CheapWineFinder Podcast

Send us Fan Mail The Trader Joe's Napa Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon 2018, the actual name on the bottle is Trader Joe's Platinum Reserve Oakville Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 Lot #97. The name was too long to fit in the title section. Trader Joe's features an array of Napa Valley sub-AVA Cabernets. I saw Atlas Peak, Yountville, Spring Mountain in addition to Oakville. All sell...

Send us Fan Mail The Trader Joe's Reserve Carneros Chardonnay 2019 is actually Carneros Napa Valley Lot #204. There is a Lot #205 which I imagine is from a different producer. Some Trader Joe's get the 204 and others get the 205, both are $9.99.Carneros is an interesting AVA, it is located half in Sonoma and half in Napa. If the vineyards are on the Napa side you almost always see Napa s...

Send us Fan Mail The Aruma Malbec 2018 is a joint project between Nicolas Catena and Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) of Bordeaux fame. Both represent families that have been in the wine trade since the 1800s. They created Bodegas Caro is 1999 which is dedicated to growing high altitude (the vineyards 3,000 feet above sea level) focusing on Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. Malbec was once a pr...

Send us Fan Mail The Taymar Russian River Chardonnay 2019 is a $7.99 Trader Joe's exclusive produced for them by DNA Vineyards who have made some of the best TJ's wines over the years. DNA Vineyards is Dennis Patton and Andrea Silverstein. Dennis has been a leader in the Mendocino wine industry for forty years and Andrea has been in the industry for 25 years and a part of DNA Vineyards s...

Send us Fan Mail The La Burgondie Brut Rosé is an $11.99 Trader Joe's import Sparkling wine made in the Traditional Method with grapes farmed in the Burgundy region of France. This is a Cremant which is French for Sparkling wine or Bubbly. The grapes used in this Cremant are 80% Pinot Noir and 20% Gamay. If you are not familiar with Burgundy the southernmost growing region is Beaujolais which...

Send us Fan Mail The Lange Twins Old Vine Zinfandel 2017 is an Estate grown Zinfandel sourced from vineyards in the Lodi AVA of California's Central Valley. The Lange Twins are identical twins Brad and Randall Lange, their family have farmed in Lodi since the 1870s and first purchased vineyards in 1916.They are the 4th generation farming grapes with the 5th generation also part of the family...

Send us Fan Mail The Riff Pinot Grigio 2019 is an organic inexpensive (around ten bucks) Pinot Grigio sourced from vineyards in the Delle Venezie DOC of northern Italy. The vineyards are situated in the Dolomites which are part of the Southern Alps Mountain Range. The Delle Venezie is a White wine grape growing region and they grow as many German grape varietals and Italian varietals. Alto Adige i...

Send us Fan Mail The 30 Miles Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 ALDI is a $14.99 store exclusive. That is about all I know about this wine. I can usually do some sleuthing and figure out who made Trader Joe's wine. But ALDI does things a little differently. With Trader Joe's wines, I can do a trademark search and find out which producer holds the trademark. That does not completely tell me wh...

Send us Fan Mail The Deep Valley Red Blend 2018 is a $5.99 Trader Joe's exclusive sourced from vineyards in Mendocino County. Deep Valley is not an AVA inside Mendocino, it is a local name for the region around the town of Ukiah. This Red blend, Petite Sirah, Merlot, and Syrah, was produced by the custom wine department of one of the oldest wineries in Mendocino. Since they didn't put th...

Send us Fan Mail The Fleur de Napa Sauvignon Blanc 2019 is a $6.99 Trader Joe's exclusive. If Napa Valley is not your first thought when you think of American Sauvignon Blanc, that is ok because Napa has concentrated on the other Sauvignon, Cabernet Sauvignon. But back in the 1960s, Robert Mondavi kick-started they whole Sauvignon Blanc craze with a wine he called Fume Blanc. The story I hear...

Send us Fan Mail The Eola Hills Classic Pinot Noir 2017 is sourced from 7 vineyards in the Willamette Valley Check us out at www.cheapwinefinder.com or email us at podcast@cheapwinefinder.com

Send us Fan Mail The Santa Carolina Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from vineyards in the Miraflores and Los Lingues estates in the Colchagua Valley in Chile. The Colchagua Valley is located between the Coastal Mountains and the Andes. This is a wine I found at Costco selling for $7.49 a quick check of the internet found it selling online for $9.99 to $12.99. Jam...

