My taste tends towards reds, although I'm not a big fan of zinfandel or syrah (& shiraz). My taste in whites is not refined enough to venture much above $15/bottle, and really, most of the whites I really like are under $10.
I do like champagne, in fact, I like it way too much, given my budget and tastes.
In the following "reviews" I will mercifully dispense with all the "hints of black currant" and "chunky on the palate, with a long, dark finish" crap. Frankly, my tastebuds are pretty binary, and I like them that way, since it makes life both easier and less expensive (it also synergizes well with my equally binary memory). Therefore, the following table lists only what I consider the important stuff.
Varietal |
Wine |
Price Range |
Description |
| Chardonnay | Livingston Cellars NV | $5-$6/ 1.5 liter | Best price/performance in a swillable. |
| Concha y Toro Frontera | $7-$8/ 1.5 liter | Better than the LC, and it even has a real cork! Impress your friends. Show them that you care. | |
| Robert Mondavi | $18/ 750 ml | Like I said, whites are not my bag, especially Chards. If you have to serve someone a decent white, Mondavi is at least reliable. | |
| Chablis Blanc | Livingston Cellars NV | $5-$6/ 1.5 liter | Funny how the only "chablis blanc" wines you tend to find in U.S. stores come in a jug or some other form of screw-top. This is actually my cheap white of choice. |
| Pinot Grigio | Forest Glen | $7/ 750 ml | Okay, I admit it. This is one of my favorite whites. I'm sure there are infinitely better Italian PGs on the market, but I don't care enough about PGs to try them. |
| Sauvignon Blanc/Fume Blanc | Robert Mondavi (not Woodbridge) | $10/ 750 ml | SBs are either good or bad. I've had good ones that were made by vintners other than Mondavi, but so infrequently that I can't remember the names. As with most wines, Mondavi Fume Blancs are reliable and reasonably priced. |
| Burgundy/ Pinot Noir | Livingston Cellars NV | $5-$6/ 1.5 liter | Best price/performance in a swillable. |
| Napa Ridge | $10/ 750 ml | Best price/performance in a semi-respectable pinot. Look for sales. | |
| Pelee Island Winery | $10US/ 750 ml | An impressive pinot grown in a region not friendly to pinots. Hard to find in the states, but well worth the trip to the winery (or its mainland store) if you find yourself in SW Ontario. | |
| La Crema | $15-$16/ 750 ml | Impress your friends. A great gift wine, goes with everything from grilled tuna to pasta or steak, and you can find it at almost any decent wine store (including many supermarket wine sections). | |
| Robert Sinskey Vineyards | $20-$70/ 750 ml | RSV makes some of my favorite pinots at both the ~$20 and $35 price points. Plus, their initials are reminiscent of Stevie Ray Vaughn. They are harder to find (you'll probably have to go to a decent wine store), but if you come across one, treat yourself, even if it's a $20 bottle for $50 in a restaurant. It's actually worth it. | |
| Adrian Fog | $90/750 ml | Hey, I know this guy. Robert Parker is nuts for this stuff, and most of it sells out before the grapes are picked. The samples I've had are good, but I think it needs to lay down for several years before it'll reach it's potential. | |
| Bordeaux/Cabernet Sauvignon | Livingston Cellars NV | $5-$6/ 1.5 liter | Best price/performance in a swillable. |
| Concha y Toro Frontera | $7-$8/ 1.5 liter | A great table wine. Again, it has a cork, so looks (and sounds, upon opening) better than the LC. | |
| Barton et Guestier Cabernet Sauvignon | $5-$7/ 750 ml | A great deal in something that some might term a Bordeaux blend that actually comes from France. Sales can bring it below $5, and magnums can often be had for $9 or less. | |
| Black Swan Cabernet Sauvignon | $10-$13/ 1.5 liter | From Australia; a little chunkier and sweeter, but quite drinkable. | |
| Harrow Estates Cab/Merlot blend | $10US/ 750 ml | Another Cannuck wine. Again, hard to find and probably not worth the effort, but an impressive wine for the region. | |
| Luna di Luna | $10/ 750 ml | What business do the Italians have messing with this grape? Well, they do a nice job, and put it in a very pretty bottle. | |
| Napa Ridge | $10/ 750 ml | Great price/performance in a semi-respectable cab. Look for sales. | |
