Splendor And Folly

Here is my latest wine review for you! I picked up this bottle at Aldi, the vineyard is called Winking Owl and I just thought the little guy was so cute:

Here he is again on the cork:

OK…enough with the cuteness and onto the review!

price - $2.99

label says – “subtle flavors of black cherry, blackberry and a hint of spice”

my take – I thought this wine was just  OK…you maybe saying to yourself, of course it wasn’t great, you bought it for 3 bucks at Aldi! However, on our recent trip to California, Jake and I did a day tour of Napa. Our awesome tour guide told us lots of fun facts, for instance, did you know that Charles Shaw’s (famously known as ‘two buck chuck’) 2002 Shiraz won a double gold medal at some big wine competition? So remember – low price does not ALWAYS mean low quality wine.

It didn’t bowl me over, but it was not unpleasant either. It went down smoothly, almost to the point of seeming watered down. Its suitable for just having around the house in the event that you need a glass of wine to unwind, but I wouldnt choose it for hosting a dinner party.

cheapskate rating – ♥♥♥ (3 out of 5)

Hi Everyone! Happy New Year!! I’m really excited for all the things coming in 2010, including this little blog of mine. The first new feature I want to introduce is my Cheapskate Wine Reviews! As you know, one of my 9 favorites of ’09 was Menage a Trois wine and I’d like to expand my collection of wines that aren’t a waste of money (If you’ve ever had a wine that tastes like bacon, you know what I mean). I’ll keep all the wines under $15 (because sometimes I like to be fancy and splurge on a $12 bottle of wine). I’m no Gary Vaynerchuk, but I’ll do my best to give you my no-nonsense review and maybe this will help me not to spend 6 hours in the wine aisle only to choose a bottle based on the clever label.

Ok – first up:

Redwood Creek Pinot Noir (2008)

price - $6.99

label says – “medium bodied with ripe cherry and a smooth velvety finish”

my take – this is a great, all purpose red, definitely goes down smooth with no bitter taste.  I would definitely purchase this one again and you can’t beat the price!

cheapskate rating – ♥♥♥♥ (4 out of 5)

Look for more Cheapskate Wine Reviews to come, I’m prepared to drink as much wine as I have to in the name of ‘research’ ;)

PS No one is paying me to give these reviews, but if wine companies would like to send me some free bottles, I would be totally ok with that!