As frequent readers of this site know, there are a couple things that I am a complete sucker for. One is wine with eye catching labels. Another is cheap wine. A third is Chianti. Luckily for me, when shopping at the Trader Joe’s wine section the other day, all three of these thing combined in a single bottle of wine. Is there an eye catching label? It has a sweet griffin on it! Is it cheap? This bottle is only $6! Is it Chianti? Yes, yes it is. And with that, I could not say no to buying a bottle of Grifone Chianti Riserva.
The Grifone Chianti Riserva is a nice blend of primarily Sangiovese spiced up with 10% of Canaiolo and 5% of Cabernet Sauvignon. These grapes lead to a rich, full flavored red wine that stands up nicely to robust flavors. Quick fact: for Chianti to be called Riserva, it has to be aged for three years. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.
I like to keep my wine + food thematic and pair Grifone Chianti Riserva with some Italian food, usually a good bolognese. Overall, I say buy this stuff. While it is not as good as some Chianti that you can buy at Trader Joe’s, it is half the price of the better wines. For $6, this bottle is worth picking up.
We like it! Forgot where and when I bought it so when we opened it the other night at dinner, it was nice not to be impressed by price or anything else. We liked it and hubby asked where I got it and how much it was. I had no idea. Ran into it by accident at Trader Joe’s today and was shocked to see it was $5.99! Well worth it as an every day drinker. (Yes, I drink wine every day, so I can only drink expensive stuff on the weekend!) Try it! For $6 what do you have to lose?