New! New! Not.

We’ve been going through a phase. We’re actually a little tired of trying new this, new that, in search of another good affordable everyday wine. We’ve just been buying our known favorites – two of this, three of that, maybe even a case of something just to have Old Reliable on hand.

Thus, we don’t have a lot of new reviews we’re excited about (although we do have a backlog of tasting notes still to post). So we thought we’d list – for you and as a reminder for ourselves – some of our current all-time-favorite fallback affordable wines. These are the wines we’re buying in multiple quantities and keeping on hand for everyday drinking.

• Castle Rock Pinot Noir – California
• Barnard Griffin Syrah – Washington
• Red Diamond Syrah – Washington
• Concannon Petite Sirah – California
• Barnard Griffin Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot – Washington
• Tapeña Garnacha (Grenache) – Spain
• Tapeña Tempranillo – Spain
• Beringer White Zinfandel – California
• Brancott Sauvignon Blanc – New Zealand
• Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc – New Zealand
• Barnard Griffin Sauvignon Blanc – Washington
• Covey Run Fume (Sauvignon) Blanc – Washington
• B&G Vouvray (Chenin Blanc) – France
• Kiona Chenin Blanc – Washington
• Columbia Crest Pinot Grigio – Washington
• Ryan Patrick Naked Chardonnay – Washington
• Barnard Griffin Chardonnay – Washington
• Bogel Petite Sirah – California
• Bogel Old Vine Zinfandel – California

All of the wines on the above list should be readily available for under $15, many even for $10 or less. And they all should be widely available.

You might notice, sadly, that there aren’t any affordable Zinfandels on that list. We absolutely adore Zin, yet have been disappointed with several (many) sub-$15 wines we previously enjoyed. The closest we have come are Dancing Bull and Ravenswood (for when we don’t want to break out a Ridge or Turley; both of which are generally in the $30+ range), but we just don’t think they quite make this list. It’s also unfortunate that there are so few nice Pinot Noirs in our “affordable” price range. We could drink Pinot Noir every day – if we could find a few in our everyday-budget range. UPDATE: We've added Bogel's Old Vine Zin to our list – the best "cheap" Zin we're recently discovered.

Finally, note that there are four Sauvignon Blancs on the list – probably because it’s summer and we love those wines this time of year. The two New Zealand wines are bright, crisp, and grassy – typical NZ styles. The two Washington wines are more mellow but still fresh and lively – excellent summer dinner wines.

Wines for Comfort in the (Financial) Storm

It’s coming up toward the season for holiday dinners, sharing wines, and watching your portfolio’s meltdown. To help you make it through the financial storm, especially at this time of year, we present our suggestions for the best Financial Comfort Wines. These are wines that are soft and soothing, yet are also affordable (especially affordable). They have some depth to them, much more so than light, fruity, summer sipping wines. All are readily available and under $10 (either regular retail or so frequently on sale that you shouldn’t have any problem finding them for less than $10). Even an inexpensive wine can make you feel rich, or at least happy. (We have previously reviewed many of these wines – see our archives for specific reviews.)

REDS
Columbia Crest Syrah – Washington
Fruity, smoky, goes down easy.

Ravenswood Zinfandel – California
Full, dark, spicy, and fruity.

Red Diamond Syrah – Washington
Plums, black cherries, depth.

Bernard Griffin Cabernet-Merlot – Washington
Filling to go with winter stews and chilis.

WHITES
B&G Vouvray – France
A white with weight, but lots of character.

Columbia Crest Pinot Grigio – Washington
Fresh, yet depth to match with food.

A-Z Pinot Gris – Oregon
Smooth, easy drinking, but firm structure.

SPARKLING
Cristalino Rose Cava – Spain
Not big, not serious, just fun.

Tepana Garnacha 2006 – Spain

A second nice Spanish red from Tepana. (See our Tempranillo review.) Nose is pleasant but simple – dark, maybe smoky/spicy fruit. Some nice blackberry tastes, with white pepper and maybe even a hint of lemon. Not heavily tannic, and decently smooth for an inexpensive red. Yes. $8 on sale, $12 regularly.

Asparagus Pizza & Tempranillo

WINE
Tapena Tempranillo 2005 – Spain
We generally enjoy Spanish wines, especially Tempranillo and Garnacha (Grenache), so it’s fun to find something new and affordable. This has a great nose of cherries, and a lovely garnet color. The tastes are of black cherries, bing cherries, and some delicate spice. To us the wine doesn’t have the “silky tannins” suggested on the label, but some nice, firm, sharp ones. This is a Yes wine, bordering on House (a second bottle tasting will tell). $8 on sale (usually about $11).


DINNER
Francesca made a fabulous asparagus, onion, and garlic pizza. Used a store-bought pizza shell (we can be lazy), topped with a thin alfredo, pesto, and olive oil sauce. Next, grated Asiago and sharp provolone cheeses. Finally, she sautéed onion and asparagus in Italian spices, and added those to the pizza along with some previously roasted garlic.

House Wines

(We’re going to be traveling and away from computers for a week, and we aren’t going to even think about posting again until we return on February 17. Enjoy your wines and dining until then.)

If you’ve been wondering what are our House wines, here is the complete list. We have not indicated differing vintages (and there can sometimes be vintage variations), nor different bottlings within a winery’s offerings. In a few cases, we have specified a particular wine. (For example, Mark West is a California winery which sources grapes from around the world. We don’t care for their California Pinot Noir, but did hugely enjoy their wine made from Corsican grapes.) On this list, you’ll find wines from California, Washington, Colorado, France, Australia, New Zealand, and Spain. (Next up, we’re planning a concentrated effort to see what’s new and exciting in South African wines, as well as to revisit some of our old tastings from Chile and Argentina.)

