The Daily Bottle» Steve

Excelsior Cabernet Sauvignon

Steve — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:40:50 +0000

Here is a great everyday value wine you can find almost everywhere in the US. A friend in Manhattan introduced me to the Excelsior brand a few years ago, and it’s an excellent choice to have on hand when you’re expecting a lot of people around the table who will be eating a lot of food, and drinking a lot of wine.

One thing I will tell you, is that although this wine is a Cabernet Sauvignon, it doesn’t necessarily have the same type of profile you might be accustomed to if you drink a lot of California Cab’s. South African wines are a little bit different, which is a great thing in my book.

In terms of the flavor profile, there is plenty of currant, some plum, and a bit of spice. Also some sour cherry in there as well. An easy drinking fun wine to keep around the house. Great with summer barbecue and meat type dishes.

Also, at 8 or 9 dollars a bottle, it’s hard to not feel like it’s a good value. Give it a go, I think you might like it.

My rating: 86 points.

Excelsior Cabernet Sauvignon

Finca Sobreno Toro

Steve — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 22:57:58 +0000

Hey guys, I hope you’re all doing well. My apologies for the sparse posting frequency — I’ve been ridiculously busy lately, and also (surprisingly) hadn’t come across any “value” wines that I thought were worth putting up on the site. All that’s changed though recently, as I’ve finally hit on a couple lately that I think you might like.

The first is an excellent wine from Spain (a mainstay location when you’re looking for value wines). It’s the Finca Sobreno Toro Tinta de Toro. Specifically the 2005 vintage.

This particular wine comes from the Toro region, and typically sells for around $15 USD. While it doesn’t possess quite the depth that the Ribera del Duero I recommended late last year does, it’s still a very solid wine. I’ve polished off 3 bottles of this wine over the last few months, and was very satisfied each time.

In terms of food pairings, I really enjoy this wine with beef and grilled meats, as well as with spaghetti bolognese.

At this price point, the wine has a lot of things I look for: minerality, spice, dark fruit, and good balance. Give it a try – I think you’ll like it.

My rating: 88 points.

2005 Finca Sobreno

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet

Steve — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:35:47 +0000

Here’s a great value wine. I get this at my local Sam’s Club for $7.67 a bottle. Robert Parker gives the 2007 vintage an 88 rating, although he gave the previous 2 vintages a 91 rating. This shows the wine is dependable and consistent, which is certainly something I look for in an everyday wine.

With this wine, you’ll get a lot of cherry, a bit of spice, and medium tannins. A very solid wine, particularly at this price point.

My rating: 87 points.

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet

S. Orsola Piemonte Barbera

Steve — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 21:50:01 +0000

Ok, here is a fantastic high quality wine value. This is the 2007 S. Orsola Piemonte Barbera. For those of you who aren’t familiar with Barbera, this is most definitely a grape to add to your list of staples to keep in the cupboard. A lot of bright, red fruit, with just the right amount of tannins. An under appreciated grape, and one I’m sure you’ll enjoy on a regular basis.

I get this at my local Total Wine for $5.99 a bottle, which is probably one of the best values you’ll ever find on a wine.

My rating: 87 points.

S. Orsola Piemonte Barbera

Emilio Moro Ribera del Duero

Steve — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:39:37 +0000

From time to time, I’ll be putting wines up here that exceed the $20 price point, but are still excellent values. Here’s an outstanding example of such a wine. This is the 2005 Emilio Moro Ribera del Duero. I picked this up at my local Total Wine for $23.99. This is a really high quality wine, and can easily compete with wines costing 2 or 3 times as much.

A wonderfully structured, medium acidity wine, with plenty of complexity. I drank this over 2 days, and it was just as good or better on the second night. The nose is a little tight initially, but opens up nicely.

Fantastic value for you Ribera del Duero lovers.

My rating: 91 points.

2005 Bodegas Emilio Moro Ribera del Duero

Trapiche Malbec

Steve — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:30:17 +0000

Here’s a wine I see all over the place. In fact, that’s a big reason why I’m putting it up here — availability. You won’t have to hunt this one down in some dusty boutique wine shop somewhere.

It’s the 2007 Trapiche Malbec. While I wouldn’t put it in the “fantastic” category, it’s definitely very solid and you’ll be spending your money on a quality wine. The price range I’ve seen it at is typically in the $9 – $12 zone, which is a very good value. It also seems to go on sale fairly regularly for $1 – $2 off per bottle.

Profile: A little bit of oak, but not out of control, with a deep plum color and some spiciness. A good, solid, Mendoza Malbec.

My rating: 87 points.

2007 Trapiche Malbec

Great stuff from Cameron Hughes

Steve — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:23:54 +0000

Early on here at The Daily Bottle, I think it’s important to get everyone familiar with what I consider some of my “staples” in terms of really high quality wines that won’t break the bank. Make no mistake about it though, any wine I put up here on the site is going to be a darn good wine — irrespective of price.

And to that end, one of my favorite sources of these kinds of values are the wines from Cameron Hughes. This guy does a fantastic job, and today I’m going to talk about his “Lot 111″, which is still available in some of the Sam’s Clubs (and probably other locations) around the country. Lot 111 is a 2005 Paso Robles Zinfandel.

If some of Cameron’s stuff shows up at my local Sam’s Club, I automatically buy at least 2 bottles, just due to his track record with wines. And like I mentioned — Lot 111 is long gone in a lot of the store locations, but there are a couple where I’ve seen a few bottles left.

I don’t remember exactly how much this one cost, but I’m pretty sure it was around 11 or 12 dollars a bottle, which is tremendous value for what you get. And what you get is a classic California Zinfandel, with a lot of dark fruit, smokiness, and really nice balance. Very solid. I like to have this with a thick steak or a fat burger off the grill.

Definitely pick up a bottle or two of this if you see any more laying around in your local Sam’s Club. Other California Zinfandel’s I’ve had of this quality typically sell in the $20 – $30 range, and here you’re paying around half that.

My rating: 88 points.

Lot 111

A Merlot!

Steve — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:13:34 +0000

Ok, believe it or not, I’m going to put up a Merlot here as my first recommendation. This is the Solombra 2008 Reserva from Argentina. Great country to visit by the way if you’ve never been there. Sorry for the slightly blurry photo — I’ll get better at this I promise.

Don’t believe everything you see in movies when it comes to wine (E.g., “Sideways”. Those of you who’ve seen it probably knew immediately what I was talking about). There is nothing wrong with Merlot. This wine rocks for the price, which I’m finding in Sam’s Club here in the Sarasota area for six bucks a bottle. Crazy good wine for the price. Check it out.

My rating: 87 points.

Welcome to The Daily Bottle

Steve — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 22:13:13 +0000

Welcome to The Daily Bottle. The primary focus here is going to be on everyday wines that are accessible and affordable. I’ll talk about where to find them, and why I like them. Hopefully I’ll be able to provide you with some quality information a few times each week. Stay tuned!