One of the last '04 wines on the market.

Santa Cruz's own Storr's winery makes some great wines at the $20-40 price level. It isn't often that one finds one of their wines under $ 15.00 but I did just that yesterday. The '04 Central Coast Merlot at $ 14.99 is really a steal. This isn't one of those generic reds that typify what gave merlot a bad name a number of years ago. This wine is so full-bodied and flavorful that it is food-you'll have to drink this one slowly. It's a dense drink but really packed with excellent complex flavors , a real treat. Get some at New Leaf market before it is all gone. 8 swiggs.

Buy local !

I have had Zayante Zins before but this might be the first Cabernet I have tasted from this small local winery. All I can say is, yum ! This reminds me that the Santa Cruz mountains can produce some Cabernet that is up to Napa/Sonoma standards . This 2006 was really excellent-not overpowering but still substantial. Its a good weekend wine and I'll give it 8 swiggs. I have seen it for $ 26.95 at New Leaf market and I'm sure it can be had at the winery. If you are looking for something like a Ridge style Cab without breaking the bank , here's your bottle.

New years eve lineup at the swiggtator chateau

First I would like to say that these excellent bottles would not have been nearly as much fun if not for the excellent company of our friends on New years eve. To start , we had a Louis Roederer brut premeir NV champagne to go with our cracked crab appetizer. This has always been one of my favorite sparklers and this bottle was fantastic. It was on sale at Shoppoers corner for $ 44.95 and garnered a 9 swiggs easily. Next we had a lighter Julien Fouet cremant de Loire, another nice sparkler that I gave 8 swiggs. The first red was the Saint Cosme Chateauneuf du pape 2003. This turned out to be my favorite and nearly a perfect statement of Rhone excellence. This was a gift so I have no price but I did give it 9 1/2 swiggs . Next we had the Caymus 2007 Napa cabernet to go with our main course of linguini with clams. I have always been a fan of Caymus but haven't had the wine for many years. This bottle was a lot lighter in body than I remember for this brand. The dominant taste was buttercotch and it was so sweet I thought it was a dessert wine. I still feel it is a great bottle in the right setting, probably not the best to follow the Saint Cosme. I'll give it 8 swiggs. The last red as Storr's Rusty Ridge zinfandel 2006. While the Stoors was also very sweet, it was also paired with the last course, dessert of chocolate and really decadent cupcakes. The Storrs paired well with the sweet stuff and had a bit more complexity than the Caymus. This wine is usually $ 26.95 to $ 32.95 depending on where you find it and a bargain for such a boldly flavored red. 9 swiggs. Happy new year folks and happy bargain hunting !

Long time no swig.......

I think it has been a good number of years since I have had any B.R. Cohn wine . This is the first time I have had a Merlot from B.R. Cohn so I really didn't know what to expect. If it had been a Cabernet I would have had a vague memory of the last one-I do remember that the few times I have had wine from this Sonoma vinyard I have enjoyed it. All the same , it wasn't a wine that I bought very often, if at all. This 2006 Sonoma Merlot came as a gift and what a wonderful gift it turned out to be. This is a well made wine with abundant flavoers, all of them good. Sometimes a Merlot will have some vegetal characteristic or a lack of real distinction. This is not the case here....it's a great wine that I would serve to anyone. It just got better and better as we drank it. Since it was a gift I don't know where it was bought or for how much but B.R. Cohn is available in some of the larger wine shops and markets as well as at their tasting room. I'll give it 8 swiggs.

Smells like Syrah....

There's been a bit of press about Copian vineyards as of late , most of it good. This Copain 2007 syrah " Tous ensamble" is an entry-level wine from this lable that specializes in single-vineyard Pinot, Syrah and Sauvignon blanc. The grapes are from Mendocino county and the wine is full bodied and really tasty. If this is their low end bottle , I'm very interested in trying their single vineyard version. While the price of this wine is more in line with a weekend treat, it is still on the affordable end of that price range. Copian vineyards in Healdsburg has sold out of this one but it can still be found at Arlequin wine merchant in S.F. for $ 20.00. I'll give it 8 1/2 swiggs, a really excellent syrah and probably a good cellar candidate for a couple of years.

First of the 2009 Bordeaux

The hype is up and so are the prices for the much lauded '09 Bordeaux. This bottle, however is affordable and not bad for the price. The only caveat for wine lovers is that Bordeaux wines tend to need a bit more air before drinking, at least this one does. Upon the first swig, I found the 2009 Haut Blaignan to be a bit tannic. Perhaps another year or two in the bottle or an hour or so in a decanter might mellow it out. I didn't have the patience to wait so I just poured in out and had it with dinner. While I liked it, I didn't feel I was tasting it for what it eventually could be, a nice dry earthy red wine. I'll give it 5 1/2 swiggs for now and maybe put a couple away for next year. The vintage is supposedly one of the best so it might prove out to be a better wine than it has shown at this time. $ 6.99 at Trader Joe's.

Yes, I am drinking a G#$% D%^ Merlot !

I know that drinking California Merlot has fallen out of favor ever since the movie " Sideways" played in theaters across the country. This bad press, some of it deserved has created a slump in the Merlot market that has resulted in a lot of formerly high-priced fruit winding up either not selling or getting sold for really reduced prices to negociants. These bargain wines have been shoing up here and there....unfamiliar brands but familiar high profile appelations. The Bridgeway 2006 Napa Valley Merlot really tastes like one of the good Merlots that made the varietal popular in the '80's. I remember drinking some great Merlot back in the day-somehwere about 10 years ago the market got flooded with really crappy, vegetal Merlot and I, for one got rather disenchanted with the grape. The release of "Sideways" didn't help the image of the once all-popular grape and Pinot, Zin and Caberlet demand increased, virtually crushing( ironically , much of the Merlot remained uncrushed ..) the Merlot demand. This Red-headed stepchild is now the bargain wine and the Bridgeway really comes through with the richness and complexity of an expensive wine....kind of amazing as it is only $ 6.99 at Trader Joes. Try a bottle......maybe you'll start enjoying G** D*** Merlot again. 8 swiggs.