2 Guys Uncorked – Wine Reviews & Wine Blog - Making Wine Fun and Easy

Chardonnay, it’s one of the most widely planted grapes and surely one of the best known ones. Knowing Chardonnay is key to a solid foundation in wine and a great place to start. In this two part series, Jon and I examine 6 Chardonnays—three of which are classic examples of what a typical Chardonnay can taste like and three which take Chardonnay in different directions, giving this wine a nice spin.

This is not a test of the emergency broadcast system. I repeat, this is not a test. Stop whatever you are doing to get your butt to Trader Joe’s. In the South American section, you will see a bottle by the name of Santa Ema. At my TJ’s, they have a cabernet and a merlot. Either one is great. Ted and I absolutely love this Chilean red.

I was reading Wine Spectator the other day and stumbled upon a little article about this wonderful new product: Fusebox.

Ravenswood is the “godfather” of zinfandel. It pioneered the grape in Sonoma County three decades ago and has been instrumental in its explosion in popularity. Since its founding in 1976, Ravenswood has been driven by one mission statement: “NO WIMPY WINES”.

A lot of people ask me about wine tastings and happy hours in Washington, DC. Well here’s a list of the ones I know about, if you know of any more, please leave a comment!

TUESDAYS
Wine Flights Specials at The Evening Star Café.
Each week there’s a new selection to try. Starts at 6 p.m.

Ted and I stormed Whole Foods and bought up their inventory of organic and biodynamic wines. We got 6 bottles (which is a pretty good selection) and set out to work.

Overall, we found the wines to be disappointing. My $10 bill could have gone much further with a non-organic bottle. However, there were a few stand-out bottles which had the grace, flavor and balance of our usually weekly “Best Buy” with the extra bonus of the organic/biodynamic certification. If drinking organic is important to you, make sure to snap up the first two bottles before they are gone.

If you are looking to try something new, head right for the Spanish section at Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods. Spanish wine is unlike anything else you’ve tried. Most everyone has tried the Spanish red grapes, Tempranillo and Garnacha, but you have to check out the whites.

This week, 2 Guys Uncorked reviewed three white wines from different regions of Spain. We loved them all (sorry, but no “Don’t Buy” this week). Ted was amazed by the Albarino from Rias Baixas, while I went for the Verdejo/Viura blend from Rueda.

People always ask us: “Why do you review wines from only Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods?” Although it’s a little weird to just focus on two stores, if you think about the reasons below, our decision makes good sense:

The Wine Antisnob

My friend Pat (soon to be culinary guy in Italy!) recently sent me an article in the Wall Street Journal about Tim Hanni, the wine “antisnob”. This is a man who is on a mission to reinvent the American wine industry. Tim was one of the first Americans to be classified as a “Master of Wine”. This is a very privileged title held by only 265 people in the world, imagine that! Part of the rigorous test includes blind tasting wines and being able to discern the region, production method and alcohol levels—-whew! And I thought I was good when I could tell you what grape or grapes the wine was made from :)

Not everyone has a hot date to celebrate with on Valentine’s Day (Ted and I are both single and dateless.. hint hint). But this doesn’t mean you can’t have fun on February 14th. In Bulgaria, Feb. 14th is Trifon Zarezan, or Wine-Grower’s Day. It’s a big party, so don’t hole-up in your apartment all alone on Thursday. Get out there and celebrate great wine!!

2 Guys Uncorked and We Are Not Martha have put together a great evening that’s full of food, friends and laughter… and booze. Lots of booze.