Tannic Panic! Issue #129: Run, Don’t Walk to the Trader Joe’s Wine Aisle

The crazy value currently plaguing the shelves at your friendly neighborhood grocery store

Remember that $8 Barossa Cab/Shiraz from Trader Joes that had us “singing” like a pair of fresh squeezed lemurs a few weeks back? Well needless to say, it reminded us that we were “overdue” to see what else our old friend “Trader Joe” has in store these days.

In doing so, what we encountered was an existential flood of jorts-dropping deals across the proverbial “wine section” – a mix of cut-rate classics, comfort swill, and bottles priced so low for their so-called “categories” we almost couldn’t believe our beady little eyes.

Needless to say, some “inventory clearing” was in order, and all in the pursuit of finding out one simple truth: are these actually good deals, or is it a case of low prices tricking our lizard brains into buying plonk?

This week, we picked 4 bottles that caught our eyes as potential sources of EXTREME VALUE, and tasted our merry little way to their shiny green bottoms. But before we get to the “results,” let’s talk a little about how “Trader Joe” manages to stock the shelves with so many bargain bottles.

The Wine Section “At Large”

Tradey JJ’s is able to offer wines from “prestige” regions (e.g., Grand Cru Bordeaux, Barbaresco Riserva, etc) at unrealistically low prices largely because of the scale of the business. It’s similar to how Costco and other major retailers with their own wine sections work: microscopic margins and massive volume.

They leverage strong buying power and they can sell the wines with almost no mark-up (like pennies on the bottle). Minimal overhead (centralized warehousing, efficient shipping, and predictable nationwide demand) also helps them force savings onto customers.

But most importantly, their extremely wholesome customer base often blindly trusts that any bottle on the shelf will be a good deal, which allows them to sell through inventory quickly (plonk or otherwise), giving them leverage to secure future discounts from suppliers eager as a freshly juiced lemur for guaranteed placement.

TL;DR it’s a numbers game — they don’t need to inflate prices for profit because they sell so much dang Zeus juice.

Private Label and Rotating Selections

Trader Joe’s is known for its “Reserve,” “Grand Reserve,” and “Platinum Reserve” labels (and the occasional “Diamond Reserve” when they’re feeling frisky). These label terms (“Reserve” “Grand Reserve”) aren’t regulated in any way, so there’s no guarantee of quality associated with them; they’re really just marketing terms that are meant to imply a tiered standard of quality.

These labels represent limited or rotating lots from regions across our tiny little globe that TJ’s can offer for a limited time. Once the lot is sold, the exact wine may not return, since they continuously source new lots based on availability.

Trader Joe’s also carries labels that aren’t self-branded, but aren’t carried anywhere else. These are also essentially just white labeled bottles that sneak around pretending to be their own brands (e.g., Rosa Dell’Olmo, Panilonco Chilean wines).

So what exactly is in these bottles, and how did it get there?

By arranging “deals” (THE LUCRATIVE KIND) with producers to buy a guaranteed share of their wine and white label it, Trader Joe “plays the hero” by helping producers mitigate risk while offering wines at a major discount. The producers (many of whomst are recognizable names in the industry) don’t risk devaluing or altering the perceptions of their own label because their involvement generally isn’t made public information. In turn, Trader Joes offers bargains on wines from “prestigious” little regions that usually demand much higher “price tags.”

It’s worth noting that some of them do not reflect good quality for cheap. For example, if a producer has a significant overstock, they might cut a deal with Mr. Joe to move a large quantity at a discount just to get it off their “grubby little hands.”

The reason that they had that overstock in the first place might be because of poor market conditions, but could also potentially mean that quality was an issue. Producers may just need to find a use for the grapes they didn’t deem “suitable” for their own label’s standards (of quality or style). Those wines exist only on TJ’s shelves and are usually of lower quality than wines typically made by that producer.

ALL THIS TO SAY – and let us quote the once and forever great “Forest Gump” on this – “we didn’t know for suresies what we were gonna get when we opened this here box of chocolates.”

