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The Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017 can be found at Trader Joe's for $7.99. This is a mystery wine since it does not show up on Peachy Canyon's website or have much of a web presence.Peachy Canyon Winery, founded in 1988, is located in the Paso Robles AVA inside California's Central Coast AVA. It is owned and operated by the Beckett family and features wines made from Paso Robles grapes, and often using single vineyards.All this makes the Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017 something of an anomaly. I found this Lodi Zin selling at a couple of internet stores for $20 and $30, which is strange since Trader Joe's has it for under eight bucks.There have been some changes at the Peachy Canyon Winery. Lately, the father, who founded the winery, turned the operation over to his two sons. The Beckett started their own con label about 10 years ago, Chronic Cellars. You may know those wines from the Sofa King Bueno red, among others.They sold that label to a major wine company and recently returned to Peachy Canyon Winery. I am speculating, but it is common for a winery that changes the management and winemaking team to make adjustments to their product line.Since the Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017 looks to be available at stores other than TJ's, it does not seem to be a Trader Joe's exclusive. But Trader Joe's may well have the best price.Peachy Canyon's current value Zinfandel is the Westside Zinfandel, which lists for $20. Prices on winery websites are often higher than you may find in your local wines shop so that they do not directly compete.Lodi is my personal favorite growing region for Zinfandel wines. A winemaking style that is often used produces the wines to be sleek and sophisticated and rustic, juicy and spicy.Since Peachy Canyon Winery does not offer information on the production of the Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017, I do not have any production details to talk about.I expect this Zinfandel to be aged in a mix of French and American oak barrels, I expect Peach Canyon to carefully choose the vineyards, and I expect this wine was never intended to sell for $7.99. There is usually a story to be told when a 2017 Red wine sells for under ten dollars.Three years plus is too much time and effort for this low of a return. You sometimes see low, out of the ordinary pieces for brand wines. But, Peachy Canyon is an actually family-owned winery, and family-owned wineries do not stay in business by selling their wines cheap. The alcohol content is 14.3%.Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017 Tasting NotesThe color is a barely see-thru garnet red. The nose is rich and balanced; there is ripe blackberry, spice, burnt toast, pepper, licorice, and dark chocolate.I did not expect Paso Robles winemakers to produce a Lodi-style wine, simply use Lodi grapes, but the Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017 comes close to that classy/rustic style I like.It tastes of blackberry jam, soothing blueberry, a brush of exotic spice, and black pepper. The mid-palate brings raspberry, a salty sensation, a little bitter dark chocolate, and more spice.The tannins and the acidity are well controlled. The tannins give this Zin a sturdy backbone, and the acidity gives the wine length so the flavors can unfold.The SummaryThe Peachy Canyon Lodi Zinfandel 2017 is a delicious wine. Why it is featured on Trader Joe's wine shelves for $7.99, I do not know. But this is a solid Zinfandel made by an excellent Zinfandel producer.Peachy Canyon Winery makes excellent wine that is seldom featured at this price point. This is a chance to get a quality wine from a quality produced at a bargain price.

