On Tue, 24 Jul 2007 20:29:24 GMT, "Paul M. Cook"
> wrote:

>
>"blake murphy" > wrote in message
.. .
>> On Tue, 24 Jul 2007 01:28:51 -0000, wrote:
>>
>> >On Jul 22, 4:40 pm, "James Silverton" >
>> >wrote:
>> >> Potomac, Maryland > wrote in message
>> >>
>> >> oups.com...
>> >> On Jul 22, 12:45 pm, "James Silverton"
> wrote:
>> >>
>> >> > notbob wrote on Sun, 22 Jul 2007 14:01:25 -0500:
>> >> >
>> >> > ??>> I guess standards differ. TJs wines are drinkable but I've
>> >> > ??>> not had a *great* bottle of wine for $5 since the 1960s
>> >> > ??>> :-)
>> >> >
>> >> > n> I have. A 1L bottle, no less. Back around '92-93, Woodside
>> >> > n> was closing out the previous year's bottling of Zinfandel.
>> >> > n> They were discounting it all over town and I was just
>> >> > n> getting started on wines. I bought out all the places that
>> >> > n> still had some, about 6 cases from different stores, all
>> >> > n> bottled in different places, all about $5-6. Most of it was
>> >> > n> just ok, a few bottles had turned, but there were 4-5
>> >> > n> bottles that were spectacular, even by a neophyte's
>> >> > n> standards.
>> >> >
>> >> > n> While not a $5 bottle, Gallo had a cab in '94 that was
>> >> > n> fantastic for only $9-10. When people caught on, it went
>> >> > n> like wildfire. I wish I still had some of those.
>> >> >
>> >> > Not to downgrade the bargain too much, $10 in 1994 is equivalent
>> >> > to $13-14 now and $14 will get you a very decent bottle of OZ
>> >> > Shiraz. Spending over $20 will get something verging on very
>> >> > good.
>> >> >
>> >> > James Silverton
>> >> > Potomac, Maryland
>> >>
>> >> help me out James, still a novice here, although my hubby enjoys
>> >> expensive champagne. Let me ask you how a cheap wine WINS a
>> >> competition like this TJ wine did, if you can't get anything good for
>> >> under $20.00. I am not doubting you or causing a fight. Just wonder,
>> >> really, how a wine can win if it is only a couple of bucks but real
>> >> wine drinkers insist it can't be good. How do they finagle those darn
>> >> contests? >B.T.
>> >>
>> >> It depends a lot on how tastings and competitions are organized. Most
>of
>> >> the stuff reported is anecdotal. The only way to really rate wines is a
>> >> blind tasting like the famous one of 1976 where California wines came
>out
>> >> ahead of French and most of the tasters were French. The French have
>been
>> >> proclaiming "We wuz robbed" ever since. If Wine Spectator were not in
>the
>> >> business of selling wine, they might be a lot more honest.
>> >>
>> >> --
>> >> Jim Silverton
>> >
>> >Thank you Jim! I suspect that often a cheap wine gets good marks only
>> >because it is a remarkable bargain. I'd prefer to have wines reviewed
>> >next to each other without regard of any kind for the price. Than you
>> >could really see what the honest feedback is. > B.T.
>>
>> um, it was a blind tasting. do you know what that means?
>
>It means TJs threatened to gouge out the eyes of the judges if their wine
>wasn 't a winnner.
>
>Paul
>

um, trader joe's sells the wine it doesn't make it. another astute
observation from paul.

your pal,
blake