Buena Vista 2008 Carneros Pinot Noir Trader Joe’s $10 (Mike’s and Joe’s Pick)
Do you know this Sonoma Valley winery is the oldest continuous operating winery in California? It was started in 1857. The winery has changed hands three times in the last ten years and in 2011 was acquired by the Boisset Family of Burgundy Fame. At a furious pace, the Boisset Family is upgrading the winery and its operations and has plans to return the winery to its former glory days.

One of the wine guys at the Millbrae Trader Joe’s told me two weeks ago to watch for this Buena Vista Pinot Noir. I purchased one bottle to try and will be going back for more this week. They have a good-sized display of this wine and I imagine at this price it will go quickly. Interestingly, I had difficulty finding comparison prices for this wine, so perhaps it had a limited release. The winery just released the 2009 vintage of this same wine, so maybe this is a way of clearing inventory.

The wine has generous aromas of strawberry and raspberry and a good dose of spice, with nutmeg prominent. It is a medium-bodied wine, and what I like most about this is the long and lingering finish of that typical Pinot Noir characteristic of the red berry fruit. One thing I noticed was this wine opened in aroma and flavors about 30 minutes after pouring the first glass. Run it through an aerated or just let it breathe for 30 to 60 minutes before pouring. Decanting would accomplish the same thing. On the Buena Vista Website, the 2009 is selling for $25, so I suspect that was the SRP for the 2008. At $10 at TJ’s this is steal. I am rating this wine at 88 Points. Just a note, Cost Plus World Market had this same wine on sale back in October for $9 if you bought 4 or more. One of our Vintage Tasters gave it an 87 at that time.

Cameron Hughes Lot 271 2009 Pinot Noir Russian River Valley $14 at Safeway (Joe’s Pick)
We opened both the Buena Vista and the Cameron Hughes and did a side-by-side tasting. The Cameron Hughes has a little more of the red berry fruit and a pepper spice to it. It is quite tasty and a little hardier than the Buena Vista. I found this at the Burlingame Safeway for $13.99. If you buy six in the current sale, you can get it for $12.99. We gave the nod to the Buena Vista for two reasons. The C.H. Pinot does not have that long and lingering finish that the Buena Vista has. Secondly, the Buena Vista is $4 less in price. Nevertheless, we think the Cameron Hughes is worthy of 88 Points, the same as the Buena Vista. Okay, so the Buena Vista is an 88.5. Wine Enthusiast gave the C.H. Pinot a 90-Point rating.

2008 Carneros Pinot and the C.H. 2009 Russian River Valley Pinot

Happy Pinot Noir shopping!

Interested in visting wineries in the Sideways Wine Trail?

The 21st Annual Zinfandel Festival - The Concourse in San Francisco

This was the 21st Annual ZAP Festival held on Saturday, January 28, 2012. This year it was held at The Concourse in San Francisco instead of at Fort Mason. Although I missed the views of the yachts and the Golden Gate Bridge in the background, The Concourse was in our opinion a much more comfortable setting. More than 300 wineries poured Zinfandel wines from various vintages, and many poured barrel samples from the 2010 vintage. As I did a year ago at ZAP, my main focus was searching for values in Zinfandel wines under the $20 price point. Overall, and this includes the more expensive wines I tasted, I found a huge range of Zinfandel styles. Many Zins were too big in fruit and jammy flavors or over oaked, with loads of vanilla overpowering the wines. Here are the wines I enjoyed the most in the under-$20 range. I only included the ones that are found in many wine shops and supermarkets in the San Francisco Bay Area. I also listed the SRP for these wines, but most can be found for much less at many wine stores.

• Alexander Valley Vineyards 2009 Sin Zin $20 – 86 Pts.
• Alexander Valley Vineyards 2009 Temptation $12 – 86 Pts.
• Ancient Peaks 2009 Paso Robles $17 – 87 Pts.
• Bogle Winery 2009 Old Vine $11 – 86 Pts.
• Cellar No 8 2009 California $10 – 86 Pts.
• Deep Purple 2010 Lodi $12 – 86 Pts.
• Dry Creek 2009 Heritage $19 – 86 Pts.
• Headbanger 2009 Sonoma County $20 – 85 Pts.
• Joel Gott 2009 California $17 – 85 Pts.
• Pedroncelli 2009 Mother Clone Dry Creek Valley $15 – 87 Pts.
• Sextant Wheelhouse 2008 $16 – 88 Pts.
• Sledgehammer 2009 California $16 – 86 Pts.
• Sobon Estate Rocky Top Amador City $16 – 85 Pts.
• Stonehedge 2010 Amador $12 – 86 Pts.