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The Beurré Chardonnay 2019 is a $6.99 Trader Joe's import wine a Pays D'Oc designated wine from the Languedoc in southeastern France. The Languedoc is the largest wine-producing area in France, and this is where French every day, drink-it-now wines are produced.Beurré is French for butter, and most of the writing on the front label is singing the praises of buttered bread. That is something that would be goofy if written in English but looks just fine in French.So, it would seem that the Beurré Chardonnay 2019 is buttery. Let us talk about how a Chardonnay gets its butter flavor. We will keep things simple, but three techniques contribute to developing the taste.The first is malolactic fermentation; this is a process that occurs almost routinely in Red wine. Chardonnay sees malolactic (Chenin Blanc sometimes, too), especially when oak-aged. What happens here is the tart acid that occurs naturally inside of grapes is converted to more rounded tasting acid.The second technique is "on lees." This is where the spent yeast used for initial fermentation (not malolactic) falls to the tank's bottom with the wine during aging. On its own, it can add a salty, nutty flavor. When stirred (called batonage in France), the wine developed a creamy texture. The more you stir, the more pronounced the effect.Then there is oak conditioning, either barrel aging or some other method. With $6.99 wine, you do not always expect expensive oak barrels to be used. When toasted by flame to the winemakers' specifications, the oak will add flavors such as vanilla or spice.The Beurré Chardonnay 2019, at this point of the review, I have not tasted it, probably was subject to some or all of these production techniques. The winemaker can have a percentage of the Chardonnay undergo Malolactic fermentation and age only certain lots "on lees" while using oak on, let us say, twenty-five percent of the wine.Chardonnay is like snowflakes; no two are exactly alike. There are many techniques, variations, and grape selection available to the winemaker that even though there are only so many popular Chardonnay styles, there is plenty of room for variation.The Languedoc growing region is where regular French folks get their wine. It may not be the most famous or the most expensive, but it is the most popular. So do not think that a $6.99 Chardonnay can not possibly be any good. This Trader Joe's/Aldi Nord (in Europe) is a good example of what European wine drinkers enjoy every day. The alcohol content is 13.5%.Beurré Chardonnay 2019 Tasting NotesThe color is butter yellow with a hint of green. You can sometimes tell if a Chardonnay is oak barrel aged by how deep the yellow is. The nose is, well, I am drinking French but smelling California. There is a mix of lemon, melon, and green apple, then buttered toast and a hint of butterscotch. I guess they weren't kidding about the Beurré part. Oh, by the way, Beurré is produced ber or burr.Beurré Chardonnay 2019 is a boldly flavored Chardonnay, smooth but with a strong flavor. It tastes green apple and cream, yes, not your usual combination, melon, sharp spice, raisins, butterscotch, and lime.The acidity is well-balanced; it lets the flavors do their thing yet stays out of the way.The SummaryI am not sure I like the French version of buttery Chardonnay; maybe I was expecting California buttered Chardonnay, a different style.The Beurré Chardonnay 2019 has a unique flavor. I gave the wine a bit more time to open up. A $6.99 White wine is often a pop the top and pour kind of wine, though I did give the bottle about 20 minutes.With the additional time, the flavor is more to my liking, so be warned, give the Beurré Chardonnay 2019 plenty of time to drink it at its best.

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The Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 is a blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Malbec sourced from vineyards in Napa and Sonoma Counties.The Aviary line of wines is one of the Folktale Wine Group brands of wine; here is a link to their website for more information. I am familiar with their Alias brand, and as I recall, those wines were a good "bang-for-the-Buck."The blend of grapes used for the Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 is the classic Bordeaux Blend using four of the five grapes approved for Bordeaux, France. Carménère is the only grape not used, which is fine since it is rarely used in Bordeaux.The Aviary Vineyards wine brand started as a label that featured grapes from multiple Napa vineyards, and now the vineyard selection has also expanded to feature Sonoma County. What I found interesting is that the label only shows "California Wine" as its place of origin.Understating the wines particulars is unusual since it would be legal to show North Coast AVA or Napa County AVA and Sonoma County AVA. I found the Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 on-sale for $12.99 (the Binny's chain in Illinois), and it lists for $18, and it is typically found on the web for over $15.A detail that stood out in the technical notes is the winemakers say this blend can be cellared for up to ten years and possibly longer. The Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 is a drink-it-now wine, meaning that it is ready to drink as soon as you make your purchase.But wines with aging potential are made with different production techniques, and the winemakers are looking for different qualities in the grapes than typical value-priced red wine. Wines that can age have a different tannin structure and acidity level than wine that is meant to be consumed with the first couple of years after release.So, on-sale, the Aviary will be a different Red blend style than the wines that populate this price point. The 2018 vintage in Napa and Sonoma was one of the years that was not plagued by fires and was considered an excellent vintage.The name Birds of Prey is a shout-out to the owls and hawks that live around the vineyards and keep the pests a bay. While they do not say that the vineyards used are organic, they say the vineyards are managed organically with no pesticide use.The Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 was aged for 12 months in a mix of French and American oak barrels. French oak and American are two different oak species with very different grain and when toasted, flavor profiles. Wines can use a mix of both kinds of wood to get the exact flavor they are looking for. The alcohol content is typical for California red wine 14.5%.Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 Tasting NotesThe color a deep, dark, opaque, cheery red with black highlights. The nose is dark berries, molasses, black licorice, plum, spice, a little smoke, and black pepper.This is a wine with a smooth, firm mouthfeel and an excellent array of flavors. It starts with extracted blackberry, bitter dark chocolate, jammy raspberry, and spice with a slightly rough edge.The mid-palate shows a slight tug from the tannins (an excellent thing in quality Red wine), tart cranberry, orange zest, and another slap of spice. The acidity is well integrated into the wine's body; it lets the flavors unfold but does not get in the way.The SummaryThe Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 is a fine Red blend at its list price. It is a complete bargain at its sale price.The Aviary Birds of Prey Red Blend 2018 is a large but very balanced Red wine with loads of flavor.

