in the glass changing to an aroma of a rough red table wine. Nothing bad so far. The first sip is a little fruity and slightly sweet. In subsequent sips the sweetness is gone. There are no tannins to speak of which is consistent with the semi-dry description on the label. Maybe some oak, or something close to oak in the taste. The only negative is a somewhat strange type of astringency causing excessive cheek puckering. Don’t ask for pictures. I’m not sure it’s a Cab, if you’re expecting what’s commonly expected of a Cab.
Pairing with some leftover restaurant grilled chicken and chorizo (think spicy), it was not the best companion. The spicy food added to that cheek pucker.
The problem I’ve had in the past with very inexpensive wines (like $2 Chuck) is that the quality varies widely from bottle to bottle. I don’t know if that’s the case here, I’ve only had this one bottle. Would I buy it again? If I did it would only be to see how the next bottle changes from this one. For 3 or 4 dollars more it’s possible to get a much better red wine that’s consistently good – think Italian, think Tuscany, think DOCG, think sangiovese grapes. If you’re on a tight budget or think puckered cheeks are cute or just say one day, what the heck, give this a try. Otherwise pop for the extra few dollars. On the other hand if you’re at a major retailer that “also sells wine”, looking for a $10 bottle of wine, save yourself a few dollars and buy this one. Chances are this will be just as good. Price $2.89.
Tags:aldi, cabernet sauvignon, california, cheap wine, price, review, reviews, wine, winking owl
Posted in ALDI, Wine | Leave a Comment »
10/09/2016
October 9, 2016
For a Cab, the color is a medium-red. This one tastes like a Cab. Mild tannins, a little bit of oak and the grapes add the character and the dryness of a Cab. There are no off-tastes unlike this recently reviewed wine. This is a fairly good wine, but not a very good or great Cab. There’s still quite a bit of roughness about this one. It’s not as smooth as a better Cab.
Cabs are on the stronger side of the wine taste scale. If your preferences run towards milder wines, this one is probably not for you. It would be hard to find an everyday food that would overpower this wine. On the other hand, this wine would overpower most milder foods. This was a September ALDI’s Wine Of The Month. However, it also seems to be a regular on the ALDI wine shelves. At $6.99 a bottle, this is a value price compared to a similar quality California Cab elsewhere.
Tags:aldi, cabernet, cabernet sauvignon, california, central coast, price, review, wine
Posted in ALDI, Wine | 2 Comments »
10/01/2016
September 30, 2016
I’m not sure how I acquired this wine (probably a gift), but I wish I hadn’t. With a medicinal taste that forced a face scrunch, there wasn’t much enjoyment in this wine.
Comparing to a fair amount of reviews on the net, my experience is surprising. The general reviews for this wine are quite good. That was not my experience from first opening, after exposure to air, and after a couple of days in the frig. Perhaps the wine is too young or I had a bad bottle but, unless you receive it as a gift, I’d pass on giving it a second chance. Based on the net, the wine is priced in the $10 to $20 range.
Tags:california, daryl rex groom, drg, Pinot Noir, red wine, review, russian river valley, sonoma, wine, wine review
Posted in food, Wine | 7 Comments »
09/20/2016
September 20, 2016
This is perhaps the best everyday wine I’ve had this year.
Not that it means much, but on opening the pop from the cork was almost up to champagne standards. There’s a very nice deep purple color on the cork which complements the deep red color of the wine. The aroma is that of a full-bodied wine with fruity overtones. The tannins leave a dryness in the mouth, but not very much. No burn in the throat. This is something one could sip on all evening. Paired with an anchovy, Italian sausage, bacon pizza – it held its own. Honestly however, this is one wine that should be and is worth drinking by itself.
Price – $7.99
Tags:2013, cabernet sauvignon, Chile, colchagua valley, marchigue, price, reserva, review, tj, tj's, trader joe's, wine
Posted in Trader Joe's, Wine | Leave a Comment »
05/15/2016
Cabernet
Denada Cellars
2013
This is not an especially good wine. It’s drinkable, which is more than I could say for some others.
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Tags:cabernet, cabernet sauvignon, Chile, denada cellars, price, review, tj's, trader joe's, wine
Posted in food, Recipes, food, cooking and related items, Trader Joe's, Wine | Leave a Comment »
02/18/2016
The White Ribbon
Shiraz – 2014
Since following the The Wine Wankers, I’ve made an effort to pick up a bottle of Australian wine when stopping at the wine shelves. The Wine Wankers would probably agree that along with boxed wine, Shiraz is considered the national wine of Australia. In other parts of the world Shiraz is generally known as Syrah.
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Tags:australia, hunter valley, price, review, reviews, shiraz, syrah, tj, tj's, trader joe's, white ribbon shiraz, wine
Posted in Trader Joe's, Wine | Leave a Comment »
02/11/2016
Fort Cellars
Merlot 2012
Trader Joe’s
There’s a hint of vinegar on the cork and a medium-dark ruby color in the glass. The aroma of a crude red wine fills the air in the glass. Adding to the impression of a crude red wine is the dryish mouth feel of tannins, eventually leaving a semi-arid climate on the roof of the mouth. A more than bearable taste follows that. This is a classic table wine. A wine that’s not “refined” but ready for a tussle with a hearty bowl of stew and a chunk of bread torn from a long loaf. How would it stand up to a bowl of chili? The thought had never crossed my mind until now. Probably very well.
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Tags:fort cellars, merlot, price, review, reviews, tj, tj's, trader joe's, wine
Posted in Trader Joe's, Wine | 10 Comments »
November 18, 2016
Ain't Found A Good Title Blog 