Trip to the Supermarket; Part 1

On many occasions, my fiancee and I will go to a wine shop or liquor store with a good selection and pick out the perfect bottle to enjoy for a night. We open the bottle, savor the aromas, and settle in for a relaxing night at home. And like on every one of these occasions, we finish that bottle and I have to go find us more wine because we feel the need to drink more. It happens!!

While anticipating this need to go back for more, I started doing a little research in good wines that can be found in most local supermarkets but will also be a high quality at a good price. Believe it or not, many highly rated wines can be found amongst the sea of bottles and boxed wines of a supermarket selection. All it takes is to just know what to look for both before you get there and once it comes time for the decision. Most of my research comes from Wine Enthusiast-Online Buying Guide which can be found at http://www.winemag.com/buyingguide/. It's a very easy and free resource to use so I highly recommend trying it out.

There is two wines in particular that I want to review. Both of these can be found in most supermarkets or liquor stores due to their high volume of production. The first is 2005 Smoking Loon Merlot. Wine Enthusiast rates it at an 84 (out of 100) and I fully agree with that number. This is a solid wine for someone who wants to enjoy a good red at a modest price (Average $9 per bottle). It is a fruity wine, with just the right amount of tannins which makes in enjoyable from beginning to end. It's also not too sharp so even someone new to red wine can enjoy this bottle to get a feel for the taste of merlot. I recommend it!

On the lighter side of things, I also want to mention the 2005 Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Pinot Grigio. This wine scored an 88 by Wine Enthusiast and also received the marking of "best value." Once again, I would have to agree. I'm not usually a fan of Pinot Grigio but this one had a clean, crisp taste with a hint of citrus flavor which added to the overall flavor. Enjoy this wine now while we still have a few weeks of warm weather ahead, or stock up on a few bottles for next year. You can purchase Woodbridge wines in the 1.5L bottle so if you plan on entertaining, this would definitely be a good choice.

Join me next time when I make another trip to market!!! Enjoy!