http://cheapwineratings.com Good Value Makes Wine Taste Better Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:53:04 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The Hayman & Hill brand comes from Cellar Door/Pacific Wine Partners, who manage a number of different wine brands.  Cheap wine aficionados are probably familiar with their Red Guitar brand, known for tasty and affordable Spanish wine. Hayman & Hill is focused on single varietal, appellation designated, Californian wines produced by David Hayman and ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/23/hayman-hill-dry-creek-valley-reserve-selection-zinfandel/ Lodi Zin, sexy Lodi Zin.  Tall, dark, strong, sleek, bold, full, dangerous, striking, intense.  Razor sharp, yet soft as feathers.  Arresting, dazzling, raging, exhilarating. Old Zin Vines is produced by Oak Ridge Winery, the oldest operating winery in Lodi, founded in 1934.  The winery was originally operated as a cooperative of ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/21/old-zin-vines-from-oak-ridge-winery/ Bogle Vineyardsis a family run winery with over 1,200 acres in the Sacramento Delta region in Clarksburg, California.  They are a big enough producer that I find their wines in nearly every wine shop I visit.  And in my experience their wines tend to be consistently good for the price.  The first Bogle ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/15/bogle-old-vine-zinfandel/ Enjoy this wine while you can as I don't expect you'll be seeing a lot or wine from Belvedere Winery on the shelves.  Why?  Because the Belvedere Winery is gone.  Poof!  It's been replaced by the C. Donatiello Winery.  The new winery is backed by Bill Hambrecht, the former owner ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/14/belvedere-healdsburg-ranches-zinfandel/ Today is Wine Blogging Wednesday number 47 and the theme is the letter "S."  For those who don't know what Wine Blogging Wednesday is, it's a monthly event when wine bloggers around the world all write about a common theme. The theme typically revolves around a specific type of wine ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/09/s-is-for-saint-esprit-cotes-du-rhone/ Rosenblum Cellars is known for Zinfandel.  In fact, they call themselves the "mecca for zinfanatics."  I admire Rosenblum for being bold and taking a somewhat unique approach to wine making. Similar to many of the producers we've reviewed in this Zinfandel series, Rosenblum Cellars produces several different labels of Zinfandel.  Some ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/08/rosenblum-cellars-vintners-cuvee-zinfandel/ Rabbit Ridge runs a beautiful winery in Paso Robles, California with Mediterranean style architecture and decor. They produce a number of different varieties of wine that sell for affordable prices. They have also recently started producing olive oil, a trend I've seen from a few other wine producers ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/07/01/rabbit-ridge-central-coast-barrel-cuvee-zinfandel/ Creating a wine blog – or a blog of any topic for that matter – is a lonely venture at first. You often feel like you’re blogging into the ether, and for the most part you are. It takes a while for people to discover your blog. And it takes ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/06/30/blog-profile-everyday-wine/ When I tell people that I review inexpensive wines a common response I get is, "Oh, you must love Trader Joe's."  And every time I hear that, I have to reply with, "No, I don't." It's not that I have anything personally against Trader Joe's, but I have yet to find a ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/06/24/old-moon-zinfandel/ It's time for another double-header review.  Today it's from Cline Cellars located in the Los Carneros AVA in Sonoma, California.  The Cline Cellars winery was founded by Fred Cline in 1982 with an inheritance from his grandfather Valeriano Jacuzzi (one of five brothers who created Jacuzzi Spas).  The winery was originally ... http://cheapwineratings.com/2008/06/22/cline-cellars-zinfandel-and-ancient-vine-zinfandel/