All of my friends know I am a little bit of a snob - I can't even remember if I gave two buck chuck a fair shake - if a wine is too cheap it's probably not worth drinking, or so I thought. When I was living in Atlanta, and not getting a regular wine allowance, I was always on the lookout for wines under $10 but they were usually from Chile or France or Spain. These days I am back in the land of $40 bottles and more depending on what it is you want to whet your whistle with.
So, this is how I came to drink a cheap bottle of wine - and liked it!
A couple of girlfriends came over with two pounds of shrimp, some Armenian flat bread, and a couple of spreads, one cilantro and one eggplant. We were ready to have ourselves a little feast. They knew I could supply the wine - I always have wine - but on this day, I realized that I had just enjoyed my last bottle of crisp Pinot Grigio, didn't have any Riesling, the Sinskey Vin Gris was gone, too. However, I found a bottle of white in the fridge that I thought maybe my husband had brought home (he had bought it to go into my Bolognese). So, without thinking, we drank that.
The 2006 Jepson Sauvignon Blanc from Mendocino has the lime and grapefruit flavors that one would expect from California Sauvignon blanc, it is a bit rounder in the mouth than my favorites from New Zealand and it is a bit to the left on the acidity scale but it was very quaffable and went great with the grilled shrimp and lentil flat bread. When I found out that it was $2.99 a bottle at Trader Joe's, I went back and bought a case.That's less than $36 for a case of wine!!
Well, madam, I almost never comment on peoples' blogs, but this one sure caught my eye, as I have been espousing the value found in the wines of Mendo and adjoining Anderson Valley since first visiting there [been back 3 times] about a year ago. Of course the all time California value champ is Navarro. Best newcomer is Breggo Cellars. You must try their whites + pinots...not 3 bucks, but not 40 either. So even though I am always skeptical of claims such as these, I will locate a bottle of the Jepson at least for the sport of it. Thanks for letting [us] know.
Posted by: Joe | July 17, 2008 at 03:55 PM
Joe,
Thank you for being such a good "sport". I love Navarro wines but I will try your other recommendations as well.
Chateau Ste Michelle is doing some great Rieslings that are worth a look if you haven't had them already.
Posted by: Suenarita | July 18, 2008 at 09:59 AM