South Carolina Wine Joe

Last weekend, we returned to the Yadkin Valley to do some wine tasting.  The Yadkin Valley is west of Winston Salem and south of Mt. Airy, NC and it is a three hour drive from our home.  This year, the wines we tasted were superior to those we tasted a year ago and we had a great time.  The following are the wineries we most enjoyed this year: Laurel Gray Vineyards We knew that we would be arriving to the Yadkin Valley around noon.  Since there are few convenient restaurants, we decided to bring a picnic to the Laurel Gray Vineyards.  This was a good choice because Laurel Gray is the first winery along I-77 when you reach the Yadkin Valley and it has a large covered patio with a view of vineyards and a lake.  Wine Jane had a glass of Viognier and I had a glass of Scarlet Mountain, a red blend. Midnight Magdalena Vineyards Midnight Magdalena is one of the newer vineyards in the area.  We were greeted by the owner who filled us in on all of the details about the vineyard inc

Oregon Pinot Noir, especially from the Willamette Valley, is expensive.  There are several reasons for this:       1.  It is labor intensive to grow the Pinot Noir grape.       2.  Oregon levies a tax on wine production and the proceeds are used by the state for research in               grape growing and wine making.       3.  Oregon laws are more strict than other states regarding wine production.       4.  Quality always costs more. The problem is that most of us do not want to spend over $20 a bottle, every time we desire a glass of Pinot Noir.  Here are two under $20 Oregon Pinots that I recently tried that make good weekday choices. Petiole Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2017 In recent years, I have been hesitant to buy Trader Joe's wines, except for the Grand Reserve and Platinum Reserve offerings.  A few months ago, I purchased 2 bottles of Vintjs Pinot Noir Willamette Valley and I ended up adding some of the second bottle to pasta sauce and the rest went down the d

I bought a bottle of Artezin Old Vine Zinfandel at Costco three months ago.  I cannot explain why I had not opened it.  It just seemed like there was always something else in the wine refrigerator that I just could not wait to drink.  I can say that my recent experiences with Zinfandel were disappointing, with many wines that were too sweet for my taste.  In any case, last night, Zinfandel seemed like a good pairing for my burger. Artezin is 84% Zinfandel, 14% Petit Sirah and 2% Carignan.  The wine is 100% barrel aged, mostly in French oak and has 14.5% alcohol.  Since some old vine Zinfandel wines have a higher alcohol content, I was a little concerned that the wine could be a little sweet. Surprisingly, the wine has aromas of both red and black fruit.  I tasted a little raspberry along with blackberry. pepper and spice.  I was pleased that this is a dry wine with medium tannins.  Everything seems in balance and the finish lingers a very long time.  I really enjoyed this wine and

Wine Jane and I recently attended an event in Dahlonega, Georgia which gave us an opportunity to do some wine tasting.  We only had time and stamina to visit two wineries and we chose Frogtown Cellars and the adjacent Three Sisters Vineyard. FROGTOWN CELLARS We knew we would be arriving at lunch time and we selected Frogtown Cellars because the menu of their restaurant appealed to us.  In fact, our lunch was delicious and I recommend including this in a trip to this part of Georgia. Following lunch, we moved to the tasting area.  Apparently, it was pickup weekend for their wine club members and the bar area was extremely crowded and noisy for a Friday afternoon.  The two servers were too busy for any discussion, so they repeated their memorized script for each wine and quickly moved down the line to the next customer. Frogtown Cellars is one of the largest wineries in the area with 43 acres of planted vines.  All of the wines are 100% Estate grown and made.  Their wines have wo

Canoe Ridge Vineyard is one of my favorite wine brands from the Columbia Valley.   I have previously liked their Explorer Red Blend, the Cherry Street Red Blend, Expedition Chardonnay and Expedition Cabernet Sauvignon.  I found the 2014 Canoe Ridge Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon at Costco for $16.99, which is well below Total Wine's price of $29.99. Canoe Ridge Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from the Horse Heaven Hills region.  The wine is aged for 20 months in French oak (45% new) and has 14.3% Alcohol. The wine has aromas of black cherry and vanilla.  Besides the vanilla and black cherry, I noted flavors of blackberries and spice.  The wine starts fairly soft but finishes with ample tannins.  We paired this with a grilled strip steak and it was enjoyable.  Wine Spectator rates this wine at 90 points and I agree. SC Wine Joe rating = 90 points