| Berringer Founder's Estate | $10/750 ml | Great price/performance in a semi-respectable cab. Look for sales. You can sometimes get magnums for $15, which is a great deal. | |
| Texas Hills Vineyard | $12/750 ml | Drinkable, but probably not worth the price. However, getting to the winery is a great way to kill a Sunday afternoon. | |
| Becker Vineyards Reserve | $15/750 ml | A good cab is hard to find in Texas, and this one comes close. Not really worth the money, but different, and a fun conversation piece. | |
| Five Gables Paso Robles | $18/750 ml | An interesting wine from the Santa Cruz mountains. | |
| Cakebread | $25/750 ml | Awesome price/performance, especially if you want to impress someone. | |
| Ferrari-Corano | $20/750 ml | Great price/performance, and a very nice winery to visit. | |
| Rafanelli | $30/750 ml | A small Napa valley winery. I'm not sure if it's worth the $30, but they do tend to sell out early. | |
| B. R. Cohn | $80/750 ml | Sublime, and you'll pay for it. They make a $20 cab that is also awesome; sorry I can't remember the specific names, but the pricetags will help you differentiate. | |
| Coppola Rutherford Vineyard | $50/750 ml | Hand-printed, numbered label. Awesome stuff but like a lot of Coppola wines, needs to age for at least 5 years. | |
| '95 Chateau Duhart-Milon Rothchild, Pauillac | $100?/750 ml | I bought mine in France in 2000 for about $30. I'm not sure I'll ever have the heart to drink it. | |
| Cabernet Franc | Colio Estate Reserve | $15US/750 ml | No relation to the rapper. A good Cab Franc varietal is virtually impossible to find, and this one comes from SW Ontario. And it's good. In fact, it's worth the $15, especially if you can buy it at the winery. |
| Coppola Reserve | $100?/ 750 ml | The wine that made me fall in love with Cab Franc. This is a special, numbered bottle, available only at the winery, where it costs about $50. Sublime. | |
| Rhone blends | Parallel 45 | $10-$12/ 750 ml | One of my all-time favorites. A little lighter than a pinot; goes well with just about anything, including nothing. This is probably my pick for the best deal in any French wine you can find easily in the states. |
| Other reds | Preston of Dry Creek Faux | $20/750 ml | Thought I'd include this just faux the hell of it. Nyuck nyuck. I visited this vineyard in 2000, and found this to be interesting and different. Not sure if you can actually buy it anyplace else. |
| Domaine de Panisse Chateauneuf du Pape | $25/750 ml | "CDP", as my friend Eric Brunick calls it, is one of my favorites. Big and chewy, and expensive. This is one of the more affordable bottles. A great steak wine. | |
| Quivira Dry Creek Cuvee | $25/750 ml | An interesting Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Zinfandel blend, which I'm guessing makes it a Rhone style? Anyway, worth trying for a change if you can find it. | |
| Preston of Dry Creek Cinsaut | $25/750 ml | Another Frenchy wine from our friends at Preston. Delicious and different. | |
| Banfi Brunello di Montalcino | $30/750 ml | In the world of big reds, you can't beat Brunello. Perhaps the best steak wine ever fermented. There are no deals on these in the states, and even in Italy they are expensive, but Banfi produces a reliable BDM for a relatively reasonable price. Treat yourself to one next time you grill up some angus beef. | |
| Citra Sangiovese | $8-$10/1.5 liter | The best price/performance in Italian red, several years running. Grab a bottle if you're having the gang over for pasta or pizza. | |
| Amphora winery | $20-$50/750 ml | Okay, I visited this little winery in 2002 and frankly, I can't remember all the wines I tasted; in fact I can't even find the bottles I bought. But they were all good, and the winemaker/manager/owner, Rick Hutchinson, was one of the coolest guys I've ever met. He met us at the rickety gate, took us into the old barn that served as a tasting room, and spent a good hour with us yanking samples out of various barrels with a giant pipette, mixing blends on the fly in our glasses. Amphora's production is small, but if you ever come across it, buy a bottle, and raise a toast to my pal Rick. You will not be disappointed! |
Copyright © 2004 Vince Cavasin. All rights reserved.