Use the Wine-searcher.com to find if any of these wines are available in your vicinity.

I found a delicious Zinfandel wine in a wine shop for $10 that I rated at 88 Points. I will write about next Monday on GoodCheapVino.com. Look for it.

Matthieu Roux Pouilly Fuisse 2010 Costco Redwood City $9.99 – Joe’s Pick
How many of you have found a Pouilly Fuissé that was very tasty and authentic for under $10? This is a dandy-tasting Chardonnay from Cote D’Or in Burgundy, France. The flavors in this wine are pear and honey and the wine has gentle acidity in the mouth. Have this wine with a roasted chicken or a baked white fish. This wine also makes an excellent choice for an aperitif. This a wine that I will certainly buy again. 88 Points

DeLoach 2009 Cool Climate Vineyards Russian River Valley Zinfandel - Jim’s Pick
This is one of those wines that Cost Plus had at the sale price of $14.99. This has white pepper and berry fruit characteristics. It has an interesting aftertaste that you may or may not like. Best to describe it is a walnut character. The wine is a very decent Zin that matches with food. It is not too big or so fruit forward it drowns out the meal. 87 Points. DeLoach is a winery located in the Russian River Valley near Sebastopol on Olivet Road (See Wine Trail). It is owned by the Boisset Family of Burgundy Fame.

Mud House Pinot Noir K&L Wines $10.99 – Bruce’s Pick
This is the wine we did a Bargain Alert on last week. As of Monday morning, January 30th, I checked the inventory for this wine. For the Mud House Pinot there are 60 bottles available at the Redwood City store, 43 in San Francisco, and 25 at the Hollywood Store. If you missed our review last week of this excellent bargain wine you can read it here.

Nothing to Write Home About

Yalumba Viognier Eden Valley 2010
The Wine Spectator gives this wine 90 Points. I am going with an 84, and that means I did not care for this wine one bit. The wine is very floral, so much so that we found it overpowering. We also did not like the aftertaste of this wine. Costco carries this wine at many of their stores in the S.F. Bay Area.

Joel Gott 2009 California Cabernet Sauvignon $12.99 Costco Redwood City
California on the label means this a blend from vines from several areas of California. I think the wine is very decent but the one flaw is that it does not taste like a true Cabernet Sauvignon. You can do better with the likes of Louis Martini Sonoma Cabernet for $11.

Cost Plus Wine Sale
Now until February 20 Cost Plus will have sale on many of their wines. Check the Cost Plus World Market website for your local ad. For Valentine’s Day, the Segura Viudas Brut sparkling wine is on sale for $7.99 a bottle. This is one of our favorite bargain sparkling wines.

Super Bowl Recipe
Thinking about Gaucamole for the Super Bowl. Forget the store bought Gaucamole. Make your own and it will be devoured in a many of minutes. Check out this old family recipe.

2008 Mud House “Swan” Pinot Noir Central Otago New Zealand
Bruce’s favorite varietal is Pinot Noir and he states: “I bought a bottle of Mud House at K&L in RWC and went back today and bought 6 more. It is fruity, soft and balanced, as good as some of the Pinots I have paid $40 for. Recently I purchased Calera and Banshe for $20. They were good but Mudhouse beats them by a mile.”

Once I heard this from Bruce, I had to give the Pinot a try. I was heading down to Palo Alto so a stop at the Redwood City K&L Wines was an easy call. We tried the Pinot Noir last night, and it is as good at Bruce states. It could easily pass for a $30 Pinot. It has a little mocha character that adds a little extra to the red berry flavors of this wine.

According to K&L Wines: “The fruit comes from Central Otago, which is the new “darling” area for New Zealand Pinot and to be specific the sub-region of Bendigo. The wine, which spent 10 months in 30% new French oak, offers a bouquet of raspberry, cherry, clove, earth and mocha. On the palate, there are fine tannins that frame the core of fruit with good acidity supporting the fine finish.”

You can visit the K&L Website and look at the inventory for this wine. You can purchase online, but I am more reserved these days and need to try a wine before I think of buying half a case or more.

2009 Viticcio Bere Tuscana – The Wine Stop, KL Wines $11.99 (Joe’s Pick)
This is a very nice Italian blend from Tuscany. It has more flavors and character than the average Chianti that is made with Sangiovese grapes. This one has 50% Sangiovese, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 25% Merlot. It is very soft on the palate, with flavors of cherry and blueberries. It has a very nice finish and to me is a perfect wine with a pasta dish. Wine Spectator likes it enough to give it 90 Points. I will go with 88 Points. It is a crowd pleaser and very gentle on your pocketbook at $11.99.

