Domaine Martin 2018 Le Petit Martin IGP Vaucluse, Travaillan, France

The ultimate “Tuesday Night” red — Years ago I coined the phrase “Tuesday Night” wine to describe affordably priced, quality-driven wines. These are wines that you’re not afraid to open and enjoy on a Tuesday night and they’re great to have around when friends and relatives show up at your door. My favorite way to…

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2016 Domaine de Couron – Best Buy Merlot

Welcome Back to Merlot! Fifteen years ago Merlot fell victim to an inadvertent smear campaign. A single line in a movie ignited such a strong cultural backlash that it caused Merlot sales to plummet. Almost overnight, hundreds of years of love and respect for the noble grape turned to aversion and disdain. The movie was…

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2015 Château Thomas Laurent – Bordeaux, France

Thomas Laurent Bordeaux

The return of a superb Bordeaux and excellent value… A nice glass of Bordeaux is always a sure bet to help get one through the often lengthy Western North Carolina transition from winter to spring — and there’s certainly been no shortage of transition weather this year! Here’s a wine guaranteed to chase away the…

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2017 Cristia Ventoux Rouge Ventoux, France

The Rhône Valley in France is a veritable treasure trove of wine. There’s truly something here for every wine lover, whether it’s a stately Châteauneuf-du-Pape red, or just an inexpensive, yet beautifully crafted regional wine.    Cristia is one of the hidden gems of the region: The Ventoux. The Ventoux AOC is a gorgeous region,…

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2017 Bellula Pinot Noir Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Smooth and Silky Pinot Noir Ultra-Bargain I’m on a permanent and relentless search for good quality Pinot Noir that I can offer to my customers at a reasonable price. Sounds easy right? The reality is that year after year, finding this elusive elixir proves to be a tremendously difficult task. Here at the shop we…

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