So let’s find out what we did get…

Bottles of the week, plus the Barossa Cab/Shiraz from “before”

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… AND NOW FOR THE REVIEWS (IN ORDER OF PRICE):

[CLICK HERE FOR A BREAKDOWN OF HOW OUR 100PT RATING SYSTEM WORKS]

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2020 Fior di Vino Chianti Classico Riserva / $8

Why we chose this wine: Tuscany is always a great place to look for value, so lower priced bottles often punch above their weight, but what caught my eye with this one was the it is a Riserva. This means that the bottle was required to be aged for a minimum of 24 months with at least 3 in the bottle (vs 100% in barrel), and in general the best grapes are “reserved” for these bottlings. Seeing that on an $8 bottle is unusual and potentially an exceptional value if it delivers.

Profile: Multi vitamin, copper penny, rubber, orange peel, red cherry, grape
Palate: Dry, tart, high acid, high tannin, medium- body, short finish

Smells just okay (not the biggest fan of the ole multi-vitamin, rubber and Welch’s grape juice trifecta) but it comes through with some key “deliverables” on the palate — dry, high acidity, and high tannin. The bright cherry and orange peel notes are in there somewhere, but they are not the most prominent.

Where it really struggles is balance — it’s excessively tart and the tannins are a bit harsh (I generally like high tannin wines, but they do not act harmoniously with the wine here). Outside of just tasting sour, the flavor falls short, as does the finish. There’s also a slightly bitter aftertaste.

While this wine isn’t especially impressive on its own, it has the makings of a very strong food wine and to that end, still delivers value at this price. I won’t get into it too deeply here, but dry, high acid and high tannin wines are often very food friendly.

My rec if you’re gonna give this one a gander — consider drinking alongside hearty fare, or use it as the base wine for a sangria.

Though the score is low by typical critic standards, bear in mind that this is an evaluation of the wine on its own and should be considered on all of its merits. If you are unfamiliar with how we score (since it differs from the typical 100 point scale) please take a look at the breakdown of the system from when we rolled it out.

Score Breakdown: Balance 31 / Aroma/Flavor 15 / Concentration 12 / Length 7 / Complexity 5 = 70 Points (I)

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2023 Trader Joe’s Platinum Reserve Saint-Julien Lot #126 / $17

Why we chose this wine: Saint-Julien sits at the heart of Bordeaux’s infamous Left Bank, home to some of the most pedigreed and age-worthy Cab blends on the planet. Bottles from this appellation typically start north of $50 and can easily spread their mighty little wings and soar into triple digits, even for entry-level cuvées from major chateaux. So seeing anything labeled Saint-Julien for $17 is borderline unheard of. Trader Joe’s “Platinum Reserve” line usually “signals” access to declassified juice from top-tier estates — wines that didn’t quite make it into a chateau’s grand vin but still come from the same vines, terroir, and same obsessive winemaking. If that’s the case here, this could be a serious sleeper deal.

Profile: Yogurt, blackberry, blueberry, plumskin, vanilla, a little musty, hint of green bell pepper, persimmon
Palate: Dry, high tannin, high acid, full body, medium- finish

The nose is basically all dark fruits and yogurt. The taste is sour. A little aromatic “digging” reveals a hint of green pepper poking its dirty little head out every once in a sniff, and the astute observer might even stumble across a persimmon or two. There’s also a musty note, like a wet towel you left in the back seat of a hot car — not pervasive, but perceptible.

A bit rough and thin at first; improves with air and has solid structure. Definitely lacks the power I associate with Saint-Julien and goes a little “light” on the complexity, but at $17? This is not a bad get. Not a bottle to train your memory of Saint-Julien on, but not a drain cleaner.

This one is worth aging (or decanting if you can’t wait) — a server at the Maison du Vin in Bordeaux once said to me while pouring a bottle of the most recent vintage that to even offer Bordeaux this young was “blasphemy.” I wouldn’t go that far, but the spirit of what he said holds true: there’s room to improve.

