Trust the punt... (Reader participation post)

You know that depression in the bottom of a wine bottle?  That's called the "punt".  Did you know that?  I didn't.  I had to ask.  And it's still never been sufficiently explained to me what it's purpose is.  Anyway, one time Julia claimed that she could judge a bottle of wine solely on the depth of its punt.  Since she frequently makes things up, I was reluctant to believe this claim at first, but then I thought there might be some merit to it. 

I mean, ostensibly it costs more to produce a bottle with a deep punt or even any punt at all, right?  Slightly more material involved and I imagine there's an additional step in the production process.  So a producer who is only concerned with getting his cheap wine into a glass container in the most inexpensive fashion is going to choose a shallow-punt or punt-less bottle.  Or whatever.  I'm just hypothesizing here.  

Well, the long and short of it is that Julia's theory seems to hold up.  Seriously, try it.  Over the last year or so, I've tried to take note of the punts on bottles of cheap wine, and it sure seems that the better bottles *do* in fact have a bit of a punt to them, and the bad ones are generally flat as a pancake. 

So here's the reader participation part: next time you're drinking a bottle of cheap wine, channel your inner Wine Bottle Proctologist-- don't be shy.  Give it a little probe and see what you find.  I'd be willing to bet that the deeper the punt, the better the quality of the wine... Report back with your findings...

Crane Lake Pinot Grigio, 2009

Price: $3.33 @ Jenifer Street Market

Brian sez: I stopped by this neat little neighborhood grocery store the other day because:

a. I was driving past
b. I'd heard good things about it and, ultimately
c. I needed some sauerkraut

They had a special on two different labels-- $9.99 for THREE bottles.  Wow!!  This has CWC written all over it!!

My initial impression was not favorable.  None of the crispness that I like to see in a Gray Peanut (I think that's what Pinot Grigio means in English), and a little too much sugar.  Ultimately, it worked out as an okay compliment to our meal-- spicy gazpacho and Greek meatballs with blueberry and carrot salad.  There was just enough edge to it that it nicely cut through the dill, onion, garlic and mint in the meatballs.  Unfortunately, however, lack of balance and any real interesting flavor means this one is not a winner in the "Buy Again" category. 

Binary scale rating: 0

Binary scale ratings added!!

All (three) of our previous reviews have been updated with exciting new binary ratings!! 

I decided to incorporate an old favorite of mine-- the binary scale-- into the wine ratings... The binary scale is beautiful in its simplicity: Is it acceptable or not?   ¿Sí o no?  Would you or wouldn't you?  Important because-- let's be honest-- in the end, it's all black and white... There is no gray... 

Bota Box Cabernet Sauvignon, 2008

Price: $19.99 (3L) @ Copp's grocery store
Brian sez: This is the most utterly unremarkable wine I  have ever tasted. There is nothing wrong with it, but there is absolutely nothing interesting about it, either.

Julia sez: I'm drinking it because it's in front of me.

And really, that about sums it up.  We'll try it again tomorrow at cellar temperature (tonight was at room temperature), but I'm not holding my breath.   Word to your mothers.

Binary scale rating: 0

Vintjs Sauv Blanc Update

We just revisited the second half of this bottle tonight with dinner.  It had been in the fridge with a vacuum stopper since we opened it a couple nights ago.  At 55 degrees, it was way too sugar sweet, but at ~35 degrees, a lot of that sugar was hidden and more of the acid came through.  Still not a great wine, but I guess like bad beer, mediocre wine served extremely cold can actually turn out passable...

Binary scale rating is still a zero, but after tonight's improved showing, it's *almost* a one.

Cheap Wine Challenge '010 Results

A few folks have asked for a repost of the Cheap Wine Challenge '010 results.  The top three finishers are listed below:
1. Trentatre Rosso, $5.99; brought by Ken L
2. Quail Creek Shiraz, $4.99; Roy T
3. Barefoot Bubbly Moscato Spumante Sparkling Champagne; Melissa (friend of David and Jessica H)



Here is the entire field in order of arrival to the table, with name, price, contributor and number of votes:

