La Cave de Mon Gendre

No, this is not another one of those French movies like Le Chateau de Ma Mere (My Mother's Castle) or La Gloire de Mon Pere( My Father's Glory) by Yves Robert, it's just my son-in-law's wine cellar. I love his wine cellar. It is small and frequently restocked. In this respect, I think it is typical in that these days most wine is drunk the day it is purchased, but I believe it is atypical in terms of value. I used to buy for him at Kermit Lynch, but now he finds his own good values at places such as the Berkeley Bowl and Beverage & More. I think he has found just the right combination. If you don't want to buy supermarket wine and you can't afford to spend $75 for Napa Cab, $100 for Burgundy or $150 for Bordeaux at places such as the Wine Club in San Francisco, turn to my son-in-law for advice. Here are a few recent samples from his cave.

2006 Chateau Moulin de Ferrand -this Entre-deux-Mers ( between the two rivers), produced by Vignoble Boissonneau and imported by Grape Expectations is a blend of 60% Sauvignon Blanc and 40% Semillon. I always think of Entre-deux - Mers as a white Bordeaux oyster wine similar to Muscadet, but this one has enough flesh on it to work with other fish and seafood, even chicken perhaps. It has a classic Sauvignon nose of grapefruit and grass with just a hint of toast. In the mouth, it is dominated by the Sauvignon Blanc grapefruit, but there are other citrus flavors and it is balanced by the Semillon giving it a little more body. Not as tart, dry, and thin as some Entre-deux-Mers can be, this may be the best Entre-deux Mers I've tasted and at about six bucks it is an exceptional value.

2005 "Cabs" - The name of this Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux is a clever pun being made from 50% Cab Sauv and 50% Cab Franc. Sort of a French "Red Truck." It has a raspberry nose followed by good fruit balanced by a bit of tannin that would probably dissipate with six months to a year in the cave. It seems doubtful it would age as well as the Chateau Delord I recently tasted from the Premieres Cotes de Bordeaux, but who cares. It is meant to be drunk young (about $6 on sale)

2005 Trinchero Santa Barbara Chardonnay - Outstanding value! Cool, crisp, balanced with good fruit, but much closer to a French style. Perfect with chicken.

2005 Tierra Brisa Malbec. Classic Argentinian Malbec - big, hearty, red with sturdy backbone. Rich mouth-filling black fruit flavors. Not really fruit forward, a good solid wine that would go great with any red meat - steak or stew. Another bargain at $5/bottle.