As this week’s sommelier, I’d like to welcome you to my wine cellar. We’ll be featuring two wines this week-- one white and one red. First the white:
2006 Estancia Pinot Grigio. This is a wonderful Californian wine that pairs well with chicken, fish, or even some spicy foods. It has some very nice citrus flavors, and a finish that I think of as “lingering starlight”. Be sure not to over-chill this wine, though, as it will lose most of its flavor if you do. Two hours in the fridge is plenty, and if you leave it in overnight, take it out about an hour before you drink it. This wine should be available in most locations, and although it’s listed as $13 on BevMo’s web site, I always get it for about $8 or $9. Most of the good Pinot Grigio in the US comes from Oregon (they generally use the Italian name of “Pinot Gris” for their wine), so I’m guessing that’s why this CA wine is sold at that relatively low price.
Our red wine this week comes from way down south, in Chile: 2005 Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon. I believe the Montes winery is the largest exporter of wine in Chile, and they make wines of many varieties and in many price ranges. Think of them as the Penfolds of Chile (see last week’s wine club thread for Penfolds). In fact if the Alpha is unavailable, or if you don’t want to spend the $16 - $18 that it typically sells for, just get the regular Montes Cab. It’s about half the price, but still drinks very well. Pair these wines with beef or pasta with a rich tomato sauce. Let them breathe for 15 or 20 minutes before you drink them.
I hope you enjoy these wines, and I look forward to hearing your comments. Remember: In Vino Veritas!
I’ve been a fan of Estancia in general over the years and this Pinot Grigio doesn’t disappoint. Our price seems to hover around $10 too and it’s almost always available in the chilled section of the grocery. While I’ll rarely chill any wine, this one does do well if its, like you mention, not overdone.
As you already know based on my past picks, I’m a big fan of Chilean wines. Haven’t tried the Monte’s yet but will add it too my Spec’s shopping list, which according to their website they do carry - $16.15 for the Alpha.
I’m positive the Estancia will be readily available.
If you like it, try their Syrah. That’s good, too. And I’ve had one of their high end wines, Purple Angel, which is made from carmenère grapes, and it’s excellent. I’ve never had any of their whites, so I don’t know whether they’re good or not.
I was in Kentucky last year for a week, and I had it in two restaurants there. I figure it’s gotta be pretty much everywhere!
Darn, this is the problem being at the end of the line. I was going to pick a Shiraz, and that was taken last week (although not my intended vineyard). I was then thinking about switching to a Chilean Cab (not this one, though), and now that is taken. Cursing myself for my tardiness…
John, I can find the Montes Alpha Cabernet ($18), but is the Apalta rather than the Colchagua Valley. Have you had both, and are they comparable? I’ve had the Montes Syrah and liked it very much.
It’s a little confusing. Mine says Apalta Vinyard, Colchagua Valley. It appears that the Apalta Valley is part of the Colchagua Valley. But there’s also a Colchagua Province, and maybe that’s the same thing as the Colchagua Valley.
BTW, I get the Estancia at Safeway for $8. Does MA allow wine sales in grocery stores yet? I lived in MA for many years, and we usually got our booze in NH.
I’ll guess from that that they are one and the same. Good news, should be easy to find.
There was a ballot referendum one or two years ago to allow grocery stores and convenience stores to sell wine and beer. It was soundly trounced under what I consider to be scare tactics, although that might be a discussion more suited for GD. It just seems odd, seeing that I pass by several convenience stores that sell beer and have under-drinking-age staff.
I browse the NH gov. liquor site to see what is available and at what price, although I may buy locally. It’s a roll of the dice as to which is cheaper. If there are no sales or promotions, NH may edge out MA prices, but not enough to warrant a special trip with today’s gas prices. With a sale, their prices can be extremely attractive, especially making a large purchase to offset the trip cost. For example, about every six months they have a promotion where a $120 purchase will get a $20 gift card for the next purchase. They had one a few weeks ago when I was already planning to go to Maine, and they had a lot of my favorite wines on sale as well. So it was fairly painless to spend that amount, and I got a gift card. I used it on the return trip to take the pain out of buying a bottle of Magnificat that I would otherwise have considered out of my price range.
MA has gay marriage, but you still can’t buy wine in a grocery store.
When I was in college, the package stores had to close at 8:30PM on Sat (or thereabouts) and didn’t open again until Monday. Seemed like no matter how much beer you bought on Saturday, you never had enough to last thru Sunday. We used to draw lots for who had to make the packy run up to NH.
I’ve lived here all my life, and given up trying to figure it out. I believe that there is something in the water that eventually affects those who live here. For awhile we were voting for a Republican governor and for a Democrat president with no apparent sense of contradiction. Just thank your lucky stars you got out before you had a chemical imbalace.
Even if you hadn’t mentioned that you’d lived here, I’d have figured it out; anyone who uses the word “packy” has spent their impressionable years (and probably too much beer money) in the Bay State.
I just got back from Spec’s and they had the Montes Alpha 2005 Cabernet which states D.O. Colchagua Valley, Apalta Vineyard (which I picked up - $15.46) Note: the bottles are paper wrapped, or at least they were at Spec’s (and it wasn’t anything Spec’s added). They also had a Montes Cabernet that just states Apalta Vinyard near the bottom of the label. If I remember right the latter was $8.00
What do you mean by “paper wrapped”? I’ve been buying this wine for a few years, and I’ve never noticed anything different about the bottle/label as compared to other wines.
I’ve seen the paper wrapping here as well. It is a piece of tissue paper, printed with the Montes logo and name, wrapped around the bottle. It varies from store to store, so I assume that some stores remove it. When I bought the Syrah, it was wrapped in paper, and I saw that Kappy’s had the Cabernet wrapped as well. However, I picked up the Cabernet at Costco last night for $16.97, and there was no wrapping. I also picked up the Estancia at Kappy’s for $9.99. I hope to have the Cabernet tonight.
Interesting. I’ve bought this wine from 3 different dealers (at least), and I’ve never seen it paper wrapped. I get it at Safeway, BevMo, and The Wine Club (a local chain that has a wonderful selection of non-US wines, as well as a good selection of US wines).
Opened the Montes Alpha Cabernet with dinner last night, paring it up with spaghetti w/meat sauce.
I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t venture into the Cabernet section very often but after last night this may change. We found the Montes Alpha to be full flavor, yet soft and well balanced.
I’m glad I expanded my rack capacity because now I have yet another selection that will be kept in stock. Thanks, John. Great pick!
Life has smacked me in the face and my participation on the Boards will be spotty for a while, so I think it would be best if I stepped aside as the person behind the SDMB Wine Club threads. Any takers for keeping the Club alive?
