VinoForLess.com

A new tasting room favorite of mine is the Cinnabar Winery tasting room in Saratoga Village. Having tasted their Mercury Rising a number of times, it struck me that it’s not mentioned on VinoForLess. Here we have it.
2005 Mercury Rising
Cinnabar Vineyard & Winery
Where to Buy: Cinnabar Vineyard & Winery Tasting Room on Big Basin Way, [...]

I’m always extolling the virtues of the Santa Cruz wine region, particularly because it’s in my backyard. In my humble opinion, too many Santa Clara county locals make the long haul to Napa for overpriced and sometimes overly pretentious wine tasting. I have a feeling that the majority of Santa Cruz county folk [...]

One of my purchases during the BevMo 5 cent sale was this lovely ‘04 Tapiz Merlot. Even if the second bottle wasn’t 5 cents, this wine was an excellent buy for the regular price.
Wine: 2004 Tapiz Merlot
Vineyard: Fincas Patagonicas, Mendoza, Argentina
Price: $14.95 (and a second one for just 5 cents more).
Where: BevMo
The nose on [...]

Let’s start with the specs.
J Pinot Noir 2005, Russian River Valley
J Vineyards
Price: $26.95
Where to Buy: Wine-Club-Central.com
You might find this wine for under $25 if you do some searching, and while you may be disappointed that we’re featuring a wine over $25, this one’s worth reviewing to make a point. We’ve featured some great [...]

Remembering how much I liked my last wine from Cantina di Custoza, I thought I would try another wine from that group.
2003 Merlot
Winery: Cantina di Custoza (more like a wine growers group)
Region: Veneto, Italy
Price: $7.99
Where: BevMo
As with most mellow merlots, a smooth finish is to be expected. The nose had the classic grape and [...]

This past Wednesday afternoon, I was received a fortuitous last minute invitation to a wine tasting at Zanotto’s Market on Naglee Avenue. It was my first time to this affair, which is a well kept secret among Rose Garden residents and regulars at Zanotto’s. It turned out to be a wonderful evening of [...]

A late Sunday evening while back at the ranch (ok, so it was only my apartment), and I had been cooking a Porter Beef Stew for 8 hours (yes, porter as in beer). It was a very hearty, clear broth stew with the typical veggie mix in it. I thought a nice simple [...]

Once again, I tried pulling another cheapo from the racks at BevMo. And, seeing the Coppola name, I thought that this would come out alright and, I decided to have this with an easy pasta and tomato sauce. Well, you can’t pick a winner every time.
2005 Coppola Rosso Classic
Winery: Francis Coppola Presents, California
Price: [...]

This Zinfandel is one of those wines you can always depend on when all other choices are unknowns.
Wine: Ravenswood Zinfandel 2004 Vinters Blend
Winery: Ravenswood
Price: $13.04
Where to Buy: Spec’s Liquors
It has a subtle nose with raspberry, cherry and perhaps even a bit of blueberry. It has light acidity, and mild spice on the tongue. [...]

Somewhat recently, I reviewed a Concannon Cabernet Savignon. So impressed with that wine, I decided to pick up a Concannon Pinot Noir. This wine is not being tasted and reviewed on the happiest of occasions. I’m actually in Houston, Texas for one of those family emergencies that everyone dreads, a parent in [...]