Score Breakdown: Balance 34 / Aroma/Flavor 15 / Concentration 13 / Length 11 / Complexity 6 = 79 Points (I)

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2020 Barreri & Rovati Barbaresco Riserva / $20

Why we chose this wine: Barbaresco is one of Piedmont’s “crown jewels.” It’s an appellation that turns the persnickety little Nebbiolo grape into something beautiful, and built for decades of aging. Entry-level Barbarescos usually start around $40–$50, and “Riserva” bottlings — which, like Chianti Classico Riserva, have strict aging requirements (in this case at least 50 months, 9 in barrel) — often climb much higher. So finding one at $20 is nutso. If this wine even remotely captures the unspeakable goodlyness that defines true Barbaresco, it’s not just a deal, it’s required drinking.

Profile: Cherry, strawberry, thyme, hibiscus, spice, copper penny, vanilla, bandaid
Palate: Dry, high tannin, high acid, medium body, long finish

Classic and flawlessly balanced in my opinion. Notes of thyme, hibiscus, copper, and red fruits with high tannin (THE SMOOTH KIND), high acid, and a long finish. Extremely food friendly but incomprehensibly drinkable on its own.

Silky and complex with excellent length and character. An absolute steal at this price. To give you a little perspective, after buying the first bottle for this tasting, I returned to the store and got an additional case out of fear they might run out before my next planned visit, so believe me when I say I firmly believe this is one of the best deals out there at this price point.

If I were you, I would stop reading right now and act accordingly (aka beeline for TJ’s and deplete them of their stock).

Score Breakdown: Balance 40 / Aroma/Flavor 17 / Concentration 14 / Complexity 7 / Length 15 = 93 points (I)

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2015 Chateau Laroque Saint-Émilion Grand Cru, Grand Cru Classé / $30

Why we chose this wine: The classification system in France can be confusing, and the label on this bottle is a great example of where it gets especially muddled, but to help put this into perspective, here’s a quick breakdown — Saint-Émilion Grand Cru is an appellation (the “Grand Cru” appended at the end there isn’t the classification, it’s part of the region name). It has slightly stricter standards than Saint-Émilion (also an appellation). Grand Cru Classé is a classification in the Right Bank classification system that is awarded to wines of established quality. Above that are Premier Grand Cru Classé A & B, which are even more prestigious (and expensive). This particular bottle is from the 2015 vintage, which is considered to be among the greatest all time vintages for the right bank. Thus, seeing a bottle that combines these neat little label terms for $30 got me jumping out of my absolute jimmies at the prospect of extreme value.

Profile: Tomato paste, earth, vegetal, green pepper, plum, briny seashell, toasted mocha, ballpoint pen ink, slight barnyard, dates, blackberries, juniper, licorice, tobacco leaf, chocolate, thyme!, black cherry, roasted chestnut
Palate: Dry, medium+ acid, high tannin, full body, long finish

As you can see from my rambling profile notes, new aromas and flavors kept coming to the surface. It just did not stop developing as it opened up. Rich, earthy, and deeply complex — tomato paste, earth, plum, ink, mocha, blackberry, tobacco, ETC, with fine tannins and great balance. Super smooth, perfectly aged by my standards, and still capable of evolving. If you like earthy, rich wines, this is your jam.

Incredible value. Make like me and buy all the remaining bottles in stock (unlike the Barbaresco, I rolled the dice and did it in advance just based on my knowledge of the region and vintage. It paid off).

Score Breakdown: Balance 38 / Aroma/Flavor 17 / Concentration 14 / Length 15 / Complexity 10 = 94 Points (I)

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The lower priced of the bunch (the Barossa from “before,” the Chianti Classico Riserva, and the TJs Saint Julien) are value picks if you are looking to spend under $20 on a bottle these and want something you can pick up on your way to the dinner party without feeling like a basic little dingus and ruining everyone’s lives.

For those of you who are willing to spend just a few more coppers on a bottle (LIKE ME!), the Barbaresco and the Saint-Émilion Grand Cru offer insane value on exceptional quality. Bring these to the dinner party and everyone will instantly be impressed by your brilliance in the ever-loving “field” of Zeus juice. Drink them alone in the “comfort” of your “home” and no one needs to know.

THE CHOICE IS YOURS.

Until next time, HAPPY DRINKING PEOPLE.

Cheers,

Isaac & Zach