Archive for the ‘Everyday Wines’ Category

Merlot Wine Review: Dante

August 28th, 2009 by vinojoe 0

Dante Merlot 2006 · Michael Pozzan Winery I have to admit, I purchased this wine based on its label — one of my best friends became a father recently, to a son named “Dante”. So it was an added bonus that the juice behind the label turned out to be pretty good — and well [...]

Cabernet Review: Kaiken

May 5th, 2009 by vinojoe 0

Kaiken Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 Kaiken is a somewhat unknown wine brand from Argentina, which is a good thing and a bad thing. It’s a good thing, because it hasn’t yet been discovered and “taken off” in popularity, so the prices are still affordable (around ten bucks or less). It’s a bad thing, because 1) it [...]

Cabernet Sauvignon Review: Rayun

October 29th, 2008 by vinojoe 0

In these difficult economic times, we wine geeks with short pockets must do a better job of hunting down the great values. Traditionally, I have looked to South America for dirt cheap deals on deliciously drinkable wines. At one time, Chile was a great place to find fantastic values. Then the secret got out, and [...]

Red Wine Review: Pannotia Garnacha

October 17th, 2008 by vinojoe 0

Imported wines can be tough to purchase, because there are so many wines brought in from so many areas of the world, with labels that you likely have never heard of, nor seen, before — particularly in the under-$15 range. Additionally, there are a ton of wines brought in for no other reason than the [...]

Rose Wine Review: Artazuri

October 9th, 2008 by vinojoe 0

It’s not too late to drink rose wine — in fact many of this year’s releases are still fresh and vibrant. Which is a good thing, since pink wines tend to be enjoyable on their own and match with a wide variety of foods. This particular rose comes from an importer I respect highly — [...]

White Wine Review: Antinori Bianco

September 23rd, 2008 by vinojoe 0

Villa Antinori Toscana Bianco 2006 IGT A few years back, Pinot Grigio replaced Chardonnay as the number-one selling white wine in the USA. As a result, prices for established, reliable Pinot Grigio skyrocketed, and a slew of unknown Pinots — of varying degrees of quality — flooded the market. The popularity of the wine became [...]

Rose Wine Review: Belleruche

September 10th, 2008 by vinojoe 0

M. Chapoutier Cotes-du-Rhone “Belleruche” Rose 2007 Autumn is almost upon us in the US, but it’s still warm enough to enjoy pink wines. This one comes from the Cotes-du-Rhone in France, an area that’s better known for red wines that some describe as “bistro wines” for their ability to match with a variety of dishes [...]

Pinot Noir Review: Fleur 2006

May 14th, 2008 by vinojoe 1

Fleur Pinot Noir 2006 – Carneros Ever since “Sideways” came out, everyone and their brother became a Pinot Noir snob, and the wine suppliers reacted by flooding the market with all kinds of swill labeled with that classic French varietal. Four years after the movie, wine shops can’t keep enough Pinot Noir stocked on the [...]

Merlot Review: Domaine de Gournier

December 15th, 2007 by vinojoe 0

Domaine de Gournier Merlot 2005 Ever since reading the novel Sideways(and watching the movie), I’ve been obsessed with finding quality Merlot wines — so forgive me if I post too many reviews on them. This one comes from France, from the southwestern part of the country (officially, “South West”) — a region that is often [...]

Red Wine Review: Andezon CDR

October 15th, 2007 by vinojoe 0

Domaine d’ Andezon Cotes du Rhone 2004 It’s autumn in the Northern Hemisphere and that means it’s time to start transitioning from the heat of summer to the cold of winter. Oh, and from the light, crisp, cold white wines to the heavier bodied, warm red wines — to match the richer, warmer dishes and [...]