Wine Reviews

Cookies and Cream Cabernet Sauvignon -

This is another wine sold exclusively at Stater Bros.  I don't know that these wines are exclusive to Stater Bros until I buy it and then get onloine to reasearch where the winr comes from.  This one was ok.  I might have ti give it another go since I was sick with a cold when I tasted thsi wine.  The flavors are oaky, a little coffee and some berry (maybe cherry).  I picked this one because the label caought my eye.  Besides the price, i have been looking for wines with cool labels and neat names.  I know I have said this before, but I am probably going to have to venture away from the Zin and Cab and start trying other wines.  We shall see.  In the meantime, this is an affordable wine with an ok taste as of right now.  Give it a try and let me know what you thought.  http://www.cookiesandcreamcellars.com/index.html

Montevina Zinfandel 2008 - 


Wine reviews are fun (not really) but the stories about how come up with these bottles of wine are even better.  Tuesday night Danny and I decided that we were going to get Costco pizza for dinner.  We ordered it and headed that way.  Danny needed refills for his electronic cig and so we stopped at AM/PM along the way.  As he was looking for his stuff I headed towards the back of the store where I knew I would find some good cheap wine!  The first bottle I saw was my fav, Menaj.  Since I have already shared that wine with my blog friends, I knew that I had to get something else.  Next to the Menaj was a bottle of Zin, which I happen to love love love.  I grabbed the Zin, Danny wincing all the way back to the check out.  I made him pay for it.  I don't know how much this wine would cost any where other than a convenience store located in Elsinore, but at AM/PM it is $9.99 so it totally falls into my under $10.00 rule.  I must admit, that was not the first time I bought wine at a convenience store.  I can remember a couple of times that I had stopped at Circle K looking for wine.  When driving down Grand Ave, there are not a lot of places to stop and so winos cannot be choosey!  All in all the wine was not as bad and Danny had thought and I enjoyed the bottle.  It all boils down to this...I am a cheap, easy date!

Stomping Ground Cabernet 2009 - 

My son asked if I would take him to the store to buy some juice to have with dinner.  Now normally I say no, because I was in the middle of cooking dinner and once I get home, I am not eager to go anywhere.  This particular night, I jumped at the chance.  I turned the fire on low, told the hubby I would be right back and out the front door we ran.  No one could believe that I was this eager to take my son to the store.  I had an ulterior motive.  I wanted wine.  It had been a while since I had any wine and so I use this as my chance to grab a bottle.  We get to the store and the first place I head is the liquor section.  I am scanning the shelves, looking for something, anything, just needed a bottle of wine.  My goal was to find something under $10 and something I had not tried yet.  That way I could share it on my blog with all the people who don’t read it or care about it, but yet I still continue to write about the wines I have tried.

I saw a label that caught my eye and said “that is the one I want!”  I grabbed it and off to the register we went.  We get home and I didn’t even take the time to check on dinner before corking the bottle.  I don’t normally let my wines sit before drinking, who has that kind of time and/or patience?  I did let it sit while I stirred dinner and then it was down to drinking time.  Not bad, not bad at all.  It was an enjoyable wine, so enjoyable that I have a half a glass still sitting on my night stand.  I somehow always convince myself that if I go upstairs to my room to watch TV, that I will finish my glass.  Inevitably, that never happens and I wake up to the smell of wine next to my face.  Obviously I am not the BEST house keeper because the glass is still sitting there. 

I did take the time to look the wine u p on line and found that they are in Buellton and they their wines are sold exclusively at Start Bros, which happens to be the only store close to me and so that is where I am forced to shop.  I am super excited to try their other wines.  In my search I found their website which led me to their Facebook page, which only have 4 likes.  I am not on a mission to direct more people to their Facebook page and like them .  This is a decent wine and affordable, why  not like them?

Redwood Creek Zinfandel 2007 $5.99/bottle- This is a nice affordable wine.  The flavor is full of ripe cherry and wild raspberry with aromas of vanilla and spice.  It has a nie smooth finish and is an enjoyable wine to drink.  Woulod pair well with BBW ribs, burgers and a nice juicy steak.  I really enjoyed this one and will buy again.

Ravenswood Vinters Blend Zinfandel 2009 - This is another wine that is easily accessible at most to all grocery stores.  I have even found it at local drug stores as well.  I find this Zindandel very pleasing and easy to drink.  It is a rich full wine with hints of cherry/fruit and from what I can tell, also some pepper.  Ravenswood is a California wine and has the best tag line ever; "No Whimpy Wines!"  

Maurice Car’rie Cody’s Crush $5.99/bottle – This wine comes from a local Temecula winery and is sold at most local retailers.  It is a deep colored red table wine has very rich fruit aromas.  It is sweet but not too sweet, it has a wonderful and very enjoyable flavor.  It has soft tannins which create the smooth finish.  I suggest that it be served chilled.

