Call For Torrontes, Other Terrific Inexpensive White Wines, An Old Friend Chardonnay, And A New Friend Pinot Noir

Recently, in buying wines for my Inexpensive Red Wines article, I picked up a few other wines. Voila! I hit the mother lode! All these wines are terrific and not expensive.

I found a new Torrontes, 2009 Trapiche. Earlier, in my Under The Radar 2009 Wines article, I reviewed two others, 2009 Inacayal Vineards and 2009 Zolo. All are from Argentina and all are outstanding.

One New Star Producer For White And Red Burgundy, Revisiting An Old Favorite Producer For Affordable White and Red Burgundy, And Trying To Get Back A Best In Class Rosé

One New Star Producer For White And Red Burgundy, Revisiting An Old Favorite Producer For Affordable White and Red Burgundy, And Trying To Get Back A Best In Class Rose

You Don’t Know Jura?

In the past I have known very little about Jura wines. What little I did know recalled a Sherry-like wine that I tasted sometime long, long ago. But, as I recently discovered, there are new things happening in Jura and it is being re-discovered. Here is the story.

Five Lovely Red and White Wines from Northern California

The five wines tasted here from Northern California were a delightful surprise to me. My palate usually leans toward European wines. I like earth, unadulterated purity, varietal correctness, balanced alcohol and wines that are made to be aged.

Champagne — Any Time Is Time For Champagne

We did our first review of Champagne in December 1979 (see Volume 1, Number 3 Underground Wine Letter Retrospective Issue). Interestingly, back then many wine drinkers paid little attention to Champagne. In those days a lot of Champagne had been poorly stored and were not at their best. But, to use a Yogi Berraism, then [...]

More 2009s And A Few Others

For many months I have been writing about the superb 2009 Beaujolais. Virtually everything has now arrived (still waiting for the Clos du Fief Prestige Cuvee which should be great) and these latest arrivals include some of the best wines of the vintage. Don’t miss them.

More 2009 Beaujolais

As I have been saying, 2009 is a superb year for Beaujolais. Is it the vintage of the century? Who knows and who cares? The point is that the wines are absolutely delicious. They have been arriving for the last few months and more will be arriving soon. Don’t miss them! Here are notes on some recent arrivals. The quality across the range of wines is outstanding and nearly all are Best Buys with prices from $12 to $25. These are wines you can drink now (remember Thanksgiving is not far off and Beaujolais is one of my favorite wines to serve with Thanksgiving turkey). But, you should also lay some away for the future. You’ll be glad you did.

Under The Radar 2009 Wines

We’ve been talking about the very favorable growing conditions in almost all parts of the world in 2009. So continuing with that theme here is a representative sampling of generally inexpensive 2009 wines that are distinctive and generally not well known. Hence, the “Under the Radar” theme. Be adventuresome. Try a few. I think you will be really glad you did and I expect you will find many new favorites.

Even More 2009 Rosés

The 2009 Rosés are soon to be gone. If you have not done so now is the time to buy some for the Holidays. They are very versatile and match very well with a wide variety of food.

More 2009 Rosés and Other Wine Bargains

Loire Valley Couly-Dutheil 2009 Chinon Rosé Baptiste Dutheil established this estate in 1921, which was then developed by René Couly, who married Madeleine Dutheil.  The family-owned operation has 85 hectares of vineyards east of Chinon along the Vienne River.  This wine is made using the Rosé de Saignée method.  Cabernet Franc is the red grape [...]