Quivira 2009 Dry Creek Zinfandel – Costco $15.49, KL Wines $18.99 (Jim’s Pick)
I have seen this wine at various stores for around $19 and was tempted to try it because of the 91 Points from the Wine Spectator. Fortunately, the Foster City Costco started to carry the same wine at $15.49. How could I pass it up this time around? What I like about this Zin is that it’s just the right balance and not over the top, not too robust and port-like as many big Zins are today. Some nice spice flavors come through with this wine. We paired it with a roasted Rosemary chicken and it was delightful. 88 Points

Artesa 2010 Carneros Chardonnay- $12.99 Costco – (Janelle’s Pick)
Janelle loves Chardonnay wine that has a balanced oak, creamy feel in the mouth, not too much buttery flavors. Those are hard to come by for under $20. This Artesa Chardonnay will fill the bill for Chardonnay lovers of this style. The bonus in this tasty Chardonnay is the long and lingering finish. Wow! 91 Points by the Wine Enthusiasts, we will go with 89 Points. Suggested retail price on this wine is $20.

On an additional note to Artesa. This is a beautiful winery to visit in the Carneros wine region of Napa. It is easy to get to and the views are breathtaking. The Raventos family of Spain are the owners of this winery. Here is a link to the Carneros Wine Trail on WineCountryGetaways.com

Bargain wine hunters should study results
For bargain wine seekers, one of the best features of this event is the fact that this competition divides the popular varietals by price range. Take Sauvignon Blanc, for example. There are two categories in the bargain price range: “Up to $13.99” and “$14.00 to $19.99.” Within each category you have awards for Best of Class, Double Gold, Gold, Silver and Bronze. There are so many wines in this competition that, frankly, I am not looking past the gold medal range to discover any possible wine bargains.

What do these results mean for the bargain wine hunter? For starters, I think they are more valuable than Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, the Wine Spectator, or similar wine publications. The fact is that there are many judges, not just a few, and that makes the selections more impressive. I have met Ray Johnson, the assistant director of this contest, at many wine blogging events. I believe he is a very trustworthy and genuine individual and, most importantly, impartial.

I like looking through all the bargain categories and mark the wines that are of interest to me. I then use the Wine-Searcher.com to see which wines are available locally. I am sure that I am going to find a few wonderful and outstanding wine values from the results of this competition. Here are a few that appeal to me. A McManis 2010 Viognier priced at around $11. I have never tried this wine, but because it received best in class in the “Up to $19.99” category, it is surely worth a try. I am a fan of good Viognier. Here is another one to try: Rodney Strong 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, Best of Class for “$15 to $19.99.” My Costco has this wine for $11. Now that’s a bargain. I have tried the 2008 and it is excellent. If the 2009 is nearly as good, it is case worthy at this price. The Chateau Ste Michelle 2010 Riesling, Best in Class in its category, can be found at many stores like Trader Joe’s, etc., but Costco currently has this wine for $6.

Where to find complete results
You can look at all the results on Winejudging.com. You can also take a look at the judges and see their qualifications. You can also be more ambitious and for $65, advanced ticket price, attend the Public Tasting to be held in San Francisco on February 18 from 2 to 5 pm.

2010 Public Tasting - Chronicle Wine Competition

Clos de Chacras’s 2008 Cavas de Crianza $12.99 at KL Wines and The Wine Stop – Joe’s Pick
This is a terrific deal for this wonderful blend from Mendoza in Argentina. It is 40% Malbec, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 30% Merlot. I found this wine to be loaded with plum and spice characteristics, and it leaves a beautiful texture in the mouth. It has a great finish and all this for a measly $12.99. I think it will go great with a juicy steak. Robert Parker gives it 91 points, I will go with an easy 89 Points. It’s a true bargain wine!

Blend of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot

Cameron Hughes 2009 North Coast Zinfandel – $8 Costco Redwood City – Mike’s Pick
The North Coast Zin is a delight to drink, very balanced and not one of those big heavy and clumsy Zins. This one is full of berries and very mild tannins. It has good acidity and is therefore a nice food-friendly wine. We had it with ham and it was a perfect match. I think it is a great buy in quality Zin at only $8 a bottle. It is prime drinking through 2012 and perhaps longer. 87 Points

Robert Mondavi 2009 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon – $17-$20 various stores -Joe’s Pick
This is one of the very few samples I receive from wine companies or distributors. The Robert Mondavi Napa Valley Cabs have always been my favorites as a best buy for a true quality Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley, and this one is no different. I love the aroma and lingering aftertaste of this wine. To me it has those true Cabernet flavors that I enjoy so much. The 2008 is still in the stores so I am not sure when the 2009 will become available, but it is a true delight and I will certainly add some to my cellar. Usually Costco gets a truckload of this wine and often has it on sale for around $16. The Robert Mondavi Website lists the 2008 wine at $28 a bottle. I rate this 2009 wine at 90 Points.

