World Wine Reviews - Home

Years ago we were introduced to the fine tasting wines of Van Duzer at Houston’s; a great restaurant down in Orange County that has an amazing beef dip sandwich. Houston’s is a chain restaurant with multiple locations, one in Napa Valley called “Rutherford Grill” and several others in various states and cities. (Santa Monica, Manhattan Beach, Denver, Etc.)

Anyway, our first experience with Van Duzer was very memorable. Ever since then we’ve been ordering bottles straight from the winery up in Oregon. Several years and many bottles later, we have yet to have a bad or even mediocre wine from Van Duzer. (these wines have made great birthday and anniversary gifts)

For the price, you can’t go wrong with this young, but very tasty bottle of Pinot Noir. It’s bright cherry and plum fruit flavors along with those subtle pinot spices make this a real value. Probably a great one to cellar for awhile too! Thanks Van Duzer!

Sad though, haven’t been able to find this wine locally. Have to pay for shipping. Uck.

From the winemaker:
This is the perfect house wine, a blend of six Pinot Noir clones that capture the grape varietal’s many nuances. Selected from newer vines on the estate following the warm summer of 2006, this full-bodied wine offers up a rich texture and abundant aromas of plum, spice, blackberry and blueberry. Flavors of black cherry, ripe plum and fresh garden herbs predominate.

Over time, Van Duzer has developed a winemaking process that is well suited to our vineyard. The grape clusters are harvested by hand, sorted for quality, then destemmed and placed into cold maceration tanks to extract bright colors and soft tannins. A variety of yeasts are used, each chosen to enhance and preserve the nature or ‘terroir’ of our Pinot Noir. When fermentation is completed, the wine is transferred to a mix of 35% new, 30% once-used and 35% neutral French oak barrels where it undergoes malolactic fermentation.

(2 votes, average: 8.5 out of 10)

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We’ve had a warm few October weeks in Southern California and what better way to celebrate these summer-like days then a refreshing bottle of Torrontes wine from Argentina! This is such a great varietal from South America and this bottle of white wine from Jose L. Mounier was no exception. It’s floral, fruity and still a bit dry. A pleasure to drink! (thanks Aaron!)

You can order this one online here.

(1 votes, average: 9 out of 10)

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During these times of our economic uncertainties, we’ve been cutting back a bit on our monthly wine budget. Sad to say we’ve even cancelled a few of our favorite wine clubs until things pick back up. Anyway, we’ve been looking for those “bargain wines” that taste great and are under $12 a bottle.

During our weekend Costco run, we came across a few new California reds we’ve never tried. Now I admit, we’re hesitant to ever try something with a loud looking label but after reading the description, a few tasting notes and after seeing the price, we decided to bring home a bottle of Francis Ford Coppola’s 2006 Rosso.

It’s a red wine blend of 48% Zinfandel, 27% Syrah and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and it was good! A real everyday drinker just as the label suggests. It’s smooth and very easy to drink. What really excited us about it, besides the $7.39 price tag, was the vanilla and toasted oak flavors it cooks up in your mouth. Truly enjoyed it enough to go back for more!

Winemaker’s notes:
Francis Coppola grew up with wine on the family table because his grandfather and uncles made homemade wine in the basement of their New York apartment. Using grapes that had been shipped in by train car from California, the family was able to make wines in simple concrete vats. According to Uncle Mikey, these weren’t fancy wines, just pleasant, easydrinking wines. Our Rosso is made in the same spirit—a wine for everyday life.

You can get this Francis Coppola 2006 Rosso - Red Wine here or checkout your local Costco!

(6 votes, average: 8.83 out of 10)

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An easy to drink, enjoyable bottle of Malbec from Argentina. Just wish we could mix this one with a little merlot and stick it in some oak a bit longer. May just give it a bit more body and depth. Overall was good though. We’d drink another!

(2 votes, average: 6.5 out of 10)

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During our last visit to Napa Valley, we ran into some fellow wine tasters that went on and on about how great the wines were over at Goosecross Cellars. We just had to put it on our list for the day. And aren’t we glad we did. Goosecross had some fantastic wines including this flavorful Zinfandel. Full of black plum and juicy raspberry, this Napa Valley Zinfandel was indeed worth bringing home! (And we had a great time with the folks over at Goosecross!)

