Buying Commercial Wine

Consumer Reports and Pacific Northwest Magazine both published lists of recommended wines recently. One Washington State wine made both lists, and that got me curious enough to try it. Columbia Crest Two Vines Riesling is described as a “sweet, dessert-style wine with fruit balanced by acid.” A description like that doesn’t exactly make me want to rush out and buy it, but it’s pretty accurate. Here’s what Pacific Northwest Magazine had to say:

Done in a off-dry style, it is bursting with sweet and crisp flavors of green apple, melon and peach , finished with a dollop of honey and orange liqueur.

I don’t know about all that, but it was on sale for $5.99, and I did enjoy the wine. I would say they overdid it with the sugar, but the Lady of the house, bless her little sweet tooth, loved it. Lists like this often come out near the end of the year, and make me want to try new wines – especially the ones on the “Really Good Wines Under $8” list!

Update 4/19/2010 – Blind tastings separate the wheat from the chaff

How do you tell a diamond in the ruff from an overpriced “bargain?” Compare it against a wine you know in a blind tasting. It’s the only way to set aside the mental baggage we all carry and see a wine as it really is. Here’s a quick and easy way to do your own blind tasting at home.



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