Wine News
My local wine shop proprietor, Gerald Weisel of Weimax, got some nice PR in the Saturday Wall Street Journal by wine journalist Lettie Teague. Click here for the article.

We have two winners for the GCV Zinfandel Festival contest. Robert L. and Michael each win a pair of tickets to one of the ZAP events. The Grand Tasting on Saturday is a wonderful way of discovering Zinfandel wines. Over 400 wineries will be pouring Zinfandel wines at this event. More Info.

With a screw top there is less chance for a wine to go bad, (corked) and the cost for the winery to use screw tops is less than for corks. Screw tops are fine for wines that you are going to drink within a short period of time. Although some may argue with this, I do not believe that a bottle of wine with a screw top is going to improve sitting in your wine cellar for a of couple years. It will taste the same as the day you stuck it in the cellar or perhaps worse, but never better. No oxygen is going to pass through a screw top so those subtle aging characteristics produced by a cork are not going to take place. Corks breathe, screw tops to not. I am not recommending that you shy away from purchasing wine with screw tops but that you are aware that these wines are to drink now. When you purchase wine that comes with a screw top, be sure to drink it within a year.

Be sure you open the bottle properly. There is a right way and a wrong way to open a screw top bottle of wine. Several months back I created a very short slide video showing the proper way to open a screw-top bottle of wine. For those of you that have trouble opening a screw-top bottle of wine, it is worth a view.

Leone de Castris Salice Salentino Riserva KL Wines – $12.99 – Joe’s pick
This is a beauty of a red wine that delivers like a $30 bottle of wine. It is complex, layered, and full of intense flavors. The aroma and flavors are many, but black fruit powers throughout. This is a big wine but balanced with alcohol at 13.5%. The winery is in Puglia, Italy, and this wine is made from 90% Negroamaro and 10% Malvasia Nera grapes. This one will go fast at KL Wines at this price. Robert Parker gives it a 91 and I will go with 90 Points.

Big, bold, and beautiful

Macon Vinzelles 2010 Cost Plus World Market $10 to $13 – Mike’s Pick
This is from the Macon appellation in Burgundy. It has excellent mineral qualities and a long finish. It has those familiar European Chardonnay characteristics with a medium body and complex flavors. It is not oaky and has no buttery or creamy characteristics. The price at Cost Plus seems to vary on this wine week to week. I purchased if for $9.99 but the next week is was $12.99. Great wine at this price for a white wine from Macon. 88 Points.

Pascual Toso Sparkling Brut The Wine Stop, KL Wines $9.99 – Joe’s Pick
I am a big fan of any of the wines that are produced by Pascual Toso. This sparkling wine is made from 100 Chardonnay grapes and is bone dry. It is totally refreshing with nice apple characteristics. The list price is $15 but you can get it in Burlingame at The Wine Stop or at the KL Wines shop in Redwood City and San Francisco for $10. I found this wine quite enjoyable but vastly different from most of the sparkling wines that I enjoy. Last week we recommended another sparkling wine, the Deligeroy Crémant, also at KL Wines for $11.99. My choice would easily be the Deligeroy but if not available I would certainly go for the Toso Brut. 85 Points

Zinfandel Festival – Win Tickets
Don’t forget to enter our contest for a pair of tickets to the Zinfandel Festival January 26 to 28. The contest ends on January 15 and so far we have only a handful of contestants. Good odds! Enter Contest

Stonestown Trader Joe’s in San Francisco
Vintage Wine Taster Mike reports that this store has Parson’s Creek Shiraz/Cab for $15, which is less than half the regular price. They also have the Donatello Chardonnay for $10 (our review) and magnums of the Tribunal at $16.50 (our review). These wines are few and far between at most TJ’s in the S.F. Bay Area

BevMo 90 Point Wines
I just received an email about BevMo’s huge sale on 90-Pt and above wines. When I perused the hefty 18 pages of 90-Pt wines, with the exception of about 5 wines, all ratings are by BevMo’s Wilfred Wong. This is somewhat misleading in my view.

The Results of the 2012 Chronicle Wine Competition
This past week some 65 wine judges evaluated 5500 wines at this annual competition. This is by far and away the biggest wine competition around, and you can get some great leads by browsing the list of medal winners. Personally, I just look at the “Best of Class” and the Gold Medal winners. The nice thing about this competition is that the wines are placed into categories by price. For example, you can find all the Chardonnay winners in the $10 to $14.99 category. What a great idea!