Let's review Trader Joe's wines

[Rebel Rose]

Paso Robles/Templeton has a Trader Joe's now. Yay! You have no idea how happy this makes me unless you too live in a tiny backwater town with two chain groceries with expansive floor space and dismal produce. Anyhoo . . . as I was perusing the aisles on my last visit I noticed a lot of really low priced wines. Are they good? Would they make good Saturday night hamburger-on-the-grill wines? Any good Sauvignon Blancs for that impromptu girlfriends-over-cheese-and-wine moment? Anything exceptional?

Think of all the small towns and suburbs that don't have a decent wine shop, but might have a Trader Joe's. I think it is our duty as American consumers to support our shopping brethren and college students by posting reviews!

Besides, we might have as much fun as Mark Fisher did . . . see wine columnist Mark Fisher's article for the Dayton Daily News: A Trader Joe’s Wine-Buying Experience

So on Saturday, I'm off to the little farmer's market in Templeton, and then a quick stop at Trader Joe's for wine and raviolis. What should I buy?

[dockhl]

Mary~

I've had both the Honeymoon Viogner and the La Ferme Julien (I think) rose........decent cold quaffing wines. $5.99ish, IIRC

Do NOT, under any circumstances, buy the French Ugni-Viogner. So disgusting, smells like fusel oil, tastes as bad. Jess and I took one sip, corked it up and took it back. VILE.

[AAQuesada]

Paso Robles/Templeton has a Trader Joe's now.  Yay!  You have no idea how happy this makes me unless you too live in a tiny backwater town with two chain groceries with expansive floor space and dismal produce. 

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I'm not in a backwater but I'm glad they opened up a bit of Cali here in GA. Remindes me of home!

This blog has some good reviews of TJ wine. Might have to rummage a bit... but should get you started until everyone here comes with their favorites!

http://quaffability.com/

[dvs]

the ferme juilan rose is great as the perrin cotes du rhone! both daily drinkers at our house!

[Rebel Rose]

Josefina 2006 Syrah Rose'

Paso Robles

Bottled for Trader Joe's by Maddelena Vineyards, Los Angeles

About: $4

Simple, solid strawberry flavor, good acidity, 12.5% alc.. It's dark enough and strawberry enough that it survives a deep, perspiring chill. On it's own, it has a little bit of a tin foil finish, mostly when it starts to warm up. But super chilled, with a cornbread crust kalamata and goat cheese mini-pizza, yum.

[Torrilin]

The German grapes tend to be a good bet. The syrahs also tend to be good (especially in blends). If you find Chardonnay-Semillon Blanc blends, they're likely to be good bets, straight Chardonnay (or anything else fashionable from California) is likely to be fairly bland. Oh and anything fizzy I've tried has been amusing enough to be worth what I paid for it.

If the average Californian who thinks they "know about wine" would ignore it, chances are it'll be worth the trouble. If they're advertising the wine in their flyers, it's worth trying a bottle. About half the time, it's drinkable, and the other half it hits the repeat buy list til they run out.

The two-buck chuck makes ok cooking wine if you're cooking for a crowd.

[Rebel Rose]

Thanks for the notes, torrilin. Germans sound like a good bet for summertime.

But tonight, I am tasting:

Concha y Toro

Casillero del Diablo

2005 Carmenere

Central Valley, Chile

About: $8?

The back label claims the wine tastes of chocolate, coffee and spice with raspberries and blackberries. I'd say that's pretty accurate, but I'd add that it has pretty grippy tannins and a tobacco-like finish. I forgot the price . . . about $8 I think? It would be good with a fatty cut of meat, honey spareribs and grilled beef and vegetables. For the price, I would recommend it to people looking to broaden their horizons into deep and tannic wines.

It's also pleasant chilled, and I bet it would be really good in sangria.