#1 — 2007 Castle Rock Mendocino County Pinot Noir
#3 — 2007 King Shag Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc
#4 —2007 Epicuro Aglianico
#5 — 2008 Honey Moon Viognier 
#6 — 2005 Perrin Cotes du Rhone Reserve 
#7 — 2008 Geyser Peak Sauvignon Blanc 
#8 — 2006 Chiusa Grande Tommolo Montepulciano d’ Abruzzo 
#9 — 2008 Concha y Toro Casillero del Diablo Carmenere
#10 — 2006 The California Wine Party Franc Merlot 
2007 Chariot Gypsy
Price: $4.99 @ Trader Joe’s
What They Said:
Per Jim Neal “The Chariot Gypsy 2007 is a delicious blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel and Sangiovese from great vineyards in the Napa Valley, and Sonoma, and Monterey Counties. Winemaker Jeff Hunsaker describes the wine like this: “The 2007 ‘Gypsy’ displays a dark garnet color with a clear violet edge. It shows mixed fresh berry aromas — raspberry and strawberry, with hints of white pepper and pastry. Very clean and lively with juicy berry fruit, firm acidity and a touch of smooth tannin. Excellent and versatile food wine particularly well suited for pork chops and poultry”. We think it is the perfect everyday red wine!”
What I Think:
For those that missed the shockwave heard around the Trader Joe’s world the Gypsy is back. After falling in love with the ’05 vintage and completely missing the ’06 I wasn’t going to allow myself to be short changed again. So when it began showing up in the wine aisle in early June I began my aimless search around the bay area for my beloved Gypsy. On my fifth stop, in San Rafael, I finally scored and two cases went into the cart (+1 extra so we didn’t have to open to scan). Whew, what a relief.
Now onto the wine itself. The ’07 is a blend of 37% Cabernet, 33% Zinfandel, 10% Petite Sirah, 10% Syrah and 10% Sangoviese which is quite different than the previous vintages. Curious and hopeful I pour the wine in the glass, what’s the verdict? On the nose I get wet wood and faint floral and spice notes. On the palate it is lively, bright and juicy with loads of fruit. Raspberries that are a tad under ripe add acidity that is balanced by a subtle sweetness. This is followed by nice fruity, peppery, spicy finish. A fruit forward (some may say bomb instead) effort best served with food, you name it pizza, burgers, bbq. Any kind will work. Many recommend giving this one 15-30+ minutes to breathe so open it while cooking. If you’ve never experienced the Chariot Gypsy before this is a delightful $5 super value wine.
Those that have experienced this wine before have a bit more of a conundrum. This effort is much simpler, not complex and lacks the depth of previous vintages. I compared the ’05 to the Rosenblum Heritage Clone Petite Sirah and felt it compared favorably with many $20 bottles. Yes, the label, retailer and price remain the same but given the changes in blend percentage and a new winemaker it is best not to compare this to previous vintages. Take it for what it is; “what you see is what you get” and that would be an easy drinking, summer BBQ wine. Enjoy!
Rating: Buy It (with a caveat, if you like this one treat it as a Bulk Buy as when it is gone, it is gone for good. Wondering if it is available at your local TJ’s? Check here
Editor’s Note (07-Jul-2009): Added a note on letting this one breathe for 15-30 minutes if you don’t initially find it agreeable.
@K I would think that I could tell you but it appears there may be two different versions/bottlings of the 2007 out there.
The first which appeared here in CA and per the Chariot website is “Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel and Sangiovese from great vineyards in the Napa Valley, and Sonoma, and Monterey Counties.” The second which began appearing in Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer (pdf) outside of CA is “Russian River Petite Sirah, Lodi Zinfandel, Cab, Merlot, Syrah and Petite Verdot” If you bought this recently I am guessing you have the 2nd version. That said I am working on getting to the bottom of this. For the record they also added an extra $1 to the price tag on this second version. Stay tuned for more…
I just sent this to the email address listed on the Chariot Wines site, I’ll let you know if I receive a response, otherwise hopefully we will hear something right here…
——————————————
Hello,
I had a question on the 2007 Chariot Gypsy. Are there two versions? We had one that appeared months ago which I believe is listed on your site as including “Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Zinfandel and Sangiovese from great vineyards in the Napa Valley, and Sonoma, and Monterey Counties.” And I believe a second began appearing this month which per the Trader Joe’s Fearless Flyer (pdf) includes “Russian River Petite Sirah, Lodi Zinfandel, Cab, Merlot, Syrah and Petite Verdot”. Despite that both appear to be labeled as the 2007 Chariot Gypsy. I was hoping you could help me clarify the situation.
Feel free to respond directly to me or as an alternative you may leave a comment here where the subject is being debated. Thank in advance for your response.
Cheers,
Jason
http://www.jasonswineblog.com
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[...] grocery shopping at 3 different stores. Local Trader Joe’s finally got Chariot Gypsy, so picked up two bottles. Yeah! It’s pretty damn good. As in, it didn’t have any [...]
20 cases of the second batch in Glendale AZ store. Picked up a case. Interested to know if different grapes used in this batch.
Jason, I haven’t yet purchased the new batch of Gypsy though the TJ’s here in Chicago (Lincoln Park) has a huge display of it. The old Gypsy was 13.9% ABV – is the new batch the same? And for the record, both the old and new batches in Chicago were $6, so no price increase here. (We often pay a buck more than you lucky Californians)
Great point Joe, I only have the old version. The new one isn’t available here is SF. Went to inspect the label of the older version tonight and saw the 13.9%. Also noticed a little emblematic “VII” on the bottle. Does the new one have an “VIII” per chance? Anyone out there with the alcohol percentage of the new version? PeterB can you help?
BTW, this wine is basically unavailable. Why bother posting it anymore?
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!
Any chance you would sell me a bottle? I am desperate for a Christmas gift!!! :)
Doe’s anybody know where can i find this wine??????????????Please!!!! It’s a great wine.
The MPLS ST Paul TJ’s are sold out of this great wine. Both first and second versions. What a value against the field of blended red wines. I bought some of each but can’t part with it.