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The Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 is sourced from estate vineyards planted in the flat land of the Wairau River Valley in the Marlborough district in the Northeast of the South Island in New Zealand.Allan Scott founded his winery in 1990 but has been part of the New Zealand wine industry since the early 1970s. The company name is actually Allen Scott Family Winemakers, so the family knows their way around New Zealand vineyards and how to produce Sauvignon Blanc.The vineyards are thirty-five years old and are planted in rocky clay soil. The vineyard names are Millstone, Omaka, and Moorland, I added that last bit of information because you rarely get the vineyard names for $11.99 wine (I found it on-sale).The Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 is a drink-it now wine meant to be consumed in the year it was released. This type of wine will last several years, but I find they are at their best sooner rather than laterThe 2020 vintage may seem to be a little too soon for a wine release, but New Zealand is in the Southern Hemisphere and their seasons are reversed to ours. This Sauvignon Blanc has all the aging this style of wine needs.The grapes from the various vineyard lots were fermented separately and the best lats were then blended together to produce the Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020. Fermentation was performed in stainless steel tanks and the wine was then aged for one month, again in stainless steel.The alcohol content is a rather reserved 12% and according to the tasting notes, this Sauv Blanc is made in a more "pulled back" style than the sometimes "shouty" affordable New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 Tasting NotesThe color is a shiny, very clear, wheat beer yellow. The nose is more delicate Han the usual Marlborough Sauv Blanc where the aromas jump out of your glass. Here there is delicate melon, peach, pear, ripe apple, lime, guava, and a pretty floral edge.The Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 is an extremely well-balanced Sauvignon Blanc with a solid variety of flavors and textures. I have seen this wine be rated as high as 93 points in Wine Magazines, and I can see the attraction.It tastes of grapefruit, Anjou pear, and ripe peach. There is a very pleasing line of acidity that runs straight through the body of this wine. The mid-palate brings nectarine, tart lime, dried apricot, and a slap of spice.The Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 is a strong but not too bold Sauvignon Blanc with loads of flavor.The SummaryThe Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 is an excellent drink-it now New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.There are so many different wine regions globally that grow quality value-priced Sauvignon Blanc that I fell away from drinking NZ Sauv Blanc.The Allan Scott Sauvignon Blanc 2020 has me excited about the New Zealand wine again.

