2008 Cameron Hughes Zin Your Face

This is a Cameron Hughes Negociant wine, he buys surplus wine from hand picked wineries and sells the surplus under his own label at a price greatly reduced from what the original winery was selling the identical wine. The Zin Your Face is sourced from old vine vineyards all over California, but the bulk of the grapes come from Lodi. This Zin is 97% Zinfandel, 2% Syrah and 1% Petite Sirah. Alcohol content is 14.9%.

A crystal clear ruby red. The nose is strawberry, plum, mowed lawn and milk chocolate. Big, chewy and jammy, good fruit, blackberry, raspberry and blueberry and light well mannered Zin spice. A good berry finish.

The label says Spicy-Jammy-Yummy and the label tells the truth. Excellent quality, good tasting and a nice price. I like Zinfandel with BBQ ribs so some Zin Your Face and some BBQ sauce on your face would be a good combo.

2009 Panilonco Carmenere Reserve $5

Trader Joe’s imported the Panilonco Carmenere Reserve from the Colchagua Valley in Chile. As with almost all of Trader Joe’s wines there is no information available about this Carmenere. The wine was aged a few months in oak barrels, but since this is a 2009 vintage it could not have been in oak for too long. The alcohol content is 13.5%.

Wine fun fact: Carmenere is one of the original six red wine grape varietals grown in Bordeaux, France. In 1867, Phylloxera hit all the Carmenere vineyards in Europe and wiped out all the Carmenere vines. So there you are, Carmenere is gone, adios, bye, bye. But, years earlier, some Carmenere vine cuttings were smuggled out of France and the wine cuttings were planted in Chile. To compound the problem the Chileans didn’t know they were sneaking Carmenere out of France, they thought they had Merlot plantings. After not figuring out why the “Merlot” tasted funny, they had the vines tested by experts and found they had the only surviving ancestors to France’s Bordeaux Carmenere. The Carmenere grape has gone full circle and is now available again in France.

Deep, dark, but see-thru black cherry red. The nose has bell pepper, a touch of tart cherry, smoked meat and spearmint gum. A combination of raspberry and pepper upfront and then spice and the bite of tannins in the middle. No real finish to speak of, the flavors dissipate quickly.

The upfront flavor was fine, Carmenere is a nice change of pace from the usual grape suspects. I don’t know if I would pair this food, this is more of  a bottle you open when you have your first XBox Madden Tournament of the season.

WE JUST ADDED OUR 400th POST!!!!!!

We have been busy little wine drinking beavers here at Cheapwinefinder.com and in a little over a year we have posted 400 wine reviews and wine news. The Doctor says our livers are not nearly as bad as they should be, so we should be good for at least 400 more.

There are so many wine reviews in our achieves that sometimes I have to check to make sure I don’t do the same wine twice (unless it was really good, then I forget on purpose).

Click on the tabs in the blue stripe, we have the wines categorized by price and by red and white varietals. It is amazing that there are so many excellent cheap wines available today, people who routinely spend big bucks on wine don’t know what they are missing. So search around and see if you can find your new favorite wine, me, I find a new favorite wine about twice a week.

2007 Urban Ribera Del Duero Tinta Del Pais

Tinta Del Pais is what Tempranillo is called when it is grown in the Ribera Del Duero region of Spain, same grape, just different place and different name. Ribera Del Duero has been growing grapes for over 2,000 years and Tinta Del Pais/Tempranillo from Ribera tends to be more lush and fruit forward than the Tempranillo grown in Rioja in Spain. The Urban Ribera Tinta Del Pais was aged in French oak for 4 months. Robert Parker gave this wine 91 points.

A dark burgundy purple with a lighter red halo. The nose is cherry juice and a funky mushroom/forest floor thing. The Urban Ribera has a plush mouthfeel, not watery at all. It tastes of blackberry, plum and blueberry, with a solid wallop of oak spice on the back end. Sometimes the oak spice can be jarring, but here it adds interesting flavor, it really gives the wine a boost. The tannins are pronounced, but are sweet not sharp. The finish is really long, it does not go away, I think I will still be tasting the Urban Ribera two hours from now.

