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Tim Lemke

Tim is the founder and chief reviewer at Cheap Wine Ratings since 2007.

Frontera Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot – Super Cheap

I’m a fan of the magnum, that’s a 1.5 liter bottle of wine. Although the magnum also frustrates me because it seems like the wines sold in bottles of this size fall primarily into two camps: 1) super cheap & not so great, and 2) premium. What I have a hard time finding in the […]

Siegrist Blanc de Noir – Beautiful

Last week I was singing the praises of German pinot noir. Well, how about a curve ball to blow your mind? How about a German white pinot noir? You may or may not already know the majority of the color in red wine comes from the skins. And you may not know it’s possible to […]

Undone Pinot Noir – Done Well

As my palate and I mature, I find myself less interested in the big & bold wines and fine myself drawn toward medium-bodied wines — wines that have more nuance and tend to be more food-friendly. And in talking with other wine drinkers I’ve found that I’m not alone. I’ve noticed younger wine drinkers in their […]

Trivento Reserve Malbec – Black Cherry ‘Splosion

When I was a kid, my mom used to make this Jello dish that had black cherries suspended in the Jello. It was a big thing back in the 1970’s to suspend things in gelatin. But this is one I remember in particular, because I kind of liked it. And it had a very distinguishable smell […]

Great Value – Gran Reserva Serie Riberas Cabernet Sauvignon

Several years ago, when I first started doing wine reviews, I was a big fan of Chilean cabernet sauvignon. But then after a number of disappointing experiences I gravitated away from it. This, however, is a wine that once again makes me a fan. This is one of the many brands produced by Concha y […]

Casillero del Diablo, Cabernet Sauvignon

Now here’s a wine brand with a fun name and a fun story behind the name — the quick version is a winemaker kept the good wine in a cellar and to keep thieves away started a rumor that the devil lived in his cellar. Casillero del Diablo is now a devilishly popular wine brand produced by Chilean […]

Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Himmelreich Riesling – Tasty with Thai

I thought I would try a different approach for this review. No blind tasting, no sitting at my computer studiously taking notes about the wine. Instead I took this wine out into the world and tasted it with an appropriate dinner (while studiously taking notes on my phone). Some people may say that’s the wrong […]

Bila-Haut, Cotes Du Roussillon Villages – Revisited

Hello again, everyone. It’s been a couple weeks since I’ve posted anything and those couple weeks were filled with a busy schedule at the day job along with a series of technology challenges. First files on this website spontaneously went corrupt and I had to restore the site and then my hard drive on my […]

Mud House, Marlborough Pinot Noir

A few weeks ago I wrote about a pinot noir from Mud House made with grapes from the Central Otago region in New Zealand. It was delicious and reminded me about how good New Zealand pinot noir can me. And now I have another pinot noir from Mud House, this one from grapes grown in […]

Mud House Sauvignon Blanc – Good and Grassy

I was talking with a friend the other day about the descriptors people use for wine and he was amused by “grass” as an aroma in wine. And while it may strike some as funny, it’s a very real thing. Sauvignon blanc often demonstrates this grassy aroma and it comes from some very specific chemicals. […]