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The Castor and Pollux Pinot Noir 2019 is a $6.99 Aldi import wine from the Languedoc growing region of Southeastern France. The Languedoc is the largest wine region in France and this is the area that supplies a great deal of the every-day wines that the French drink every-day.I know that many Americans think that a $6.99 wine is too inexpensive to be any good. But in countries with a wine tradition where they have wine with lunch and dinner on a daily basis, this is exactly the type and the price of wine that they typically enjoy.If you are looking for long-term cellar wine or drink a bottle of wine from a famous vineyard or winery, then wine becomes expensive. A good quality enjoyable wine should and can be very affordable.There are relatively few vineyards that reliably produce wines for long-term aging, while the vineyards that produce quality wines for drink-it-now wines are plentiful.Another thing. to remember with exclusive store brands is that they have a price advantage over comparable retail wine shop wines. Store brands do not have advertising and marketing and often pay upfront for the wine which will get them a solid discount.It is hard to say exactly what savings advantage the Castor and Pollux Pinot Noir 2019 has over the competition, it could be a dollar or two and possibly more.The Castor and Pollux Pinot Noir 2019 is a Pays D'Oc wine, which is one classification below AOC designated wines. The term Pay D'Oc means wine of the Languedoc (that is where they get the D'Oc) and it means that this is a wine made from grapes that are typical of the Languedoc region but did not conform to all the AOC rules and regulations.Pay D'Oc (also known as IGP in the European Union) is a typical classification for the region where the price of wine is an important issue. Aldi does not give out any information concerning this Pinot, but Aldi is a European company and they do get their pick of affordable European wines.The alcohol content is rather stiff for French Pinot Noir 14.5%, that is California alcohol levels.Castor and Pollux Pinot Noir 2019 Tasting NotesThe color is see-thru cranberry red with black highlights. The nose is ripe cherry and spice, with a brush of herbs, a mushroom note, and a little pepper.This is a medium-bodied Pinot Noir with a nice display of smooth and rough flavors and textures. it tastes of black cherry, plum, soft chocolate powder (though I do not think this Pinot has seen much oak), and a shot of spice.The mid-palate offers ripe raspberry, a rough edge from the tannins (just a little), and a late hit of blueberry. The acidity is well-balanced.The SummaryThe Castor and Pollux Pinot Noir 2019 is an interesting Pinot Noir.The spice is a little out of balance for my tastes, but not to the point where the next person might think it is perfectly fine.But, $6.99 does get you a Pinot Noir well worth drinking.

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The Aiolas Red Blend 2019 is a $5.99 Trader Joe's import wine, a DOC designated wine from the  Dão region of Portugal. TJ's does not offer any information concerning this Red blend.This is somewhat unfortunate since the wines of Portugal tend to be unique. they often use indigenous grapes such as Touriga Franca or Tinta Barroca. While new grapes are exciting for someone on a wine journey, it can be intimidating for newer wine drinkers.The Aiolas Red Blend 2019, while probably made for ALDI Nord and Trader Joe's for export, is an example of the type of wine that the average wine drinker in Portugal drinks every day. The world drinks sub-$10 wine, even if the wine magazines imply that they drink fancy boutique wine.Dão is located in north-central Portugal and is surrounded by four different mountain ranges. There are 30,000 mostly small family-owned vineyards.For most of the last 100 years, Portugal produced wine to be consumed by people inside Portugal. They used local grapes and made wine to appeal to the local populace. In 2008 in the world economic downturn, the Portuguese government turned to the local wine industry to ramp up production for world export.Since the wines of Portugal were insular and unique to Portugal their wines are very distinct. While most of the wine world uses some variation on the grape greatest hits, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Portugal does local grapes to make their style of wine.This is a DOC designated wine, which means it was farmed and produced to their highest quality standards, something that is always good to see in a $5.99 wine. The alcohol content is 13%.Aiolas Red Blend 2019 Tasting NotesThe color is a dark, barely see-thru black cherry red. The nose is a mix of ripe red and blackberries, soft spice, coffee beans, light herbs, and chocolate powder.This Red blend has a soft, smooth mouthfeel, with mostly ripe fruit and a bit of a rougher edge on the mid-palate. It tastes of black cherry, raspberry, a slight pull from the tannins, and plum.The mid-palate brings cherry, chocolate powder, and a slap of spice. The acidity is well-balanced, it stays out of the way of the flavor profile.The SummaryThe Aiolas Red Blend 2019 is a solid, tasty red blend.I was actually expecting a more "Portuguese" Red, something tasty but out of left field.The Aiolas Red Blend 2019 is a very relatable, well-made red wine.

