Simply Wine!

OK, here is a sample of how we would like to share our "wine finds" with you! Laura found this one in a little Italian place in Denver, CO. Nothing like a nice plate of pasta after a long mountain bike ride!



2004 Five Rivers Pinot Noir; Santa Barbara County, CA ($12.99)

You're Probably only going to find this one in wine shops; Not your local grocery store, Costco or Cost Plus! (Which is a bummer 'cause it was good) We found it at Applejack Wine Shop, here in Denver. This place is HUGE and deserves it's own post on the blog. Maybe they will let me take a few pics in there and I can post them here!

If you're new to wine, Pinot Noir is probably somewhat mysterious to you. Everyone knows Merlot, Chardonnay and Cabernet. Here is our quick lesson on Pinot. You can put them into two distinct categories; Fruit driven, described as "jammy","berry" or "fruity" and terrior driven (cork dork speak for earth) often described as "dirty", "earthy", "tobacco" and "smoky". We both prefer "earthy" when it comes to Pinots'. It has been our experience that most of the Pinot coming from Santa Barbara (also considered the Central Coast of California growing regions) leans towards the "fruity" category and we usually pass them up for something from Oregon, which we feel lean more towards the "earthy" side.

Laura really felt like a glass of Pinot at this particular restaurant. Their glass pour selection was pretty limited (it was an Italian place, they want you to drink Chianti, but that's for another post). The menu described this pinot as "earthy" so she decided to give it a try. . She tried it and was impressed. Then I sampled it and was impressed too! It was indeed earthy and slightly smoky. Not to the level of a good Oregon Pinot, but good none the less. The fruit was still there, it just wasn't the first thing that hit you.

So, what would you serve this with? I would say pasta with a simple marinara sauce works just about right. However, if you like a really spicy sauce or you add, say, Italian sausage to the sauce, you would just over power the wine. Spicy or zesty sauces would deserve the Chianti mentioned above. However, if mild is your preference, Five Rivers will work well for you. You could also serve this with a cheese course using the same logic, anything strong (think "stinky") will over power this one, but at this price it's hard to beat.

-Rich-

This post first appeared on our travel journal. It was the spark for the creation of this journal! Our goal is to improve on this list with pictures of labels, tasting notes and food pairing. which will help you in choosing what you might like out of the list and help you find the product in the store. Here is the post as it first appeared:

OK, the "under $15 a bottle" comment on the previous post seemed to stir up a few people. I've gotten some e-mails and comments asking, "what are they?"

So, here are some of our discoveries. We'll call this "Rich & Laura's Best under $20" not in any particular order:

-Bogle Petite Syrah, CA ($8.99) great wine at this price

-Kings Estate Pinot Gris, OR ($14.99) great summertime sipper

-Sonoma Cutrer Chard, CA ($16.99) classic CA, buttery/oaky chard

-Las Rocas Garanche, Spain ($11.99) Greatest $11 bottle you will ever have(if you can find it!!)*Note: Be sure to get the 2003 as it's much better than the 2004. We've found it for as cheap as $8 in Salt Lake City.

Kanu Chenin Blanc, South Africa ($8.99) light, crisp amazing white at this price

Dry Creek Chenin blanc, CA ($11.99) a good find while biking in DC valley.

Lolonis Fume' Blanc, ca ($11.99) think smoky Sauv blanc, and you've got it

Arbios Cab, CA (17.99) a good summertime BBQ cabernet, not your typical heavy ca cab

Cline old vine zin, ca ($12.99) the best zin you will ever have at this price

Erath pinot, OR ($16.99) good, fruity entry level Oregon pinot

Golden Botrytis, Australia ($17.99) greatest dessert wine you will ever have (IF you can find it!)

Waterbrook Melange, WA ($12.99) a great meritage from Washington

Castano Solenaro, Spain ($11.99) a great Spanish blend zesty and peppery, like a zin great for making sangria

Cape Mentelle, Australia ($18.99) a good non-oaked chard

Andrew Rich Cuvee Pinot, OR ($17.99) a good entry level smoky pinot (there aren't many of those)

OK, now for the disclaimers. These are the prices we have paid for the above, your price may vary. Taste is an opinion, yours may vary from ours. We have tried each and every one of the wines mentioned above. We have also gone through a bunch of losers in this price group, I like to forget about them, so don't ask which ones we hated (I tend to only remember what the label looks so we don't buy them again) These are the only wines I can think of right now, there are a bunch more.

If any of our dear readers have good wines under $20, by all means share them with us! We have found Cost Plus World Market and Costco are both great places for under $20 discoveries. The best recommendation I can make, take a chance, buy something under $15, take it home and try it, you never know what you might discover!

-Rich-

Welcome to Simply Wine!

On our travel journal, The Bag-It-Tour, we often comment on wines we try or vineyards we visit. These entries always seem to generate the most comments, questions and e-mails. People want to know; Where did you get it; How much did you pay for it; Was it good; What would you pair it with; What would serve with....

You get the idea. For a large amount of people, wine is a mystery. Wine Shops and restaurants often add to the mystery, or, what we like to call the snob factor. Some sommeliers (that's the wine "expert" in the store, from here on out to be referred to as "Cork Dorks"!) like to throw out wine regions, growing conditions, the weather the morning the grapes were picked, what school the winemaker went to, soil conditions. The winemakers mothers maiden name etc..... It all comes down to one thing.

What taste good to you?

Because taste is subjective, our goal is simple. To tell you, our reader's, what we think are the good from the bad wines and keep them all under $20! Experimenting in this price range should be all about fun, but where do you start? We'll try to explain it in simple terms, suggest what to pair wine with and even give you some of our favorite recipes along the way.

Wine & food should be an adventure! Hopefully we can provide you with some direction to start your own journey!

-Rich & Laura-