Favorite Wineries Q3/Q4 2006

There are some wineries that I buy a lot of wine from. Mostly because they offer good value for which Im' a sucker. The wines are not always good or even great, but just often enough there is a unexpected jewel which keeps me trying them again and again.

Columbia Crest:

I've probably bought more Columbia Crest wine than anything thing else in the 2005. My only 2 case purcheses (a whole case) were 2001 Grand Estates, Merlot ($7, TJ/WC/CC) [C to A] and 2002 Two Vines, Shiraz ($6, TJ) [C to A]. Both were exquisite (rich, big, lush, fruity oaked) on several occasions and got good WS scores, but have recently (03/206 onward) been disappointing or tasted corked after a year.

Another magnificent wine on 4+ occasions was the 2001 Grand Estates, Cabernet ($7, TJ/WC). The first bottle was disappointing, so I shied away from it, but the WS score made me retry it and from then on it was an on-off relationship. At its best, it was a rich, fruit, oaked, chocolate/vanilla beauty, surpassing both of the previous wines. But a good 50% of the bottles were no where near that good. Still I probably bought 9-12 bottles over time, as it was that good on occasion.

The 2002 Grand Estates, Cabernet ($7, TJ) isn't quite as good as the 2001 and it too is a bit of an on and off wine. The bottle tonight (11/2006) started with a smooth medium rich body of fruit and oak and over the next 90 minutes developed additional complexity. A hint of chocolate and coconut. But faded after 2 hours. [B+].