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The Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot sourced from Rothschild (Lafite) vineyards in the Pauillac AOC inside the Haut-Medoc AOC on the Left Bank or westside of the river in the Bordeaux region of France.The Légende line of Rothschild (Lafite) is their drink-it-now export brand. It features wines from the premier Bordeaux growing areas but sourced from contract vineyards, not Estate vineyards. It gives you real, quality Bordeaux wine, but at a more affordable price.The Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 is the exception. The grapes are from Rothschild estate vineyards grown near the town of Pauillac and the oak barrels are from their own in-house cooperage.A cooperage is a barrel maker and with high-end wine, which forest is used to procure the oak trees, how the boards a cut and the barrels assembled, and how the barrel is flamed or toasted is immensely important.Pauillac is one of, if not the best growing regions in the world. Three of the first five First Growth Grand Cru vineyards from 1855 are located in this small area.The Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 is not cheap, a quick check of the web showed it selling for, between $40 and $50. While that may not be the typical CheapWineFinder price range and it is not a wine that is meant to be cellared (it will last 5 to 7 years, but it is ready to go now). It is well-priced for what it is.The Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 is a taste of the best of Bordeaux but in a ready to go more affordable configuration. A top-notch AOC, high-end Estate vineyards, and a legendary cooperage, it is expensive, yet reasonably priced.The 2016 vintage is Pauillac was excellent, while vintage ratings are more important for cellar-worthy wines than drink-it-now wines. You do not want to wait twenty years to drink a bottle of wine only to find out it was not worth the wait.60% of this Red blend was aged in French oak barrels for 12 months. The other 40% was aged, probably in stainless steel tanks (they did not specify). Since this, a drink-it-now wine the oak aging mainly for flavor, and blending the oak barrel-aged wine with the unbaked wine will give the wine a bright fruit flavor along with the oak conditioning.The alcohol content is 13% which is in contrast with the typical California Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine where the alcohol is often 14.5% or more. Bordeaux red wine will be leaner and sleeker than its California competition.Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 Tasting NotesThe color is a barely see-thru plum red. The nose is blackberry, blueberry, molasses, licorice, black pepper, strawberry, lilac, and soft spice. This is a medium-bodied Red blend with distinct flavors and excellent balance.It tastes of ripe blackberry, mocha coffee, a hit of sharp spice, a few herbs, and raisin spice. The mid-palate adds raspberry, orange zest, a little dark chocolate, and soft blueberry.The tannins are there, you can feel them but they do not "pull", the acidity is nicely balanced giving the Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 excellent length, the flavors go on and on.The SummaryThe Légende Pauillac Bordeaux 2016 is a very tasty Red blend. The interplay with the Cabernet and the Merlot is a joy with every sip.This is not a shy wine, the flavors are loud and proud.This is Bordeaux wine for folks who love California Red wine. It has French style, sleek, balanced, and lean, along with some excellent flavor.

