Product: Charles Shaw Sauvignon Blanc 2006 Producer: Charles Shaw Winery Approximate Retail Value: $2.99/750ml Category: Whiskey Country of Origin: California, USA Reviewer: Jon Costantino The F Words: Flavor – Lemon, apple. Feel – Crisp. Finish – First burns, then smooth.

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Sure, you probably saw the price of this wine and said, “$2.99?!?! What kind of swill are you trying to push on me?” But I have come here to tell you about one of the best-kept non-secrets in wine: Charles Shaw, which is distributed by the upscale grocery store Trader Joe’s, has perfected the “party wine.”

For years, mass market wineries have been trying to find the delicate balance between quantity and quality. Charles Shaw, known affectionately as “Two-Buck Chuck,” came to the conclusion years ago that good, inexpensive wine didn’t have to come in embarrassingly giant bottles, or (and it pains me to even write this) in boxes. They came to the conclusion that people will buy cases of simple reds and whites, and only a cashier in a Hawaiian shirt will know how much you really paid for it.

Charles Shaw’s Sauvignon Blanc is a light refreshing white wine for drinking on hot summer days or with lighter foods like salmon and chicken. It should be served as cold as possible to enhance its crisp flavor, and you need to open a bottle that hasn’t had time to chill; you can put ice in it without causing wine fans to faint. The Sauvignon Blanc has a slight lemon aroma, with just a hint of butter. There will be a slight alcohol burn as it goes down, but it will disappear quickly. There is a dryness to the wine, which helps when you pair it with food, and it doesn’t have the oak-barrel aftertaste that comes with serving a wine like Chardonnay. Its light color tells you that this is a wine that won’t knock you over, and you’ll be rushing for a second glass after you’ve finished. Best of all, in all of the time I’ve had it, it will leave you virtually hangover free.

The added bonus of Charles Shaw Sauvignon Blanc is that once you start serving it, you become almost part of a secret society. When you pour it for people who are unfamiliar with it, they will be impressed with you selection of a wine so refreshing and delicious. If you have it at a party where people are familiar with the “Two-Buck” concept, they will tell you what a wise choice you made, since Charles Shaw have never made a bottle of wine people didn’t like. Either way, you look like a genius.

So if you are looking to impress wine snobs, or you have a house party and you don’t want to break the bank, this is your kind of wine. You’ll never have to ask yourself, “Bottle or Box Wine?” again.