Last month, the NY Times outlined various reasons behind California's wine industry's distress crisis, as well as the consequences thereof. There's no sense in my piling on here, other than to say that, like premium bourbon, there's an upside to consumers whenever there's an oversupply in the market. There are many ways that producers' surplus makes its way into the market - Cameron Hughes' model under its different iterations, liquidation on the bulk market, the birth of second labels (so as not to erode the primary's brand equity,) etc. Yet another is private label.
Trader Joe's, the grocery world's master of private label products, is not a new player in the wine business. The vast majority of their wines are targeting value-conscious consumers more than those in search of quality. But, as discussed last summer, every now and again, they do surprise.
One example of that pleasant surprise is a recent release, the 2023 Trader Joe's Platinum Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Stag's Leap District ($18.) This is a wine that, while lacking the finesse and profundity of some Stag's Leap producers, is a very solid effort that also lacks the $175 price tag commonplace in this AVA. It also lacks obvious signs of heavy manipulation in the cellar, allowing textbook regional character to shine through. As for what it doesn't lack: structure, delicious fruit, a dense body, and a cashmere-like texture that will make you glad you stashed a few bottles away for wintertimes to come.
This wine reminds me a lot of the
Trader Joe's cabernets I picked up during the pandemic. Those were from the 2017 and 2018 vintage and, like this wine, were from prestigious AVA's in Napa Valley. Though I stashed some away for longer term storage, I wish I had banked more, as they have only gotten better over the ensuing years.
My advice: go buy one bottle. See if you like it as much I did. Then decide how much more you want. But don't sleep on it- once this is gone, it's gone.
