Albarino | San Diego Wine Guru

Red, White, and Rosé Wine Values for Summer Sipping, Parties, and Picnics

by Tom Gable | Jun 30, 2026 | Argentina, California, Chile, Discoveries, France, Italy, Oregon, Rhone, Spain, United States, Values | 0

We tasted several hundred value wines over the past six months and narrowed this selection to those priced under $25 and scoring 15/88 to 17/92 on the respective 20-point and 100-point scales. The 22 wines are from five...

Easy-Sipping Picnic, Party, and Patio Wines

by Tom Gable | Apr 30, 2024 | Argentina, Beaujolais, Bordeaux, Burgundy, California, Discoveries, France, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, Values | 0

This may be a new category, but we are always looking for good values in daily wines (vin ordinaire to the French) with a high quality-to-value ratio (QVR). This includes for easy-sipping with friends on a casual evening,...

Pre-Dessert: Discoveries in Portuguese Table Wines

by Tom Gable | Apr 29, 2022 | Discoveries, Portugal, Values | 0

Most wine drinkers are familiar with the fine dessert wines from Portugal but don’t often consider exploring the country’s excellent table wines. They may not be as easy to find as Oporto dessert wines, which are in wide...

Summer Whites: Easy Sipping Party Wines, Plus a Few Complex Classics

by Tom Gable | Aug 31, 2020 | Australia, Baja California, Burgundy, California, Classics, Discoveries, France, Germany, New Zealand, Oregon, Spain, Washington | 0

The following white wines rose to the top of our tasting leaderboard the past three months, scoring for overall quality of the wines and values delivered. Most are widely available, except for classics from the cellar and...

Lodi – the Motherlode of Affordable California Wines

by Tom Gable | Mar 28, 2019 | California, Discoveries, Values | 0

Randy Caparoso, wine journalist, wine country photographer and columnist for The SOMM Journal, led...

Single Blind Tasting – Fun Exercise in Improving Wine Appreciation

by Tom Gable | Jan 31, 2019 | Argentina, Australia, California, France, New Zealand, Spain | 0

Can a single blind tasting be of value to wine drinkers seeking to learn more techniques for identifying the similarities and differences in wines, while honing their individual palates and sensitivities? The answer is yes,...