Twisted Cabernet 2010  $6.64/bottle - I had to make a quick trip to Walmart and that is when I found this wine.  I liked the name and noticed it comes with a twist off cap.  I love me some easy access to my wine!


This turned out to be a pretty decent wine.  It has a deep red color when held to the light and it has fruit and vanilla scents.  When tasting, it is fruity yet chocolately.


I would pair this with spicy Mexican, BBQ or any real juicy red meat!  Who am I kidding?  I would drink any wine with any food.  


This was a good wine, which I will add to  my list of will buy again.  I feel like I am running out of cab's to share and might have to switch over to other wines.  I am a cab lover, but will make the switch so that I may continue to share good and bad wines with all my friends.

Frei Brothers Cabernet Sauvignon Redwood Creek $4.99/bottle - This is one of those everyday low priced wines and so I didn't expect much from it except  maybe a headache the next day, so I was pleasantly surprised when it went down smooth and did not have that cheap wine throat burn.  It is a little fruity (cherry) and a little oaky.  This is definitely one of those wines that you can buy a few, or maybe several bottles of and keep on hand as a daily drinking, utility wine.

Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Cab 2009 $5.99/bottle - This wine seems to be on the dry side, which is ok by me, I don't mind dry wines; however some do.


To the nose you get hints of coffee and to the taste you get rich fruity flavors, maybe dark cherries.  


I would probably serve this with pasta or a nice juicy steak. Heck who am I kidding??  I can pair wine with any kind of food.  


This is a richer wine and so not one I would drink on a hot summer day but rather on a cold winter night!

Cupcake Red Velvet Wine $8.99/bottle - This wine is delish and very much velvety.  It is a smooth, lighter wine and easy to drink.  This is a red wine that I feel you can drink year round and will make a great summer wine.


It is made of a blend of 47% Zinfandel, 29% Merlot, 19% Cabernet and 5% Petitie Sirah.


It has flavors of berries with chocolate and a sweet smooth finish, but not too sweet.


This is another wine that I feel would pair well with BBQ, hence my feeling that it will make a great summer time wine!  I cannot wait to get my hands on more of this.

Bear Flag Smooth Red Wine $7.99/bottle – I picked this one because of the label.  It is fun and very busy.  I also noticed it had a screw top and that meant easier access to my wine!  The makers of the wine describve it as; “Tempranillo, Touriga, Zinfandel and Alicante Bouschet.  Soft and Juicy.  Yummers.”  You know the wine is going to be fun when they are using the word yummers!

·         Tempranillo is a variety of black grape used to make full bodied red wines from Spain.

·         Touriga is another grape, a red wine variety from Portugal and is often used when making Port.  It is known for is concentrated flavor of black fruit.

·         Alicante Bouschet is a French grape first cultivated in the mid-nineteenth century.  It was widely grown in California during prohibition since its deep red color allowed for wine to be diluted without much loss in appearance.

This wine was nice and sweet for a red wine, maybe because of the Touriga grape.  It was not too sweet though.  It is very drinkable and I could see myself settling down with a few bottles and getting cozy.  I tasted hints of fruits and spice; maybe clove.  This would be a great summer time wine with maybe a slight chill and served with BBQ.  I will definitely be going back for more of this one in the future.

Night Harvest Cab $5.99/bottle - The aroma and taste are similar with this wine.  It is fruity, mostly cherry. There are hints of herbs or spices but not too much.  The color is a nice dark and deep purple.  It is a nice wine,just not sure if it contributed to the headache I had in the middle of the night. Might have to give it another chance.

Snapping Turtle Cab 2010 $4.99/bottle - This is a wine that I mostly only find at the Kroger chain stores so I don't drink it very often.  The wine is OK.  The color is a light yet deep purple.  The flavor is mostly an overpowering one of alcohol and less on the fruit and other flavors.

Flip Flop Cab 2009 $5.99/bottle- This is what I consider a utility wine.  It is easy to drink and inexpensive.  I enjoy this wine.  The color appears dark yet it has a bit of a see thru ruby red color when held up to the light.  You can smell some berries and even a little coffee.  When tasting, you can taste the berries and a little vanilla/chocolate (I cant decide which).  This cab would pair well with grilled meat or even just to drink alone ;)

Unruly Cab 2010 $8.99/bottle (at BevMo with their club card) - This is a wine that i will for sure buy again and again.  It might just become my new fav.  It is sweeter than your average cab, but delish nonetheless.

Menage a Trois 2009 $9.99/bottle - This wine has been my fav daily drinking wine for a while now.  It all started when I saw that Costco carried it and it was only $6.99/bottle. I would buy three bottles at a time.  Now Costco no longer carries and so I am on the search for a new fav daily drinking wine!