Kemblefield Sauvignon Blanc

Name: Kemblefield
Color: White
Varietal: Sauvignon Blanc
Vintage: 2010
Country/State: New Zealand
Region: Marlborough
Price: $10
Stars: 4 (out of 5)

This was a nice New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region that we bought in place of our usual go-to Sauvignon Blanc from Kim Crawford...The Kemblefield is a couple bucks cheaper, but it still had the citrus, grapefruit, and tropical fruit flavors that you'd expect from New Zealand. It's a very good, light-bodied, summer sipper.

Kitchen Sink White Blend

Name: Kitchen Sink
Color: White
Varietal: Blend (Chardonnay/Chenin Blanc/Gewurztraminer)
Vintage: NA
Country/State: California
Region: Various
Price: $9
Stars: 4.5 (out of 5)

This was a terrific little white blend for less than $10...Very fruity, with pears, melons, citrus, and honey really present in the mouth. The finish was pretty short, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this was a delicious, refreshing, lively wine. Especially excellent for the summer!

Louis M. Martini Cabernet

Name: Louis M. Martini
Color: Red
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Vintage: 2007
Country/State: California
Region: Sonoma
Price: $14
Stars: 3.5 (out of 5)

This was a nice California Cab that we enjoyed with pizza and later on its own. It was dry and smooth, with flavors of blackberry and dark cherry and a little bit of spice. Nice tannins with a medium body and medium finish. It's a good value for a well-made Cabernet from California.

Bougrier Vouvray

Name: Bougrier Vouvray
Color: White
Varietal: Chenin Blanc
Vintage: 2009
Country/State: France
Region: Loire Valley
Price: $10
Stars: 4.5 (out of 5)


This was our first bottle of Vouvray (made with the Chenin Blanc grape), and we completely enjoyed it...It was a delicious, medium-bodied wine, with flavors of sweet fruit like peaches, pears, and pineapples, with some kiwi and green apples. It's an off-dry wine, but it had enough acidity to keep it balanced. We drank this wine on its own after chilling it, and also had it with a dinner of grilled chicken and vegetables. It was terrific with and without food.

For about $10, we will definitely keep this one on our list of favorites.

Conundrum White

Name: Conundrum
Color: White
Varietal: Blend (Chardonnay/Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon/Viognier/Muscat)
Vintage: 2009
Country/State: California
Region: Various
Price: $18
Stars: 4.5 (out of 5)


We enjoyed this terrific white blend while spending a relaxing night away at the Innisbrook Resort, just up the road in Palm Harbor...Krista and I polished off the entire bottle before cutting through one of the golf courses to eat dinner at the Salamander Market Grille. The wine was delicious and featured tropical fruit, peaches, pears, honey, and vanilla. It was off-dry but still had great acidity to keep it in balance.

After reading more about Conundrum online, I learned that it's part of the Wagner Family of Wine, the same group responsible for the Belle Glos Meiomi Pinot Noir that we like so much. Both the Meiomi and the Conundrum are amazing wines that would please many palates. Both are less than $20, making them excellent values, too.

Bogle Phantom

Name: Bogle Phantom
Color: Red
Varietal: Blend (Petite Sirah/Zinfandel/Mourvedre)
Vintage: 2007
Country/State: California
Region: Various
Price: $19
Stars: 4 (out of 5)

After our disappointing experience the night before with the Durigutti Bonarda, we redeemed ourselves with this nice red blend from Bogle, known as the Phantom. I had been meaning to try this wine for awhile, so when I stumbled across it as I was looking for a wine for my Father's Day dinner (steaks on the grill), I jumped all over it.

It was very good, but not exactly what I expected. I'm a big fan of Bogle's Petite Sirah, especially its combination of dark fruit and chocolate. The Phantom, however, seemed to be dominated by the Zinfandel, at least to my nose and palate. It was a nice, big bodied wine that went really well with the steaks and was also good on its own. I just wish I was able to taste more of the Petite Sirah, which is one of my favorite varietals.

Durigutti Bonarda

Name: Durigutti Bonarda
Color: Red
Varietal: Bonarda
Vintage: 2007
Country/State: Argentina
Region: Mendoza
Price: $11
Stars: 3 (out of 5)


We had our very experience with the Bonarda grape last night, and it left a little to be desired. Neither Krista nor I really enjoyed this Bonarda from Durigutti. It was a little flat or flabby, and was a bit too soft for our tastes. It lacked the spice that I expected it to have based on what I had read online about it. It also seemed to be really grapey, without any dark fruit taste.

All in all, I would probably pass on this wine in the future.