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The Bartolomiol Ius Naturae DOCG Prosecco 2018, Ius Naturae translaties to Natural Law, is farmed in certified organic Estate vineyards in the DOCG Valdobbiadene district of the Prosecco region of Veneto in northern Italy.This is a vintage Prosecco, from the 2018 vintage, which is a bit different from the usual seemingly available everywhere non-vintage Prosecco. While a non-vintage Sparkling wine is blended from several vintages, that allows the winemaker to maintain a "House Style" that can be replicated year after year.A vintage Sparkling wine will express the growing season of a single particular year. Sparkling wine producers often produce a vintage-dated Bubbly in years where the conditions were just right in the vineyard.Bartolomiol was founded in the 1980s and has converted all their estate vineyards to organic farming. The Valdobbiadene DOCG section of Prosecco is a hilly region in the center. Grapevines love hillsides since the vines are staggered and each vine gets the same amount of sunlight. When it rains the water rolls downhill, the vines gat a drink, but water does not pool around the roots of the vines which can cause issues mold and disease.The Bartolomiol Ius Naturae DOCG Prosecco 2018 is a DOCG designated wine which indicates the vines were planted in prime growing locations and the farming the wine production adhered to strict standards. The G in DOCG translates to guaranteed. They are not guaranteeing that you will like the wine, but are attesting to the quality of the wine.I am actually pretty happy with the good old regular DOC Prosecco, it is priced right and tastes great. But I am very interested to try a Prosecco with all the bells and whistles. Organic estate vineyards, vintage-dated, and a three-month-long 2nd fermentation (typical Prosecco is in the autoclave for a few weeks or so). The alcohol content is a mild 11.5%.Bartolomiol Ius Naturae DOCG Prosecco 2018 tasting NotesThe color is gold with a hint of silver the bubbles keep coming and coming. The nose is ripe crisp apple, lemon chiffon, pear, grapefruit, and a little melon.This is a Prosecco that engages your palate, it definitely has body. This is a sleek, balanced fruit-forward Bubbly. It tastes of a blend of apple, lemon, and melon, with a streak of sharp spice.The mid-palate adds a little sweet peach, apricot, and soft tangerine.The acidity of the Bartolomiol Ius Naturae DOCG Prosecco 2018 sizzles through-out the length of the Bubbly, but does not bite, it is very well-balanced.The SummaryMy first thought after tasting the Bartolomiol Ius Naturae DOCG Prosecco 2018 is that if I had tasted the Bartolomiol as my first Prosecco it would have helped in choosing my favorite go-to value-priced Prosecco.Tasting an exquisite Prosecco first would have told me what I need to look for in a quality Prosecco.Then again it may have ruined me for value Prosecco and doomed me to pay twice the price for the vintage stuff.

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The La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 is a $6.99 Trader Joe's import Bubbly using two of the three traditional Cava grapes, Xarel-lo and Parellada farmed in the Cava DO of northwest Spain, near Barcelona.La Granja 360 translates to the Farm 360 and is a brand owned by Axial Vino, a Ditch company producing Spanish wine. La Granja 360 wines use grapes from a group of small local farmers or commune. The individual farms are too small to produce their own wines by themselves, but when they band together can produce wine in large quantities.All La Granja 360 wines are very affordable, but they have very distinctive labels. The La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 features a purple duck, the red blend has a zebra whose stripes are being painted red, and the Tempranillo has a flying pink pig.All the La Granja 360 wines are vegan-friendly meaning no animal by-products are used in the production of the wine. They have their own animal adoption program and sanctuary for rescued farm animals and have a read-out on the environmental impact of their wine packaging and transportation system.They are not your typical value-wine company, the Cava at $6.99 is their most expensive wine. While these Spanish wines are produced for export they are typical of the kind of wine the wine drinkers in Spain and most of Europe drink every day.Countries that traditionally have wine for lunch and dinner drink affordable wines with their meal. I know in the United States some folks see a price tag well below ten bucks and think that the wine can not be any good. But they are wrong, this is the type of everyday wine that most of the world enjoys.The La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 is produced with the Traditional Method, the same technique used for Champagne. In Champagne, the second fermentation lasts at least 18 months while in the Cava DO lasts to go a minimum of 9 months.The grapes used in Cava and Champagne are usually different and the Cava rules and regulations are not as strict, but Cava typically sells for a fraction of Champagne.$6.99 is very inexpensive for a Traditional Method Sparkling wine, so is it any good? Let us head to the Tasting section to find out. The alcohol content is 11.5%.La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 Tasting NotesThe color is pale gold with a flurry of energetic bubbles. The nose is lemon, green apple, and toasty bread, along with melon, coconut milk, and pear.The La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 is a crisp, east-to-drink Bubbly, not too complicated, but tasty.It tastes of grapefruit, lemon, lime, tart apple, pear, and just a touch of spice. The mid-palate is not particularly different from the main body of the wine but does add a little sweet peach and stone fruit.The acidity gives this Bubbly a bright, alive nature, but does not go over-board. Some inexpensive Cava's can be acid bombs, but the La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 stays in control.The SummaryThe La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 is a first-class party Bubbly, 3 bottles for twenty-one dollars will get the party started.It tastes way better than any $6.99 Traditional Method Bubbly has a right to taste.The La Granja 360 Cava Brut NV 2020 is a very drinkable, Champagne-style Bubbly that sells for a ridiculously cheap price.