Food pairing ideas:
Grilled steak or swordfish, pastas and pizzas!

Winemaker’s notes:
Following an almost text-book growing season, Geoff guided the wine through a warm fermentation to capture the brambly essence of Zinfandel. Much of the art of winemaking is in blending and he added a little Primitivo to give the wine additional complexity creating a wine with rich, full flavors and unabashed fruit. It’s loaded with ripe strawberry, black plum, rich raspberry, and a hint of cocoa and spice. Soft, round tannins make for easy drinking now and over the next few years.

(5 votes, average: 7 out of 10)

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Packed full of juicy fruit, some cedar and vanilla flavors, this well balanced Merlot from the Trinchero family really hit the spot. We’re getting a case of this one for sure.

A fantastic wine for under $10!

Winemaker’s notes:

The goal with all of our Trinchero Family wines is to offer the purest expression of the grape variety; fruit-driven and delicious. The 2004 Trinchero Family Merlot is dark, rich, lush and remarkably smooth. It delivers ripe juicy red cherry and jammy currant accented with black tea and roasted jalapeno. The ripe fruit and spice carry through to a velvet-textured finish.

Get this Trinchero 2004 Merlot - Red Wine here

(2 votes, average: 7.5 out of 10)

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We recently had some family out to visit that had arrived with this great bottle of Cabernet from EOS. (Paso Robles, CA) Filled with aromas of toasted oak, black cherry, berries and molasses, this wonderful red wine did very well with our grilled tri-tip steak. Tastes of raspberries and plum with a nice long finish of dark chocolate and spice really made our evening enjoyable. What a great full-bodied gift!

Food pairing ideas:
Serve with grilled meats, prime rib or aged cheddar cheese.

Technical details from the Winemaker:
The EOS 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon is comprised of 83.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9.5% Petite Sirah, 5.5% Cabernet Franc, 1% Malbec and .5% Petite Verdot. Was in the barrel for 15 months in 3% new French oak, 24% new American oak, 12% one-year old, 35% two year old and 26% neutral oak. Harvested in September 2004.

Order it online from EOS

And in case you were wondering where the “EOS” came from…
The EOS Estate Winery was named after “Eos,” the “Goddess of the Dawn” in Greek Mythology. Eos was the inspiration for the winery’s harvesting of its Estate winegrapes before, or right after the sunrise, to keep the fruit cool and help retain fresh varietal character. For more of the story, check out their website.

(4 votes, average: 7.5 out of 10)

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We were in our local Target the other day and stumbled upon the wine section. (Not sure if that is just a California thing?) Found this Pinot from New Zealand which was marked down from $15 to $10.50 a bottle, so we decided to pick up a few bottles to try. To our surprise, it was very drinkable. Nothing spectacular, but a pretty good red wine for the buck. Plum, cherry and oak on the nose. Tastes of cherry and a hint of oak on the palate with a pleasant aftertaste.

Also try the Kim Crawford 2006 Sauvignon Blanc

(3 votes, average: 6 out of 10)

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This 2004 Napa Valley Bordeaux-blend really hit the spot. We immediately knew we were drinking a quality red wine and not something that came out of the bargain bin over at Von’s. As part of our Rutherford Hill wine club, we occasionally get a bottle or two of Terlato wine. Thus far they’ve all been fantastic.

After letting this “Devil’s Peak” blend breathe for a half hour in the decanter, we poured our first glasses. Color was a beautiful velvet ruby. Nose was berries and currant and the taste…ahhh, very enjoyable! Full-bodied fruit and spice makes the complexity oh so nice!

An amazing blend of 59% Cabernet Franc, 31% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Wine is well worth the $40-$45 a bottle price. (Wine club members get 20% off)

Food pairing ideas:
We enjoyed this wine with grilled filet mignon and crab legs. (slightly smoked with cabernet wood chips) Paired wonderfully.

Order directly from Terlato online
You may also want to check out the Terlato Vineyards 2003 Syrah

(3 votes, average: 8 out of 10)

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