When it comes to places to shop for fine wine, Trader Joe's does not exactly rise to the top of the list. After all, they are the retailer famous for launching Two Buck Chuck (aka Charles Shaw.) That said, sometimes when you're there grabbing cheeses, vinegars, and other things, it's tempting to swing by and grab a bottle from the wine section.
Time after time, that endeavor has resulted in countless disappointments. but writing about wine requires kissing a lot of frogs and keeping an open mind.
In addition to the litany of private labels, there are a number of Trader Joe's-braded wines marked with levels that loosely correlate to price and quality:
- Reserve
- Grand Reserve
- Platinum Reserve
- Diamond Reserve
Regardless of how grandiose-sounding these level names can be, these wines are all made in large quantities with value engineering as a main priority. The net result is that the first two levels are almost uniformly dull and flabby, with high levels of alcohol and residual sugar. In other words, I wouldn't serve them to any friends, let alone drink them myself.
Even the highest two levels often show off similar qualities, but every once in a while they hit. I still have some bottles of Platinum Reserve Cabernet's from the 2017 vintage from the Atlas Peak, Diamond Mountain, and Howell Mountain AVA's in my cellar, and I wish I had more. No doubt these wines were pandemic anomalies, as I paid just $15 apiece. (For reference, the least-expensive Howell Mountain cab on Wine.com right now is $80, and they go up quickly from there.)
Anyway, it was with some skepticism that I recently grabbed a bottle of the 2023 Trader Joe's Merlot Yountville Platinum Reserve ($15.) But this is another winner. For starters, it actually tastes like merlot, and has all the hallmarks of good Napa Valley reds - great structure, fine tannins, a meaty backbone, and way more elegance than the price tag would suggest. Yes, it's big and young and still tightly-wound, but approachable nonetheless and the oak is mercifully in balance. Better yet, on day two it's relaxed a bit, suggesting that some patience will be rewarded for those who can hang on to a few bottles.
I'll be stashing a handful of these in the basement for later enjoyment.