A nice big, bold, versatile, well made wine. Would pair well with food, a natural for steaks and chops and is inexpensive enough for burgers and pizza. Me, I would drink this on it’s own, sharing it with friends.

2005 Villa Mt Eden Grand Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon $12

Here’s a $12 Cabernet Sauvignon with all the bells and whistles, most of the grapes are from the Tall Trees Vineyard in Yountville, Napa, the wine is aged for 24 months in 60% French and 40% American oak. In California, a wine has to be at least  75% Cabernet Sauvignon to be labeled as a single varietal Cabernet and the Villa Mt Eden is 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 4% Merlot and 2% Malbec. So, you have Napa fruit, 2 years in oak barrels and another 3 years in the bottle all for 12 dollars. The alcohol content is 14.2%.

A nice dark nearly opaque burgundy red. An interesting nose, cedar, blueberry, vanilla, asparagus, raspberry and a touch of bread dough. Good tannins, the Villa Mt. Eden has a nice structure, you can sense the tannins in the back of your mouth, but they are well balanced. Upfront this Cab is dominated by berries, blueberries, blackberries and strawberries, not over the top fruit, the flavors are mingled together. The mid-palate is blueberries in milk and is a touch oaky. The finish is also a bit overpowered by the oak, not enough to ruin your drinking enjoyment, I think this wine could use a another year or more in the bottle before it really hits it’s stride.

I don’t know why this Napa Cabernet Sauvignon sells for $12 and another Napa Cab sells for 25 bucks or more. The Villa Mt Eden has good fruit, is well made, has aging potential and tastes good. Villa Mt Eden is made to be enjoyed with a nice steak. This is a real no excuses Napa Cabernet Sauvignon at crazy good price.

2009 Trader Joe’s Vintjs Oregon Pinot Gris

This is about the pendulum swinging back the other way. In recent years Pinot Gris producers have been making their wines in a very light style and by very light, I mean VERY light. They made it for wine drinkers that really didn’t like wine, Pinot Gris was more of a grape beverage than a wine. Just the same, they sold gallons of the stuff and Pinots Gris with a bit of body to it languished on the store shelves. Just when you were about to usher Pinot Gris over to the White Zinfandel section, it starts to make a comeback. This is a Trader Joe’s wine so there is no information about who grew the grapes or how the wine was made, but the grapes are sourced from the Willamette Valley in Oregon. You don’t usually see Oregon wines at this price point. The alcohol level is a reasonable 12.8%.

Light see-thru golden yellow in color. The nose is citrus and orange blossom along with a hint of strawberry, it would make a good aroma candle. The first sensation you get upon sipping the Vintjs is a large wallop of acidity, this is a food wine. Tangerine, lemon, pink grapefruit, softened by melon, fresh fruit flavors, nothing candied or artificial. The acidity overpowers the tangerine/melon finish, but with the lovely fruit flavors upfront you can live the loss.

This a Pinot Gris that can stand up to food, don’t worry about too spicy, the Vintjs Pinot Gris can handle it, a nice bowl New Orlean’s style Gumbo would hit the spot.

2009 Picada 15 White Blend

An Estate grown and bottled White blend from the Neuquen region of Patagonia in Argentina. The blend is 55% Chardonnay, 40% Sauvignon Blanc and 5% Pinot Noir. Yes, Pinot Noir is a red grape, but they remove the grape skins right after crushing the grapes, so you get none of the red grape color. The wine is aged for 5 months in stainless steel tanks and the alcohol content is 14.3%.

A light wheat yellow with lime green highlights. The nose is grapefruit and oranges, a little green apple and cut flowers. It tastes of light apricot mixed with lemon/lime, then tart apple. The has good acidity, it’s there but it does not get in the way of the flavor. A very light tart apple finish, you can barely taste it, but it last and lasts.

