2006 Barbaresco Classico, Prunotto

This is a standard for us on our date nights. -  This highly touted vintage of Barbaresco is rich with plenty of structure and strength. It offers enticing aromas of black cherry, smoke, tea and licorice. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied and velvety with a satisfying long finish.  We drink it with a wide variety of Italian dishes from pasta, pizza, steak and salmon.  This well-extracted and mature expression of Nebbiolo from the Antinori estate in Piedmont is a mature and fruit-driven expression of Barbaresco with dense concentration and a New World style. There’s very good complexity here in the form of black licorice, chopped mint and rhubarb.

Category:	Red Wine
Varietal:	Nebbiolo
Region:	Italy : Piedmont : Barbaresco
Producer:	Prunotto

 Price: $59

2008 Chateau Ste. Michelle "Indian Wells" Chardonnay

2008
Chateau Ste. Michelle - "House Chard" at our house

My story:

Before meeting "My Beloved", I never really drank much wine, more of a beer guy. Well my wife and her family were/are big afficionados of that fair grape. My wife and I cycled over the years through several favorites, and although we now drink approx. 55% White and 45% Red, this is our "House Chard". For a while we were going over the top "oakey" with lots of Malolactic fermentation. We've softened on the over the top oak tastes and have arrived at this, our current favorite. We don't drink any other whites (almost) except for Chardonnay, so currently this is the one we keep stocked. We consider this at the top end of a "inexpensive wine" and at the low end of "moderately priced". Everyone's tastes and budgets are so different, so YMMV. Sometimes we can find this on sale for $12.99 a bottle, but the going price is $13.99. Of course if you buy it by the case, a 5% discount is applied (at least at Binnys, our local wine superstore). I believe we stumbled across this one when trying to find a good bottle at a reasonable price. This is the 3rd iteration of our "House Chard" with our first being "Columbia Crest Grand Estates" (also from Washington) and then "Toasted Head). We do not seem to care for the French Chardonnays that much and prefer the good ol' USA ones which to our tastes tend to have a bit more oak.

Varietal:

Chardonnay

Vintage:

2008

Winemakers description:

The warmth of the Wahluke Slope produces Chardonnay with an appealing tropical fruit character and rich texture. The Indian Wells Chardonnay delivers ripe tropical pineapple flavors and showcases the luscious opulence of Washington fruit. This wine pairs well with scallops, scampi or pasta with slightly richer sauces.

• Ripe grapes were lightly pressed and inoculated with Epernay II yeast for accentuated, fruit-forward flavors.
• Fermented in American and French oak barrels, 32 % new.
• 100% sur lie aged for seven months to integrate the fruit and oak flavors and provide a rich mouthfeel.
• Malolactic fermentation also took place to add softness, balance and depth

Price:

$13.99 a bottle

My description:

This is our house chard for the same reason that everyone has their "house" wines, we love it and the price is right....for us. I actually drink a lot less Chardonnay and sometimes opt for sake when my wife is drinking Chard. Switch from drinking something else (sake, a red, etc) and moving to this chard is an interesting experiment in tastes. I immediately notice the softmouth feel and taste the oakiness with a tinge of the pineapple. Right now Washington wines are considered a bargain as they are typically cheaper than California wines of the same caliber. We tend to like chards with some oak, but not over the top. For us, this one provides a great taste of oak with touches of the fruit. Works for us!

2009 Apothic Red - "House Red" at our house

My story:
Our "House Red" consists of a blend called "Apothic Red". We were turned on to it at a little kind of backwoods restaurant in Wisconsin called "BoMallies". Now we almost always buy a case at a time and score an additional 5% case discount from our local shop (Binnys). This wine is already a very "value" priced wine with normal bottle prices @ $8.99; we sometimes (rarely) see this on sale for $7.99. We believe, that if you enjoy this sort of wine, the value is pretty tough to beat.

Varietal:
Meritage (Syrah, Zinfandel, Merlot)

Vintage:
2009

Winemakers description:
A captivating blend of three distinct grapes, with the dark fruit flavors of Syrah, brambly spice of Zinfandel, and smoot elegance of Merlot.

Apothic Red reveals intense fruit aromas and flavors of rhubarb and black cheery that are complemented by hints of mocha, chocolate, brown spice and vanilla. The plush, velvety mouthfeel and smooth finish round out this intriguing, full-bodied red blend. 13.1% alcohol.

Price:
$9 a bottle

My description:
This is our house red wine for the same reason that everyone has their "house" wines, we love it and the price is right....for us. I have a rather unsophisticated way of describing wines, but I know what I like and what I don't. I like this and more importantly the "Chosen One" likes it also. This wine has a very "marshmellowy" mouthfeel and subsequently taste - maybe also has to do with the hints of vanilla. I think this might also be due to heavier blending towards the merlot/syrah side, although I'm not sure what the actual blending %'s are. The mouthfeel is sooooooo soft! ;-) We continue to go back to this wine like one might go to an old flannel shirt; warm, cozy, and makes you feel good. Heckofa good wine for $9 if you dig the soft mouth feel!

2007 Zinfandel, Martinelli Road Vineyard Old Vine, Russian River

We had this at dinner the other night.  One of the better Zen's I have had in a while...

Dark ruby in color, this wine jumps out of the glass with a briar berried liquor-like aroma of marmalade, preserved fruit, and roses. Not sweet on the palate, but smooth as a baby’s bottom with flavors of red and black berries, cedar, briar brandied cherries, and the chalkiness of the terroir. The next to the last Martinelli Road release. This wine will benefit from bottle aging and cellaring.  This vintage, from 127-year old vines, is a “Monster Zin” – big, ripe and juicy! It’s not for the meek.

$45 - http://www.woodenheadwine.com/

Some other nice cheap wines - Jeff Schaffer

Layer Cake (malbec)

Folie a Deux Menage A Trois

Educated Guess Cabernet Sauvignon (I think this wine is more around 20 bucks)

Catena Malbec (or their more expensive Catena Alta which is also a malbec)

Cusumano Benuara Nero D'Avola, Syrah  (from Sicilia)

Root: 1 (from chile)

Hop Kiln Big Red - Kevin Martin

Hop Kiln Big Red – “The Grenache and Pinot Noir provide bright cherry, raspberry, and blackberry notes. While the Syrah and Malbec create a deep, chewy mouth feel with the slightest touch of oak on the finish” – goes for about $15 a pop. -

http://www.hopkilnwinery.com/wines/

California Central Coast wines, specifically the Paso Robles region - Jeff Schaffer

Justin Vineyards - they have wines ranging from 20 up, and there flagship wine is Justin Isosceles goes for about 40 to 50.  I'm a member of their wine club but it's fairly pricey.

http://www.justinwine.com/

Caparone - I haven't had a red from them that I didn't like... I'm a member of their wine club, and receive quarterly shipments.  The wine delivered to my door averages 13 to 15 dollars after shipping.  Oh and their 94 pinot noir is out of this world for the price.

http://caparone.com/

J. Lohr - You can pick this one up at any Dominick's or Jewel Osco.   Their Cab and Merlots are pretty good.  The bottles go for about 15 dollars

http://www.jlohr.com/