In keeping with White Rocket Wine Company's niche of bringing new brands of high quality, affordable wines to the new generation of wine drinkers comes French Maid Wine. Each of the five varietals from the French 'Old World' Languedoc region is given a 'New World' spirit. Offering a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Sauvignon Blanc, each French Maid Wine brings French terroir to the newbies of the wine world on a smaller budget of only $12 per bottle. For the connoisseur who prefers more luxury priced wines this may not be the bottle of choice but as an introduction to wine it just may fit the bill.
When quality meets affordability in a wine that also speaks to your heart, I would say that is a win-win! The White Rocket Wine Company's Dog House line featuring California grown Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Grigio, Zinfandel and Chardonnay supports Guide Dogs for the Blind by donating fifty-cents of each bottle purchased to their life changing programs. Not only do you get to enjoy your wine but you can improve the quality of life for many blind and visually impaired individuals across the country.
Guide Dogs for the Blind is a charitable organization that does not benefit from any government funding and therefore relies on donations to provide free guide dogs and training to those in need. Since Dog House Wines pledged their support for the non-profit, over $214,000 have been donated to its cause. Not only are Dog House Wines champions in terms of philanthropic giving but the wines have also earned over sixty individual awards making this brand a worthy selection for anyone... plus, who could resist that adorable dog on the label!
California Chardonnays sometimes get a bad reputation for being overly oaky. While big, oaky Chards definitely have their place, especially with richer foods, an unoaked Chardonnay can offer a light and fruity taste that is perfect for summer. Summers Estate Wines in Calistoga has released their "Le Nude," a limited-production un-oaked Chardonnay which is fermented in stainless steel and produced from grapes grown in the Alexander Valley. This is the first time Summers Estate Wines has produced a "naked" Chardonnay. The wine is made from grapes grown in the Alexander Valley and has flavors of tropical fruit and yellow flowers. This wine sells for $24 and has a screw cap, making it an easy choice for outdoor picnics.
What's your drink of choice? If you are a martini drinker you are still in the majority. Wine Spirits Daily took a look at a study called "Success In The Cities" from Information Resources. They surveyed over 500 bars, restaurants, hotels and nightclubs in major metropolitan areas to find the hot cocktails. The top three are the martini (not just the classic but the martinis-in-glass only such as the fruit martinis), mojitos and the dance-til-you-drop party enhancer, Red Bull and vodka.
The most popular shot is the Jager bomb, that deadly mix of Jagermeister and Red Bull, which surprises me. It was the hot thing in 2005 and I never imagined this trend would have legs. Chardonnay is still the most popular wine requested (40%) with White Zinfandel coming in second (23%). Red wine varietals lag way behind with Merlot clocking in at 12% and Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir eking out just 3% and 2% respectively. A full 10 of the top 12 wine brands in distribution are domestic wines from California. And as for sparkling wine the Moet Hennessy portfolio receives the most distribution.
Last fall I mentioned that Paul Newman was entering the wine business with the launch of Newman's Own 2006 California Chardonnay and 2006 California Cabernet Sauvignon. Now we've got pictures. To create the wines Newman worked with Rebel Wine Company and the wines are made from grapes in California's coastal vineyards, including ones in the Napa, Sonoma and San Luis Obispo counties. The labels feature Newman's face as well as drawings of two hats that Newman wore as Butch in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." A cowboy hat is on the Chardonnay label and there is a bowler hat on the Cabernet label. Newman does many great things, money generated from the products has allowed the Newman's Own Foundation to donate more than 200 million dollars to thousands of charities, but I still question whether or no the $16 retail is too high for these wines. I guess the proof will be either in the taste or in the power of Newman's fan base.
The folks at Don Sebastiani & Sons always think up clever names for their wines. From the same guys that brought us Used Automobile Parts wine comes MooBuzz, a new brand that will focus on super-premium Burgundy grape varieties grown in the Sonoma Coast appellation. The brand will focus on Chardonnay and Pinot Noir varietals. Why MooBuzz? it is a tribute to Sonoma Sebastiani calls the land of milk and honey (moo for cows, buzz for bees). The suggested retail price for the 2006 MooBuzz Pinot Noir is $25 and the 2006 MooBuzz Chardonnay will retail for $20.
Following in the footsteps of Martha Stewart, Paul Newman becomes the latest celeb with a wine label. Newman's Own 2006 California Chardonnay and 2006 California Cabernet Sauvignon will be released next March. In the press release, Paul Newman notes that he originally bottles his first product, his salad dressing in old wine bottles with parchment labels, so the brand is coming full circle. Since that beginning 25 years ago Newman's Own has grown into a major brand offering pasta sauce, lemonade, salsa and more. Money generated from the products has allowed the Newman's Own Foundation to donate more than 200 million dollars to thousands of charities.
Newman worked with Rebel Wine Company, which also makes True Earth organic wine which we have previously profiled. The Newman wines are made from grapes sourced from coastal vineyards and are expected to sell for $16. An article in AdAge mirrors a question I had which is whether $16 is too high a price for wine's that have a celebrity name but not a lot of celebrity input. The True Earth wines sells for around $13 and Martha Stewart's wine is expected to sell for around $15. Newman's products generally seem to be a little pricer than others and consumers have been willing to pay a little more knowing that it goes to a good cause. Wine lovers, however, tend to purchase based on a complex variety of factors (including terroir and the recommendations of wine bloggers and critics) and might be a tougher nut to crack as they expect a lot from a bottle that veers toward the $20 bottle range.