This is the cheat sheet we take with us to the store, although we’re always sampling and trying new offerings from the shelves. Also, this doesn’t represent all the wines we enjoy – rather it is the ones we like that we find most reliable at a good price, without having to do any thinking. We do have a separate list of higher-end (and higher-priced) wines we know and love, but those are for special occasions and not for our House wines. With a few exceptions (such as some of the Colorado wines), these should be widely available, affordable (under $20; most are $10-15, or even less, especially on sale), and reliable year-after-year.

SAUVIGNON BLANC
Brancott, Yvecourt, Columbia Crest, Turning Leaf, Covey Run, Canyon Wind, Geyser Peak, Barnard Griffin

GEWURZTRAMINER
Villa Wolf, Meridian, Chateau St. Michele, Columbia Crest, DeBeque Canyon, Covey Run

TRAMINER- RIESLING
Rosemont

RIESLING
Covey Run, Clean Slate, Snoqualmie, Chateau St. Michelle, Beringer, Greenwood Ridge, Columbia Crest

CHARDONNAY
Peace, Stonehedge, Carlson, Penfolds Thomas Hyland, Cambria, Redwood Creek(France)

VIOGNER
Domaine de Caillan, Oxford Landing, Yalumba

CHENIN BLANC
B&G Vouvary, Beringer, St. Chappell, Yalumba

ROSE
Beringer, Buehler, B&G Rose Anjou, Le Ville Ferme

PINOT GRIGIO
Columbia Crest, Stone Cellars

MUSCADET
Clos de la Clemanciene, Remy Pannier

GAMAY
George DuBeuf Beaujolais-Villages

ZINFANDEL
Ravenswood, Rosenblum, Stonehedge, Ridge

PINOT NOIR
Castle Rock, Coyote Creek, Mark West(Corsica), Scarlett of Paris, Beringer, Redwood Creek(France), Parducci, Cambria

CABERNET SAUVIGNON & MERLOT (and Blends)
Barnard Griffin(C-Merlot), Columbia Crest(Merlot-C)

SYRAH/SHIRAZ
Columbia Crest, Castle Rock, Yalumba(S-Viogner), B&G Cotes du Rhone, Red Diamond, Los Planos, Rosemount(S-Grenache), Lindemans, Domaines Astruc(S-Viogner)

GRENACHE
Los Rocas

TEMPRANILLO
Penascal, Tapena

SPARKLING
Bouvet Brut, Cristalino, Segura Viudas, Domain Chandon, Gloria Ferrer

PORT
Sandeman Tawny

“Go With Anything” Wines

Are there wines that can truly go with anything? Within reason, we think it’s possible. The wine would be white or rose (pink, blush, whatever you want to call them), have some acidity, and just the barest touch of sweetness. These wines won’t necessarily be the “best” with certain foods, but we think they can go with anything – steaks, burgers, asparagus, artichokes, salads, fish, shellfish, even some cheeses. (To us, that may actually be the toughest “go-with-anything” challenge. We think most cheese needs a completely dry wine, but try some of our following ideas and see what you think.) So, our choices for wines that you could take to a dinner where you don’t know what’s being served, or wines to have on hand just in case you can’t think of what to open with a particular meal.

• Beringer White Zinfandel
• Cristalino Rose Brut Cava
• Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling

If you can’t find (or don’t like) these particular wines, look for something similar – any Spanish Cava, a dry-ish Rose, a not-too-sweet Riesling. You might also experiment with Gewurztraminer, Chenin Blanc, or maybe even a light-weight Pinot Grigio.

Best Affordable Holiday Wines

We thought we’d list three wines – sparkling, white, and red – perfect for the holidays. All are affordable (under $12), widely available, and go good with most any type of food. They may not be our absolute favorites in each category, but all are excellent, versatile, and reliable.

Sparkling – Cristalino Rose Brut Cava Non-Vintage (Spain)
This is a wonderful, fun “adult Kool-Aid” wine. Very little sweetness for an inexpensive pink sparkler. Good with food, or on its own. We generally appreciate the price/quality ratio of nearly all Spanish Cavas. Cristalino also makes a nice regular Brut, just as pleasant and affordable, if you can’t bring yourself to go with a “pink” wine.

White – Barton & Guestier (B&G) Vouvray 2005 (France)
A wonderfully integrated expression of Chenin Blanc. Tastes of pear, apple, and definitely some weight (more so than the typical ethereal California Chenins). The faintest hint of softness (pretty typical of almost all Chenins) but with just the same hint of acidity to balance it out. A pleasant surprise if all your impressions of Chenin are cheap, light, and sweet.

Red – Beringer Founder's Estate Pinot Noir 2005 (California)
It's hard to find a reliably good yet affordable California Pinot. This Beringer tastes like the skin of a red apple, with a nose of roses and blackberries. It's slightly smoky, with some decent tannins. Just enough weight to be sipped on its own, but still light enough to pair well with most holiday dinners.

Segura Viudas Brut Reserva Cava – Spain

Nice mixture of citrus, kiwi, and bread dough on the nose. Tastes of lemon, melon. Nice dry/melon/acid finish. Yes. $7 on sale (usually about $10).