Doing some bottom-feeding at TJ's on Fri:
1. FoggyVeil SantaBarbaraCnty RW (75% Syrah/25% Grenache; 14.0% Select Hillside vnyd blocks) FoggyVeilWines/SantaMaria 2013: Med.dark color; strong bright Syrah/blackberry/spicy/slight peppery light toasty/oak rather attractive nose; lightly tart bright/blackberry/Syrah/strawberry/bit peppery light toasty/oak flavor w/ light/gentle tannins; med. strong blackberry/Syrah light toasty/oak finish w/ light tannins; a pleasant/attractive/simple Syrah about the level of the Qupe CentralCoast Syrah at a fair price. Will not bother to revisit this wine. $14.00 (TJ)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. When I'm trolling the aisles of TJ's wine section and see some special/fake label I don't recognize, I immediately inspect the address of where it's produced. If it's AmericanCanyon or Modesto, than I know it's a FredFranzia wine and not worth trying (mostly). If it's a SantaMaria address, then I suspect it's from the Miller's CentralCoast Wine Coop and, maybe, worth a try. This was one of those I felt worth a gamble. It didn't quite live up to my high expectations, though. Indeed, the wording on the label suggests the grapes came from BienNacido, but it lacked the pedigree I'd expect from BienNacido.
Tom