I tasted this wine recently. It was not pleasant... but it brought me in touch with an interesting blogger for you with great reviews of wines ....

Notice that this wine does not have a vintage date: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varietal

Therefore, under California law, this "wine" can contain up to 30% of something else...

I was trying to express how this wine tasted, when I noticed that a fellow blogger, Brian on Wine, had a great review that sums it up quite well.

"Brian On Wine is my personal opinion on various wines. These wine reviews are solely my personal opinion. I have no formal training in wine tasting, and am not involved in the wine industry in any way. I am just a regular guy who appreciates a nice glass of wine now and then and I'd like to share my experiences with you. Hopefully I will turn you on to a nice wine at a nice price, or help you to avoid a less than perfect wine."

http://brianonwine.blogspot.com/2009/03/recession-review-fetzer-2007-pinot-noir.html

The Winery: Fetzer
The Wine: 2007 Pinot Noir
The Price: $6.98 at Safeway (marked down from $8.99)

I was shocked to find a Pinot Noir for less than $7. I don't see how they can produce a $7 Pinot Noir. Needless to say, I'm not expecting to find greatness here.

Fetzer is a California winery. They seem to focus on making mass-produced wines for the masses.

The bottle was stopped with a composite cork. The wine is a deep, dark red.

The wine has aromas of plum and berries, whith a fairly strong alcohol odor. It also has a bit of a plasticy aroma to it.

The wine is fairly harsh. It has flavors of berries and plum that are overwhelmed by the alcohol flavor. It is an eye-watering red wine. If you want to dip your toes into Pinot Noir for the first time, skip on this one. It is not a good representative of Pinot Noir.

That said, it is a servicable red wine for $7. This is, afterall, a recession review. This wine is the homely person on the bar stool at last call. It's not what you were hoping for when you walked it, but it'll get the job done.

Went to a holiday function and they were pouring Fetzer Gewürztraminer (Gavurtz)

Gewürztraminer

Tasting notes:
The wine is deep golden straw colored, with a nose of dried apricot, spicy peach, a touch of rose petal and honeysuckle. In the mouth, crisp green apple, honeyed apricot, and peach flavors meld with the traditional spicy flavors of Gewürztraminer. This medium-bodied wine’s off-dry style strikes the perfect balance between its sweetness and bright, crisp acidity. This fresh, soft wine is a true delight to sip, especially when paired with many ethnic food styles, such as Asian or Hispanic cuisines.



"It’s often called gavurtz because it’s hard to say, and even harder to spell. This wine, though, is a secret weapon, great for taming spicy foods or sipping on its own. Enjoy the honeyed apricot and peach flavors in the glass, and breathe deeply to capture the aromas of rose petals and honeysuckle. Lots of people love this wine, even if they’ll never spell it. Just ask for gavurtz. We’ll know what you mean."

Dennis Martin
Winemaker