Recommended Wines
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Marchese Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva 2016
A typical pandemic Friday night — what to do to shake one out of the ongoing funk that seems to envelop our lives lately? Funny you should ask. Instead of meatloaf and just another nondescript glass of red, we recently reached out to a favorite local Italian restaurant, Princi Italia, to “attend” its Antinori virtual tasting in which three Antinori branded wines were paired with delicious appetizers from the restaurant. Add a couple of good... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2020-Oct-Sat -
Muriel Fincas de la Villas Crianza 2016
The warmth of late spring in Texas has forced its presence onto the scene, one is reminded that serious grilling season is nigh upon us! Whether your home grill favorite is burgers, dogs, ribs or chicken, a delicious Red from the Rioja Region of Spain is an excellent choice to pair with spring and summer fare. If you are not familiar with the nuanced, delicious Reds from Rioja, you are... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2020-May-Sun -
Marchesi Antinori 2015 Villa Antinori Riserva (Chianti Classico)
Your humble Wine Bargain Sleuth has been, like most of my fellow sleuths, observing the local "shelter in place" directive during the uncharted waters of the COVID-19 virus scare. During this seemingly unending period of (more or less) voluntary quarantine, my significant other and I have been cooking at home more frequently, and one of the house favorites is Italian, particularly pasta with hearty meat sauces. I have also taken... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2020-Apr-Tue -
Pedroncelli Merlot Dry Creek Valley Bench Vineyards 2017
Those of us who are Big Red fans are always on the lookout for a great Value Wine to enjoy and serve to our own wine buddies. As most of you have heard, the classic Bordeaux varietal Merlot fell out of favor for several years, coinciding in part with the 2004 dark comedy "Sideways" (and Miles' classic utterance that he wasn't "drinking any *&^%ing Merlot" to his twisted buddy Jack),... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2020-Apr-Sat -
Olema Chardonnay Sonoma County 2018
Greetings and Salutations! As the vast majority of the country is in some stage of quarantine (in Dallas, we call it "Shelter in Place"), it seems that we wine sleuths need to have good information for quality Value Wines more than ever. Otherwise, or so I am told, one is liable to end up cracking open in frustration a prized bottle of Kistler Chardonnay or that favorite Nuits St. Georges... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2020-Mar-Sat -
Milbrandt Merlot (Columbia Valley) 2017
I am always on the lookout for a satisfying Big Red that meets our criteria as a Value Wine--i.e., high quality and a price of less than $20. We at The Wine Bargain Sleuth have long been a fan of Washington Cabs and Merlots and have frequently recommended the same to our wine sleuths! The Milbrandt Merlot Columbia Valley 2017 is a terrific example of a great Value Wine: at... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2019-Dec-Sat -
Courtney Benham Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2018
In the Great Southwest, a quality Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser around the pool or for a summer cocktail. The Napa expression of the international Sauvignon Blanc grape tends to be a bit rounder than others, with flavors such as peach and nectarine rather than the grapefruit and citrus profile generally associated with, say, the New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. A terrific value version of this wine is... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2019-Aug-Mon -
2015 Land of Promise Pinot Noir
Say you have a birthday or a big anniversary coming up. Or you closed that big deal at work...or just because you are worth it! Some days you just want to have an amazing glass of wine. After a long day this week, I had one of those amazing glasses of wine: the 2015 Land of Promise Pinot Noir from Sonoma Coast, California. Even better, I got to share a... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2019-Apr-Sat -
Chateau Guiraud G Bordeaux White 2016
With spring comes colorful, fragrant flowers and budding trees, as well as warmer weather that pairs so delightfully with light, crisp wines. Some of my personal favorites include Bordeaux Blancs from France's legendary wine region. In addition to being refreshing with their cleansing acidity and nuanced with their classic blends of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, many of these French beauties are an amazing value as well. One vivid example of... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2019-Apr-Sat -
Cline Zinfandel Contra Costa County Ancient Vines 2016
Looking for a great value wine in a Big Red? Tired of the ongoing Napa Valley price creep? Enjoy a Zinfandel with a old vines taste profile? Well, wine sleuths, I believe I have you covered for this month! I highly recommend the Cline Zinfandel Contra Costa County Ancient Vines 2016! None other than leading wine publication Wine Spectator bestowed a strong 91 rating on this delicious red Zinfandel, calling... Read More
Posted by Len Musgrove, Admin The Wine Bargain Sleuth on 2019-Feb-Mon
As with prior years, our 2020 Annual Thanksgiving Wine Recommendations Chapter will offer both Value Wine and Worth a Splurge Wine options in each category we recommend, so that regardless of your budget you can bring showstopping wines to your Thanksgiving table for your family, friends and other loved ones and, equally important, retain your respective wine sleuth titles within your chosen ones for another year! In a nod to some of my snarkier (yet pretty darned funny) readers who have asked my pandemic recommendations for a “good breakfast wine”, your wishes will be suitably accommodated below. Yes, it is true: the Wine Bargain Sleuth is a giver!
