#1 — 2007 Trentatre Rosso
#2 — 2007 Rabbit Ridge Allure de Robles
#3 — 2008 Sauvignon Republic Stellenbosch Sauvignon Blanc
#4 — 2008 VINTJS Syrah
#5 — 2007 Now & Zen Wasabi White
#6 — 2007 Perrin Cotes du Rhone Reserve
#7 — 2008 Concha y Toro Casillero del Diablo Carmenere
#8 — 2006 Chiusa Grande Tommolo Montepulciano d Abruzzo
#9 — 2008 La Granja Tempranillo
#10 — 2007 Dr. Beckermann Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling Spatlese
2007 Castle Rock Mendocino County Pinot Noir
Price: $9.99 @ Trader Joe’s
What They Said:
Per Castle Rock “Our Castle Rock Pinot Noir was produced from grapes grown in Northern California’s beautiful Mendocino County, where vineyards were first planted in the early 1860’s. Here, the headwaters of the Russian River carve a fertile and rugged landscape. The warm summers, cool springs, crisp falls and wet winters make ideal growing conditions for Pinot Noir grapes, in a climate similar to that of the Burgundy region of France, where the grapes were first established. This elegant and medium-bodied wine has delicate aromas of violet and rose petals, complex flavors and long silky textures, with layers of strawberry and raspberry leading into a long refined finish.”
What I Think:
This wine was first brought to my attention via a comment from Diane Diane in late October. As my experience with the ’06 wasn’t that great I wasn’t super keen to grab it. After it scored another recommendation on twitter from Big Wine Blog I decided to track it down.
And boy, am I glad I did! Delicate, floral perfumed nose. Lilacs? Rose petals? I definitely need to smell more flowers to get better at isolating these scents as floral is about as far as I can usually get. At the front of the palate nice, soft strawberries. Lingers nicely through the mid palate leading to a slightly dry finish with silky tannins and flavors of orange rind. Easily worth every cent of the $10 I paid. Slightly reminds me of all time favorite Pinot which is also from Mendocino, the Navarro I grabbed some more and am thrilled to have a go to bottle of Pinot for the near future!
Rating: Buy It+
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BTW, This wine is basically unavailable. Why bother posting it anymore in the ratings
Hey @Danny sounds like your are still subscribed to the comments here. When you receive this one there should be an unsubscribe option. As for me as long as people keep asking/talking about the wine I’ll welcome the conversation!
By the way have you had the ‘08 yet?
I just picked up a bottle of the ‘08 at the TJs in Sunnyvale and will let you know what I think. Sadly, I never did get a chance to try the ‘07.
It’s not unavailable…..there’s still boatloads at my TJ’s.
@Steve The ‘07 or the ‘08? Surprised if it is the ‘07, where you located so I can stop by and pick some up…
Jason,
Ohhh yes, I 100% agree! Killer Pinot for $10. I picked a couple cases at Cost Plus just before T-giving for $7 (sale)a bottle. EVEN THE NON-WINE DRINKERS WERE DRINKING IT… ENTHUSIASTICALLY! I think they still have the ‘07 at 9.99 and then you get 10% off if you get 6 (of any bottle) or more. I buy at TJ and COst Plus but lately I am gravitating more to C Plus for the extra 10% on top of their sale items. I bought a case of Automoto Cab ‘05 for $4.50/bottle as it was very nice after airing. I also reccomend their Grove Ridge ‘08 Chardonnay at $4 and they also have Martha Stewart branded wines for $5 which all kick butt since they were originally intended to sell for $15. I guess celebrity named wines generally crap out.
Cheers to your site, i love it!
Found this wine at TJ’s/Framingham, MA Enjoy!
I thought the ‘08 was pretty good. Pretty smooth, quite earthy, a lot of dark cherry flavor with a bit of raspberry. Finishes fairly dry. I don’t really get any of the floral character though. Judging by some of the comments on the previous page, I wish they would have had some of the ‘07… The ‘08 was nice but doesn’t seem like it would be the #1 wine on the list.
@AJ Killer price at $7 bones, glad it was a hit. Thanks for the kind words and I’ll check out those Cost Plus offerings if I can still find them!
@Kevin Thanks for following up! Sounds like you enjoyed it, I’ll let you know my thoughts once I try the ‘08!