Wine Witch – Fantastic, Affordable Wine Suggestions

Posts Tagged ‘California’

Finding a great tasting chardonnay is like finding the right pair of shoes to go with the dress for your wedding, or the “right” tie to complement your suit.  The experience is equivalent to falling in love for the first time, or having your first kiss.  It’s a day you will never forget; and when the day is done, you will always remember how good you felt wearing that tie or that dress because it complemented you–perfectly.

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Before we get too far this one is right on the cusp of our price point.  I picked it up for $14.99, but if I look at prices online, I see a range of $12-18.  If you can find it for $15 or less, by all means buy it.  Much more than that and I am not sure you are getting all you can for the money.  If the 2008 Hanna Sauvignon Blanc were $10-12, the Wine Witch would rate it 4 stars+.  However, at $15 it violates our bang for the buck rating system.  Hence the 3.5 stars.

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Yes, you read the title correctly – NEW MEXICO.  The Wine Witch is going out a bit on a limb here.  This is absolutely the best U.S. sparkling wine at this price point and probably better than most at twice the price.  California be afraid.

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Of course, the obvious gift for your beloved winos would be wine – DUH.  However, if you have been there and done that or, you are just not confident on what wine to buy, the Wine Witch suggests you consider a book on the subject.

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The Wine Witch has not been drinking a lot of California Chardonnay lately.  Used to drink it all the time.  Not sure if I got tired or it or it got tiring, but there came a time I just was not enjoying it as much.  Well anyway, the point here is that if I say a like a California Chardonnay, I must REALLY like it.

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The producer of this wine is Folie a Deux and these guys have a sense of humor.  This is definitely the Wine Witch’s week for “punny” wines.  The name of this wine roughly translates into a gathering or blending together of three.  As you might expect, we are talking about three different grapes here – Zinfandel, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon.

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You know how the Wine Witch loves a pun, so I could not resist this one.  Zins, of course, stands for Zinfandel and the reference to 7 is the number of growers that contribued grapes to this effort.  This is an example of a Lodi styled Zinfandel which is usually on the spicier end of this varietal’s spectrum.  The Wine Wtich also loves her spice.

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The Wine Witch just loves this wine.  It really set a standard of what can be done with California Sauvignon Blanc.  I know, some of you are saying “but this is a Fume Blanc”.  Made from the same grape – traditionally Fume Blanc are a slightly drier style.

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Poor Merlot – it really has had its ups and downs. Back in the 90’s it was the go to red wine, once everyone got burned out with Cabernet Sauvignon. California wineries could not cultivate the vines fast enough. In this rush to market, a lot of really flacid, boring Merlot was produced. Perhaps the nadir was the movie, Sideways. The main character was willing to risk a date with a girl way out of his league if going out with her meant he had to drink Merlot.

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By now I am sure you are used to the Wine Witch whining (I know – cheap shot – couldn’t resist) about the quest to find value priced Pinot Noirs that are satisfying. There are a lot of budget priced PNs out there – they just tend to be thin and dull. Fortunately, at the private tasting of Robert Mondavi Private Selection wines at the recent Harvest in the Square event, I found one I could recommend.

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If you read my earlier post this week on the Robert Mondavi Private Selection Vinetta, you saw that future vintages are going to be renamed Meritage. OK – that’s nice enough name, but does it mean anything? Actually it does.

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This was the first wine I tasted at the Modavi tent during Harvest in the Square in NYC. It was a very pleasant aperitif. My husband and I enjoyed another bottle last night along with chicken in a light cream sauce. Still liked it. There is a lot of very boring Pinot Grigio out there, but this one is livelier than most. The Private Selection Pinot Grigio is jazzed up with the addition of a little Gerwurztraminer and several other varietals.

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WOW! This is a whole lotta wine for $12 (actually I paid $10.99) – a total 5 rating. If you have been reading this blog, you know the Wine Witch does not dish 5’s out very often. If you like big, in your face reds, but no edges, go out and find this one now.

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