1. Grand Cru Chardonnay; $6.00; Roman H; 5 votes
2. Little James Basket Press Red Table Wine; $15; Katie K; 12
3. Big House Red Red Table Wine; $10; Elise M; 8
4.Woop Woop Shiraz; $8.99; Ross N; 3
5. Villa Red Table Wine; $7.99; Bryon and Jocelyn Brennawitz; 3
6. Zaca Mesa Syrah; ??; ??; 7
7. Yellow Tail Pinot Noir; $6.99; Stephanie N; 5
8. Quail Creek Shiraz; $4.99; Roy and Lissie T; 7
9. Project Happiness Syrah; $5.99; Julia H; 1
10. Terra Roja Tres Pinos Red Table Wine; $4.99; Brian H; 5
11. Villa Red Table Wine; $8.00; Romman H; 1
12. Raymond Sauvignon Blanc; $12; ??; 1
13. Pinot Evil Pinot Noir; $6.99; Marilyn H; 1
14. Cartlidge and Browne Merlot; $9; Tom Z; 3
15. Chateau Ste. Michelle; $8.99; Kevin F; 5
16. Alice White Pinot Noir; $6.99; Earl H; 2
17. Elderton Cabernet Sauvignon; $18; Michael Z; 3
18. Barefoot Bubbly Moscato Spumante Champagne; $9.99; Melissa; 14
19. Monasteriolo Cava Brut Rose; $5.99; David and Jessica H; 3
20. Domaine des Cassagnoles White Table Wine; $10.99; Jake H; 0
21. Scaia Rossa Red Table Wine; $11.99; Jake H; 3
22. Trentatre Rosso Red Table Wine; $5.99; Ken L; 12
23. Five Rivers PInot Noir; $9.00; Anthony F; 3

Target Cube Wine: Cabernet Sauvignon/Shiraz 2008

Price: $11 @ Target.  

Julia says: As we were doing our shopping at Target to get our new home set up, I eyed this little cube of wine. The price, the fact that it is made out of a corrugated box (the product I sell for a living), and most importantly two bottles of wine for $11, I couldn't resist. Brian thought I was crazy saying Target is not the place to buy wine. I love it. I little squirt after a long day of work was just what I needed!

Brian sez: I told Julia, "I think we can get a better value on wine somewhere other than Target."  Not the first time I have been wrong, nor will it be the last, I'm sure.  Surprisingly drinkable with round red fruit.  Best part: it tastes as good on day 7 as on day one thanks to the collapsing bladder that keeps air from oxidizing the juice.

Binary scale rating: 1!!  (That's not one factorial, I'm just excited about giving something a one...)

Vintjs Sauvignon Blanc, 2009

Price: $5.99 @ Trader Joe's
Brian sez: Meh, it's okay. Some decent citrus, but a little too sugar sweet for me. Give me a good crisp NZ Sauv Blanc over this any day...

Binary scale rating: 0

Welcome to Cheap Wine Challenge

I sure love a good glass of wine, don't you?  The only problem is that these days it's hard to justify spending much on a bottle of fermented grape juice what with the economy being in the toilet and all.  In an attempt to justify our continued oneophilia, Julia and I have taken up a new hobby: trying to find the best wine at the cheapest price.  It's actually been pretty fun.  There are lots of good deals to be had in the world of wine right now and plenty of lesser-known producers making great wine that doesn't yet command much of a price tag. 

But like any hobby, drinking inexpensive wine is more fun when you make it a competition.  As such, in March of 2010, we hosted Cheap Wine Challenge '010: a Celebration of Delicious Value.

Some three dozen people were present, with 23 bottles entered for judging. 

As guests arrived, wines were placed in an opaque, numbered bag to conceal its identity and each guest was given a scorecard and five (5) star stickers.  As guests tasted the anonymous wines, they awarded these stickers to the bottles they felt were most deserving-- one each to five different bottles or up to three (3) stars to a particularly amazing bottle. 

At the conclusion of the voting, the number of stars each bottle received was divided by its price in dollars. The winning bottle was Trentatre Rosso, receiving 12 votes and sold at $5.99, brought by Ken Luecke.  Ken's prize was three of our favorite cheap wines to take home with him. 

Fast forward five months...

While enjoying a tasty bottle of cheap wine with dinner the other night, we were struck with an inspiration: since the event was such a huge success, and we *still* love inexpensive juice, we decided to finally jump on the blogwagon (before it rides off into obsolescence) and publish our adventures in cheap wine drinking.  Additionally, maintaining this journal will also give us something to do during the long Wisconsin winter.  We might even expand into beerblogging or cheeseblogging.  Well, let the fun begin...


Cheers,


JPH + BAH