Send us Fan Mail The Presto Sparkling Rose' is a $9.99 Whole Foods North American exclusive made from the Lagrein and Raboso grapes grown in the Veneto and Trentino regions of northern Italy. Trentino and Veneto are well known for Alto Adige (Pinot Grigio) and Prosecco regions. Lagrein and Raboso are local grapes that are popular in Italy, you can find these grapes as single varietal wines at...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Two Angels Petite Sirah 2017 is a wine I found at Costco for $9.99 sourced from vineyards in the Red Hills sub-AVA of the Lake County AVA north of Napa in Northern California. This is a fairly new wine brand, the 2017 vintage is their third vintage for this label. Red Hills AVA is an interesting growing region. It is located on the southwest corner of Clear Lake with...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Paso Dragon Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 is a Trader Joe's $7.99 exclusive sourced from vineyards in the Paso Robles AVA of the Central Coast AVA in California. Paso Robles is about halfway between Los Angeles and San Fransisco. Trader Joe's does not offer up much information on this Cabernet. Most of the Fearless Flyer article refers to the Paso Dragon name. The...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Trader Joe's Petit Reserve Russian River Sauvignon Blanc 2019 is a $7.99 Trader Joe's exclusive sourced from grapes grown in the Russian River AVA of western Sonoma County. This Sauvignon Blanc is produced for TJ's by Owl Ridge Wine Services. Owl Ridge is a custom crush and private label facility located in the Russian River AVA founded in 2006. They ma...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Tamarack Cellars Firehouse Red 2017 is a blend of 33% Syrah, 27% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc, 3% Mourvèdre, 2% Grenache, 2% Counoise, 2% Sangiovese, and 2% Petit Verdot sourced from vineyards in the Columbia Valley AVA of Washington State. Counoise is a grape typically found in the Rhone Valley in France and used in Red blends. Tamarack Cellars...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Matsu El Picaro 2019 is a Tempranillo wine sourced from 90-year-old vineyards in the Toro D.O. of Spain. Toro is located near the Northeast corner of Portugal, the northwest of Spain wraps around the Portugal border. Matsu is a Japanese word that means to wait and El Picaro translates to the Rouge. Bodega Matsu is one of the projects from Vintae, which is three genera...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Peaks and Tides Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2018 is a $9.99 ALDI exclusive sourced from vineyards along the Pacific Coast in Northern California. The Peaks and Tides brand also have a Cabernet Sauvignon and I think I saw a Pinot Noir. The Sonoma Coast runs from above San Francisco all the way to Mendocino County and much of it lies in valleys situated between Coastal Moun...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Aria Pinot Noir Brut Cava is a non-vintage Bubbly from the Penedes region of Catalunya, near Barcelona in Eastern Spain. Aria is part of the Segura Viudas family of Sparkling wines. Segura Viudas is in turn part of the Freixenet group that includes Mionetto Prosecco and Gloria Ferrer wines. Cava is produced with the same production methods used in Champaign wines. The...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe 19 Crimes Snoop Cali Red 2019 is a blend of mostly Petite Sirah and then Zinfandel sourced from vineyards in California. 19 Crimes are one of Treasury Wine Estates family of almost 50 wine brands. They seem to concentrate on Australian Brands but have a very solid American portfolio. The name 19 Crimes refers to the list of offenses that could get English crooks and t...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Fallen Bridge Lodi Zinfandel 2017 is a $6.99 Trader Joe's exclusive. That is about all the information available for this Zin. The company that made the wine, Sonoma Bespoke, a custom private label winery. They make wines for stores and restaurants across the country. If you are in a 7/11 and see Vin Seven, that's them. This is a single AVA Zinfandel from Lo...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Pico Viejo Reserva Chardonnay 2019 is a $7.99 ALDI exclusive sourced from grapes grown in vineyards located in the Uco Valley of Argentina. The Uco Valley is not actually a valley, it is high plains that butt up against the Andes Mountains. The Uco Valley is one of the best growing regions in Argentina, think of it sort of like Sonoma County in reputation, though ther...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Liquid Light Sauvignon 2018 is a wine brand from Chateau Ste Michelle's family of wines sourced from grapes on 68% Horse Heaven Hills AVA and 32% Yakima AVA of Washington State. Chateau Ste Michelle is by far the largest winery in Washington and according to several winemakers I have talked to over the years, they are a very good neighbor. A few years ago you wou...

Send us Fan Mail The StoryThe Summer Water Rose' 2019 is a blend of 85% Grenache and 15% Syrah sourced from vineyards in the Central Coast AVA of California. This Rose' is made in the style of French Provence Rose'.Summer Water is one of the Winc family of wines. Winc is a wine membership company, you pay to join and receive a certain number of bottles and they ship the wine to your...