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The Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 is a vintage, bio-dynamic, Estate grown Sparkling wine from the Penedes district of the Catalonia region of Spain (think Barcelona). While this is a Sparkling wine produced with the traditional method (like Champagne) it is not Cava.Raventos I Blanc is part of a wine family that has been producing wine at this estate since 1497. Another member of the Raventos family produced the first Cava in 1872. The current Raventos I Blanc Estate was started in 1984, so they do have a history in this region.Originally the Estate was located in the Cava DO, DO in Spain is the equivalent to an AVA in the USA, a boundary of a grape-growing area. In 2012, Raventos left the Cava DO and started the Conca del Riu Anoia region. They left in part because they did not think the rules and regulations governing the Cava DO were strict enough.Raventos I Blanc and the Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 differ from the typical Cava Sparkling wine in that they are vintage-dated rather than non-vintage and specialize in the indigenous grapes of Catalonia.The blend of grapes used in this Bubbly are unique, there is 30% Xarel.lo, one of the three grape varietals traditionally used in Cava. Then 25% Xarel.lo Vermell, a rare Red grape mutation of Xarel.lo.Also 25% Sumoll, a local Red Grape, and 15% Bastard Negre, Negre is Spanish for the French Noir meaning dark or black grapes. Then 5% Parellada which is also one of three traditional Cava grapes, Macabeo is the only grape missing.The estate vineyard is biodynamically farmed which expands on organic farming to the point where farming decisions are made based on the phases of the moon.The 2014 vintage of Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 may have 20% of the grapes sourced from a second vineyard, there are conflicting tech notes. As a vintage Sparkling wine, the details can change from vintage to vintage.I think the 2016 vintage is the current release, but 2014 should be still available and Raventos I Blanc has other vintage-dated bottlings with different grape combinations.The Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 is made in the Traditional Method, the same techniques used in Champagne. In Champagne, the second fermentation must last at least 18 months, with the more expensive, exclusive brands going far beyond. With Cava, the minimum time for 2nd fermentation is 9 months with the more exclusive Bubbly going an extended time.The Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 is in a bottle for 42 months, the date that removed the dead yeast is 11-10-2018, each bottle is individually date stamped.Extended triage (aging) is where the magic in Sparkling wine lies. The younger "House Style" Bubbly is wonderful. But time does things to wine that no winemaking tricks can replicate. With time the flavors meld together, the bubbles are further incorporated into the wine, and the Bubbly becomes creamy and delicious.This is not an inexpensive Bubbly, a quick check of the web showed prices in the $40 to $50 range. Yes, it is in the Champagne price range, but it is well under the price of estate-grown, bio-dynamic, extended triage, and vintage-dated Champagne.Plus there are not too many wines that will feature this blend of grapes, some of these grapes are rare and unique. If you are interested in vintage, aged Bubbly the Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 can be considered to be a bargain. The alcohol content is 12%.Raventos I Blanc Textures de Pedra 2014 Tasting NotesThe color is golden yellow, with a flurry of fine bubbles. The nose has weight, this is not a crisp and light Bubbly, there are notes of melon, butter, yeasty bread, lemon, apple, Anjou pear, a little Nutella, and spice.This is a full-flavored Sparkling wine, the mid-palate is a full as the initial flavor. It starts with ripe, tart, apple, Meyer lemon, a touch of melon, a splash of spices, and dried pear.

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