Wine Picks of the Month Archive
2016 Smith and Hook Cabernet Sauvignon
PWS Rating 89
WS Not Rated
This is the great fruity California Cab. It is delicious with any red meat. It is great with cheese. It can even be drunk on its own.
It get's this month Wine Pick of the Month Award.
Price: Inexpensive ($14-20)
Taste: Vanilla, caramel, black fruit moderate acidity with balanced alcohol with smooth finish.
Pairs well with: Red Meat
Availability: Everywhere
2012 Macchia Mischevious Zinfandel
PWS Rating 90
WS Not Rated
This is the Zinfandel for those who love the big fruit forward, jammy Zins. This Lodi beauty will not disappoint. In our wine tasting it beat out five other stellar Zins. It get's this month Wine Pick of the Month Award.
Price: Inexpensive ($19-21)
Taste: this Zin has red and black berry fruit. Well balanced acidity and tannin. It has a finish that lasts
Pairs well with: Brisket and duck.
Availability: Total Wines
2014 Mer Soleil Reserve Chardonnay
Moderate Price ($25-35)
PWS rating 89
WS 90
Offers mix of tropical fruit with floral notes. Some light oak and creamy finish.
Wine Picks for the Summer 2015
These wines are great to drink by the pool or just lounging around. They are inexpensive and food friendly.
Vinho Verde (Portugal): Casal Garcia
Verdejo (Spanish) Naia
Blonde Five (California) CK Mondavi
White Rioja (Spain) Baron de Ley
Sauvignon Blanc (Chile) Santa Ema Reserve
Wine Picks of the Month Archive
2012 Macchia Mischevious Zinfandel
PWS Rating 90
WS Not Rated
This is the Zinfandel for those who love the big fruit forward, jammy Zins. This Lodi beauty will not disappoint. In our wine tasting it beat out five other stellar Zins. It get's this month Wine Pick of the Month Award.
Price: Inexpensive ($19-21)
Taste: this Zin has red and black berry fruit. Well balanced acidity and tannin. It has a finish that lasts
Pairs well with: Brisket and duck.
2011 Mollydooker Blue Eyed Boy Shiraz
PWS Rating 93
WS 92
This is an awesome shiraz. We love Mollydooker's the Boxer ( a previous wine pick) but when we tasted their higher end label we we were blown away.
Price: Moderate ($40-60)
Taste: This shiraz has great fruit, spice, smooth tanin, good acid and is amazingly well balanced. It has a finish that lasts
Pairs well with: Rib-Eye, Lamb
PWS Rating 92
WS Rating not rated
This is a great Pinot Noir. Although a bit pricey by some standards it is a great value. It pairs well with a host of holiday fare: turkey, dressing, butternut squash dishes, mushroom dishes.
Price: Moderate ($20-40)
Taste: Fruit forward, new world Pinot with hints of earthiness. Plenty of cherry and berry fruit
Pairs well with: Turkey, sage dressing, sausage stuffing, prime rib
Byron Chardonnay
California
PWS 90
The Byron is a wonderfully oaky chardonnay with significant butter and vanilla on the nose and palette.
Price: Moderate (~$20)
Taste: honey, peach .
Pairs well with: poultry, fish, anything in a butter or cream sauce.
Nivole Moscoto
Italy
PWS 90
We do not usually recommend Moscoto but for the holidays this wine will work well with the host of holiday treates
Pairs well with: dessert
Wine Picks for the Summer
PWS Rating 86
WS Rating not rated
Not our traditional super grapefruity wine. Yet this wine has great acidity and wonderful tropical fruit flavors. It goes well with most foods. It is very inexpensive. Great value, get a case.
Green and Red Zinfandel 2009
California
PWS 90
In our recent red zinfandel tasting this was the number one. It has traditional pepper, jam and spice. It was good with barbecue ribs on just by itself
Oyster Bay Pinot Noir 2010
New Zealand
PWS 89
In our Pinot Noir tasting we tried this and thought it was the best of the bunch for fruity light Pinot, great for the hot weather and grilled salmon
Price: Inexpensive (<$20)
Taste: Lots of berry fruit, .
Pairs well with: Salmon, coq au vin, seared tuna
Availability: Costco Liquors (outside): Ask for our partner Daniel
APOTHIC Red 2009
California Zinfandel Blend
PWS Rating 89
WS Rating not rated
Continuing on our journey this month for good barbeque and summer wines, I found this gem at Costco Liquors. We have discussed Zinfandel blends before but they all came with hefty price tags. Not so with Apothic Red. You can find it as inexpensive as $8.00. This California blend contains Zinfandel, Syrah and Merlot. It is fruity with enough body to stand up to the best Texas Q around. The small amount of merlot pairs well with the ubiquitous smoke of Texas barbeque, while the zinfandel and syrah take on the variety of barbeque sauces. There is enough structure here to also drink it with a grilled steak. Just want to quaff a red, this one will also meet the bill, just cool it down to about 55 degrees and just revel in the juicy fruit.
CHATEAU STE. MICHELLE
Chardonnay Columbia Valley 2008
PWS Rating 91
WS Rating 90
This wine is awesome! You can find it as inexpensive as $8.00. This Washington wine will knock your socks off. This is what wine spectator had to say "Bright and jazzy, with pretty pineapple, grapefruit, elderflower and spice flavors that lingers on the finish without excess weight. This just floats on for a while".
I loved it with seafood in a butter sauce. It was also great just to drink by itself on a hot day
Enjoy!
Availability: Everywhere
Price: Inexpensive (<$15)
Taste: You will not believe it
2008 Dryland Sauvignon Blanc
PWS Rating 92
This is a truly delightful Sauv. Blanc. It is crisp, with strong citrus and grapefruity nose. This wine is delightful alone or with any seafood. My favorite dish is moules frites (Mussells with French fries). Better than this years Kim Crawford which got a 91 in the Wine Spectator. This wine was rated highly by the members of PWS.
Enjoy!
Availability: Everywhere
Price: Inexpensive (<$15)
2006 Chasing Lions
PWS Rating 93
This wine is a steal! Try to find it in your area. It is a blend of 55% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 7% Syrah, 3% Petit Verdot. 60% aged two years french oak and 40% aged in american oak two years. This wine exhibits a fragrant bouquet of black currant, cedar, spice box and espresso accompanied by flavors of licorice, mocha, black
cherry and toasty oak. Dense and medium-bodied with beautiful elegance, texture and equilibrium showcasing the wonderful terroir of the Napa Valley.
Availability: Unknown
Price: Moderate (<$25)
Taste: Awesome
2005 B Side Cabernet Sauvignon
PWS Rating 94
This wine is awesome! Try to find it in your area. It is a Sebastiani wine. The name is a play off the term B side for the backside of a record. This vineyard is on the B side of their main vineyards. The brothers wanted to try something unique. They succeeded. This wine exhibits a fragrant bouquet of black fruit accompanied by flavors of fruit and chocolate with carmel on the finish. Medium-bodied with beautiful elegance, texture proving that sometimes the B side is as good or better than the A side.
Enjoy!
Availability: Unknown
Price: Moderate (<$25)
Taste: Awesome