Trader Joe's Platinum Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Knights Valley Sonoma County 2016

I have had this bottle in the wine refrigerator for a month. I had a cold, which impacted my ability to properly taste wine (it did not limit my ability to drink wine but the alcohol never killed any germs like I hoped would happen). I am on the road to recovery and can now taste wine again. Trader Joe's Platinum Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Knights Valley 2016 was an excellent choice for the occasion.

Knights Valley is in northern Sonoma County bordering the Russian River Valley, Alexander Valley and northern Napa Valley. It is one of the warmest areas in Sonoma County and 2/3 of the grapes grown there are Cabernet Sauvignon. Berringer is one of the largest vineyard owners in Knights Valley.

This is a full bodied, dark fruit wine. I noted flavors of black cherry, blackberry, mocha and spice with a bit of plum. The flavor evolves as the wine goes from the initial sip to the back of the mouth. You do not notice tannins or oak until after you swallow and that sensation is long lasting. I am confident that there are other Bordeaux grapes blended into the wine, but the bottle gives no clue. Perhaps, they do not want to give any clues about the origin of the wine.

The most popular Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is from Berringer and it sells for at least $20. This Trader Joe's wine compares favorably to the Berringer and sells for $15. I hope this wine is still at Trader Joe's, so I can buy more.

SC Wine Joe rating = 91 points

Feel free to copy image to pinterest

Comments

Ken Wright Cellars Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2018

I was aware of the reputation of Ken Wright Cellars for Willamette Valley Pinot Noir but had never tried one of their wines. The winery is most known for single vineyard Pinot Noirs but their entry level wine is a blend from several vineyards. When I have looked for wine from Ken Wright, I have either found the single vineyard wines costing more than $60 or I have found the entry level Willamette Valley blend priced significantly higher than the $22 price on the winery website. One well known wine shop in downtown Greenville actually sells it for $34. I guess that the wine must be really good to command higher than retail prices. Two things have recently happened. Costco has a Ken Wright premium Pinot Noir for around $40 and Whole Foods Market has the entry level Willamette Valley Pinot Noir on sale for $22 rather than their usual price of $27. I chose the entry level Willamette Valley Pinot Noir and I am sure glad that I did. Ken Wright Willamette Valley Pinot Noir has a deep r

Parcelica Grande 2018

It has been a little over 3 months since I last posted on this blog. I have taken that time to enjoy old favorites as well as wines bought directly from wineries. I needed a break from trying a lot of unfamiliar wines so that I might have something new to write about. However, now I am planning a live video post for the OlliLife newsletter at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Furman University about value wines from lesser known wine regions and this will require Wine Jane and I to do a lot of research. Well, someone has to do it! There are few places that have as much affordable quality wine as Spain. The best known wines from Spain come from areas like Rioja in the northern part of Spain. However, even greater values can be found further south in the areas bordering the Mediterranean Sea. One such area is Yecla, about 50 miles inland from the sea. In the past seven years, I have posted about four wines from Yeccla. All have been blends of the traditional Spanish g

Dragon Vine, a novel by Steven Laine

It has been a year since I have posted to the South Carolina Wine Blog. However, I was provided with an advance copy of the latest novel by Steven Laine entitled Dragon Vine for my review. Mr. Laine writes novels with a wine focused theme and I reviewed Mr. Laine's previous novel Root Cause in 2019, which I greatly enjoyed. The synopsis of Dragon Vine is as follows: When his father dies in a wildfire, Carmine Cooper takes over the family winery in the middle of harvest, putting his dreams of becoming an architect on hold. He soon finds himself fighting with a vengeful neighbor, blackmailed by a local gang, harassed by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities, and the target of an ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives) investigation. Carmine’s only hope to solve his problems and finish his first solo vintage successfully rests in identifying an unknown grape variety his father grew and made into wine for a quarter century with links to an a

South Carolina Wine Joe

Search This Blog