Light, crisp, refreshing, cheap, just how a White blend should be. Would pair well with grilled seafood and light pasta dishes.

2008 R Wines Southern Belle Shiraz

Whiskey with a splash of water, is just fine, whiskey and Shiraz?, well that’s a bit different. So, therefore, the Southern Belle Shiraz is different from every other wine reviewed on this site, first of all the Shiraz was partially aged for 18 months in American oak barrels that were previously used to age Pappy Van Winkle Kentucky Bourbon and secondly the alcohol content is 17.6% (that’s 35.2 proof for you whiskey folks). The wines importer, Dan Phillips, says “that it’s his sincerest hope that this wine offends every sommelier and Frenchman in the world.” The winemaker, Chris Ringland, makes fantastic wines and brings as much skill to the valued priced wines as he does to his more expensive efforts. Fruit forward, tasty wines, that have excellent balance and polish, if anyone can tame the over the top Bourbon barrels and the 17.6% alcohol, it’s Ringland.

The color is a beautiful almost black red with a blood red outer halo. Nice fresh black and blueberries at first and then the nose gets real interesting, leather, molasses, orange peel, petroleum jelly and vanilla. Wow, this is not your usual fruit bomb shiraz, dark fruit upfront and then coffee, toffee, black cherry cough drops, brown sugar, orange zest and oak spice. There are almost as many whiskey flavors as there is wine flavors. This is a rich, nuanced wine, even with the huge alcohol level and the bold whiskey barrel oak, there is a balance to the Southern Belle Shiraz, it feels more expensive than it actually is.

A very unique, must try wine. It may not be your go-to everyday wine, but this Southern Belle is an experience. It would really pair well with a full slab of ribs from your towns best BBQ pit.

2009 Folie a Deux Menage a Trois California Red

The menage a trois referenced here is the coupling of three grapes, Zinfandel, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The actual blend is 46% Zin, 31% Merlot and 23% Cab, the grapes are sourced from vineyards all across California, basically wherever they can get the best grapes for the least amount of money. The wine is aged in French and American oak. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are 2 grapes that dominate most Bordeaux red wines and adding in some Zinfandel is a California twist on the Bordeaux blends. The alcohol level is 13.5%.

A deep dark, clear raspberry jello red. The nose does not give up much, a bit of strawberry, a touch of chocolate and not much else. Nicely fruit forward, soft round black and blueberry flavors, cocoa powder, raspberry and then you can sense the tannins in the mid-palate. The tannins are light, but give the Menage a Trois enough structure and body to hold the fruit together. There is a nice raspberry jam finish.

A good starter red wine for people who don’t know if they like red wine. Nice flavor, soft and approachable, but there is enough going on to please experienced red wine drinkers.

2009 Trader Joe’s Overlake Sauvignon Blanc $6

I have been complaining about how there is never any information on Trader Joe’s wines, and lo and behold, they now have cool tasting notes, technical information and maps showing where the grapes are grown. So, here’s the low down on the Overlake Sauvignon Blanc, it’s 100% Sauvignon Blanc, fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks. The grapes were grown in Lake County, which is north of Napa, it’s the coolest (as in cold, not hip) grape growing area in California, which is just fine for growing Sauvignon Blanc grapes. Trader Joe’s even said how they came by the wine, somebody backed out of a contract to buy the grapes, and the Winery turned to Trader Joe’s to salvage the situation. Alcohol content is 13.5%.

Light lemon yellow in color. A big nose, even if your not good at identifying what’s going on with the nose, you will get a few scents out of this one, pineapple, lime, grapefruit, nice fresh fruit aromas. Nice slightly oily mouth feel. Apricot along with pink grapefruit upfront, slightly sweet and tart at the same time. The mid palate is raspberry iced tea, that flows along into a nice long finish.

A nice solid Sauvignon Blanc, it can go toe to toe with most of the under 20 buck Sauvignon Blanc’s coming out of New Zealand. It’s amazing what 6 dollars will get you in wine nowadays.

Next Page »