I recently came across this product in Whole Foods and had to try it out. First Blush makes varietal grape juices: Cabernet, Merlot, Chardonnay, and a rosé juice made from Zinfandel. Each juice is made from 100% wine grape varietal without any added sugar. The 16-ounce bottles sell for around $4 a bottle. What does it taste like? I bought the Merlot and basically, it's just really good grape juice, sweet and fruit-packed.
Honestly I'm surprised it took her this long but Martha Stewart is finally getting into the wine business. Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. has announced a partnership with E.&J. Gallo Winery to create wines known as the "Martha Stewart Vintage." The first launch of 15,000 cases includes three wines: a 2006 Sonoma County Chardonnay, 2005 Sonoma County Cabernet Sauvingon and 2006 Sonoma County Merlot. The wines will be available in Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Denver, Phoenix and Portland starting in January and will sell for around $15.
The move toward the acceptance of wine in Tetra Pak packaging gets a big boost with the introduction of Green Path wines at Whole Foods market. The Green Path wines are made with certified organic grapes using a growing process with minimal environmental impact and "bottled" in Tetra Pak Tetra Prisma packaging. The wines being sold are a 2006 Chardonnay and a 2006 Shiraz from Australia, sourced from Organic One Wines. The wines sell for $12 each.
Like Kendall-Jackson, Blackstone winery is seeking to seek the next level of the wine market with a new line that appeal to a different price point than their main line which is generally under $10. The Blackstone Sonoma Reserve is produced at Blackstone's Kenwood Winery in the heart of Sonoma Valley and includes a Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Bordeaux-inspired red blend, Rubric. The wines use grapes sourced from premium vineyards found upon the hillsides, benchlands and coastline of Sonoma County and are made by winemaker Gary Sitton.
The 2005 Sonoma Reserve Chardonnay uses grapes from the cool climate areas of Russian River Valley and Carneros, with small percentages drawn from the Sonoma Coast and sells for $16.99. The 2005 Sonoma Reserve Merlot uses grapes from the Russian River Valley, Dry Creek Valley and Sonoma Valley and also sells for $16.99. The 2005 Sonoma Reserve Pinot Noir uses fruit from the Sonoma Coast and Russian River Valley region and is aged for 12 months in French oak. It sells for $18.99. The 2005 Sonoma Reserve "Rubric" is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with Syrah, Cabernet Franc and Petite Sirah. It is matured in a combination of French and American oak barrels and sells for $18.99.
As the weather gets warmer the need for a chilled bottle of white wine increases. Waiting for your bottle to chill can be frustrating and the old shove-it-in-the-freezer trick can be both risky and haphazard. Instead the Waring Pro Chiller can handle the task. And you don't even have to think about what temperature your varietal should be set at. The chiller has 33 preset varietal temperatures for reds, whites or sparkling so that your wine is at the optimal drinking temp. The electric device is attractive enough to due duty at the table keeping your wine cool on a warm summer night. It sells for $99.95.
Just in time for Earth Day, the wine brand The Three Thieves have launched a new organic brand called True Earth. The wine is made from organic grapes. There are two True Earth wines, a red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petite Sirah, and a varietal Chardonnay. Both are made from California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) vineyards in Mendocino County, using no pesticides, herbicides, or conventional synthetic fertilizers. The wines contain minimal amounts of sulfites which are used in the winemaking process to preserve freshness. The first release is 5,000 cases of each type and the wines sell for $12.99.
Here's a new twist on celebrity wine. Paul Burrell, whose claim to fame is being the late Princess Diana's former butler has released a line of wines. The Royal Butler Wines are an Australian Chardonnay, a Shiraz and sparkling rose which sell for from $12 to $18. Apparently they are flying off the shelves at the Publix stores in Florida. The wines were created by winemaker Philip John at Hunter Valley winery Hungerford Hill and there are 100,000 cases of the 2006 vintage. Burrell is also planning a line of California wines called Royal Butler Jewels. Burrell has an entire line of Royal Butler products selling in places like the Home Shopping Network, has published a series of books about his life with the royal family and appeared on the UK TV reality show I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here. The Decanter article also references the fact that Seamus Quigley of Vintage Wine Management, Burrell's US-based global sales and marketing agency is working on a wine project with Bono. Now that might be a wine worth checking out. As for the butler, I think I'll pass.
On the hunt for a great Chardonnay? You may want to put your order in now for the 2005 ZD Wines Reserve Chardonnay. This wine is a blend from two vineyards located in Napa, the dry farmed, organically certified deLeuze Family Estate Vineyard in the Carneros and the Soscol Vineyard which hails from a similar cool growing area. The grapes were hand harvested and barrel fermented without malo-lactic fermentation. It has been aged for 15 months in American oak barrels. The tasting notes reveal a wine with pineapple, pear and lime aromas and a fruit-forward tropical taste. It is selling for $55.
