VinoForLess.com

There are entire blogs devoted to Trader Joe’s bargain wines, but we couldn’t resist writing about this exotic pickup from TJ’s.
Robert Mondavi Fume Blanc
Napa Valley
Robert Mondavi Winery
$10.99 at Trader Joe’s
This gem has scents of citrus and melon. We happened to be snacking on white peach, honeydew nectarine, soft Gouda and dark chocolate at the time [...]

OK, it’s 95 degrees outside and I needed something cool and refreshing.  Cinnabar came to my rescue!  You may recognize Cinnabar’s flagship wine, the red Bordeaux blend called Mercury Rising, but you may not have known that they have a white version named (very creatively I might add) Mercury Rising Blanc. 
2006 Mercury Rising Blanc
Cinnabar Vineyard & Winery
Where [...]

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 [...]

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 [...]

Here’s another installment from the recent VinoForLess team-outing to a BevMo wine tasting. The majority of wines that we tasted on this day, were from J. Lohr. Of these wines, most were very nice. This one was no exception.
Wine: Riverstone Chardonnay, 2005
Winery: J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines
Price: $10.99 w/BevMo Club membership
Region: Arroyo [...]

If you’ve never been to a BevMo for wine tasting, look into it. The VinoForLess team was there last Saturday, and man was there much note taking to be done. I’ll start this series with a nice little Reisling.
Wine: 2006 J. Lorh Estates Bay Mist White Riesling
Winery: J. Lorh Vineyards
Price: $7.99 with BevMo Club Member [...]

For lunch today, I invited over a few co-workers that had heard about our wine blog, and decided to try an interesting mix. Chipotle and a Pinot Grigio. Turned out rather well for us.
2005 Pinot Grigio
Winery: Bolla (although it is only in Italian)
Country: Italy (della Venezie or of Venice)
Price: $7.99 at BevMo
Let’s [...]

This is another wine that I sandbagged from a recent visit to Vancouver. VinoForLess co-contributor Chris was also there.
Wine: Errazuriz Savignon Blanc Estate, 2006
Winery: Errazuriz
Wine of Chile
Appelation: Cassablanca Valley
Price: $13.29
Where to buy: WineChateau.com
Two words come to mind, and I think Chris is with me on this, “blah!” and “effervescence”. For those of you new to [...]

For Valentine’s Day, our featured wine is a wonderful White Riesling from Storrs Winery.
White Riesling Monterey, 2003
Viento Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains, CA
Storrs Winery
Price: About $14
We tried this wine with a not so traditional Valentine’s meal of Thai Fried Rice. As anticipated, it proved to be great with the spicy nauture of this dish, as would [...]