The Bodegas Muriel Crianza 2016 is a polished and balanced wine, with a flavor profile of dark cherry and dried fruits, with a classic forest floor hint and a satisfying, lengthy finish. It would pair beautifully with a juicy burger with Muenster cheese on top.
I am always on the lookout for a satisfying Big Red that meets our criteria as a Value Wine–i.e., high quality and a price of less than $20. We at The Wine Bargain Sleuth have long been a fan of Washington Cabs and Merlots and have frequently recommended the same to our wine sleuths! The Milbrandt Merlot Columbia Valley 2017 is a terrific example of a great Value Wine: at its modest $17 suggested retail, it far outdrinks many Merlots that cost 2-3 times more.
Thanksgiving means that our 5th annual Thanksgiving Wine Pairing list is here for your holiday enjoyment! As with the last couple of years, our list will recommend excellent Value Wines as well as Worth a Splurge Wines. For those new to The Wine Bargain Sleuth, each Value Wine gives great bang for your hard-earned buck at the retail price of $20 or less while remaining a delicious wine for your more finicky friends and family. By contrast, the Worth a Splurge Wines are also great values relative to their respective classes without the $20 governor, as sometimes a sleuth just needs to pop a special cork to celebrate!
A terrific value version of Napa Sauvignon Blanc is the Courtney Benham Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2018, which retails for a reasonable $18. The Courtney Benham 2018 offering adds the unique profile of a hint of mango to the classic Napa Valley Sav Blanc palate, making the wine slightly exotic and pleasing.
Other than simply toughing it out through the misery until October blows in from somewhere north of Calgary, lucky folks from the Southwest often head for the hills–or rather mountains–or the cool ocean breezes if they have a choice. Speaking of which, there are much worse places to hang in the brutal summer months than Sonoma and Napa, California, where I recently found myself with my lovely significant other for a long weekend that blended (pun intended) my dual loves of Shelby cars with great wines in the idyllic setting of northern California. Hey, somebody had to be there!
The New York Wine Experience is held over a long weekend in October, and includes two nights of generous tastings of award winning wineries from around this planet, with each invited winery presenting its wine that earned at least a 90 point rating from the picky reviewers of Wine Spectator. Approximately 210 world class wineries presented their prized juice on the 5th and 6th floor ballrooms of the Marriott Marquis Hotel. In other words, attending a Grand Tasting event required, um, commitment to the task of tasting these gorgeous wines!
Greetings and salutations! Fall season is upon us in Texas. College football battles, crisp mornings, State Fair corny dogs, lawns turning the shade of corn tortillas and leaves transforming to golden and bright orange colors. What an ideal time to focus upon great bargain Big Reds! Accordingly, this month’s Chapter will focus on a handful of Splurge Wine values in Cabernet Sauvignon for your enjoyment. Remember, a true bargain wine is not necessarily a wine of $15 or so, but rather a wine that outperforms its price point and thus gives the consumer worthy bang for his or her buck! The list below fits into our concept of Splurge Wines that manage to outperform their class.
I frequently am asked by my friends to recommend everyday wines to enjoy and share with guests. We’re not talking about fancy, expensive wines here, mind you. No, we’re talking about quality, good values, go-to wines. Or as I like to call them, House Wines!
So what are your favorite House Wines? Do you have one? If not, you should!
German wines have the reputation of being overly sweet, but that is a gross oversimplification of some of the finest whites in the world. The reality is that there are many categories of German Riesling, some dry as a bone, others intentionally sweet and designed to be dessert wines. Retailing at only an astounding $12, the Loosen Bros Riesling was picked by Wine Spectator as a Best Value and awarded a solid 91 rating.
Greetings and salutations! I know what you are thinking as you read this month’s Chapter. You’re thinking, “How in the wide world of sports can it already be the week of Thanksgiving? Wasn’t I just handing out sweet treats to cutely costumed ankle biters a couple of days ago?” And you’re also thinking, “Ruh, Roh, I haven’t done my heroic wine acquisitions for the traditional Thanksgiving feast—I have to get on that—and now!”
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Len Musgrove
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