2018 Pedroncelli F. Johnson Vineyard Chardonnay
The 2018 Pedroncelli Chardonnay from Johnson Vineyard is a remarkable value. It is a medium-bodied Chardonnay with delicate notes of tropical fruit. The wine is from a vineyard that lies both in the Russian River Valley and the Dry Creek Valley. Pedroncelli selects grapes from the Dry Creek Valley side. The climate is ideal for Chardonnay.
The wine is barrel fermented, which gives the Chardonnay some extra complexity. It has a great texture, with slight buttery notes. No doubt, the Pedroncelli Chardonnay is a favorite in our house. Weimax Wines in Burlingame sells it for $13.99. Noted wine critic James Suckling gives it a 91- point rating. We go with 90 points.
2017 Pedroncelli Mother Clone Zinfandel
The 2017 Pedroncelli Zinfandel Mother Clone is a terrific-tasting Zinfandel. It is from Old Vine Zinfandel grapes in the Dry Creek Valley of Sonoma. The price at Weimax Wines in Burlingame is $15.99. The Pedroncelli Zin is a perfect Zin; not too big, not too spicy. Balanced to perfection! Take a look at the 2016 review.
Weimax Wines in Burlingame is open for curbside pickup. Give Gerald a call and stock up your wine cellar with these two fantastic Best-Buy Wines.
Coronavirus Fallout
We have read that online wine sales are soaring. Like grocery shopping, it appears that many are also stocking up on wine. Make sure that you are storing your wine correctly. You may not be drinking some of your wine for months. Keep the wine in a cool, dark spot in your home or garage. Lay the wine on its side.
Where are you buying your wine during this Pandemic? Are you physically shopping at wine shops or grocery stores? We are ordering all our wines online. We order from Weimax, K&L Wines, and some of our favorite wineries.
Wine Discounts Coming?
Many in the wine industry are predicting that California wineries will cut wine prices. The reasons: 1. A grape surplus from the previous vintages. 2. Tasting rooms remain closed, and restaurants have also shuttered. Wineries are missing out on direct sales to the consumer, and restaurants are not buying wine. 3. Changing habits of millennials and younger drinkers. Young drinkers are into microbrews, cocktails, and non-alcoholic drinks. 4. The fallout of people laid off or furloughed. They will not be able to afford wines as they once did. Expect many wineries to sell pallets of their wines to the likes of the Grocery Outlet, Trader Joe’s, and Costco.
There are many more worries than wine these days. We need to be diligent and ride the wave to health, happiness, and prosperous times. Stay safe, my fellow wine drinkers!
I’m interested in understanding the point system of wine rating. It’s opaque to the uninitiated. Specifically, the clustering of ratings in the high 80s to low 90s makes me wonder why it the scale isn’t 1-10, rather than (implicitly) 1-100, when the range of numbers below 85 seems completely unused. Also, what quality components correspond to each gradation? How is an 88-point Zin different from an 89-point Zin? What is the point threshold below which a wine is not recommended? What percentage of commercially available wines are below that threshold?
The point scale is a subjective measurement of how much one likes the wine. Wine bloggers use different grading systems. Some use letter grades, and some use point scales such as a 5 Point, 10, and 20 points. The more experience one has tasting wines, the better they can allocate a score to a wine.