Archive for the ‘Under $30’ Category

L.A. Cetto Cabernet Sauvignon 2005, Private Reserve, Baja CA

Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010

LA CettoA friend gave us this bottle of wine and our first reaction was one of, BAJA?  Are you kidding?  That’s in Mexico!  Everybody knows there’s no good wine in Mexico!  (famous last words…)

And then we tasted.  And what a delightful treat for the taste buds!  This wine was in French oak for 14 months, and then laid down for 3 years of bottle aging before its release.  It is a deep ruby color with a classic Cabernet nose of plums, currants and blackberries.  There was good fruit on the nose, but it was restrained, almost formal in character, without the casual “juiciness” that some California wine makers seem to like.  The finish was as you’d expect from a wine thus aged, nice oak and only slightly tannic.  Our friend said he paid $25 for this bottle and while we find that pricey for any bottle of wine, especially one from Mexico where everybody knows there are no good wines   :)    we have to admit that this is a very good wine and is worth every bit of 4 Stars — Highly Recommended on our 5 Star scale.  If you can find this wine, buy it for a special occasion and you will not be disappointed.

Jackson Estate Pinot Noir, 2008 — Marlborough, New Zealand

Monday, September 14th, 2009

Jackson Estate Pinot NoirThis winery really seems to have its act together and we are fast becoming big fans. We opened this wine (yes, it has a screw cap and we love them!) and were immediately hit with a bouquet of big, ripe bing cherries even before we got the wine into our glasses. This wine sips so smoothly we were tempted just to watch the sunset and drink it by itself, but we were hungry…..starving, really. Anyway, this wine on the palate is all about juicy cherries and other red fruits, maybe some strawberries. It is lush and juicy with nice gentle tannins and acidity to tell you that you are drinking a truly wonderful wine.

We paired this with bratwurst and hamburgers, because that was all we had that was ready for the grill that night. We couldn’t decide if the wine added to the food or not, it was really a coin toss, but we did agree that the wine was just great, and we ended up eating all the food, and afterward, finishing the wine and enjoying it that way. We have a brother-in-law who is a “great white hunter” with some deer meat in his freezer, and we’re thinking that we’re going to steal some of that and try another bottle of this wine with deer meat off the grill sometime before the snow flies.

With production under 500 cases on this wine, it’s going to be hard to find. We found it on a trip to Milwaukee, and we’re going to have to go back there to buy a second bottle. Overall, we give this wine 5 Stars — Highest Recommendation