Three Buck Chuck
Charles Shaw Merlot, California
Price: $3.00
Grade: A-
During the summer, I had the privilege of attending the wedding of two friends I met in my graduate history program here at the University. In the awesome tradition of history nerd-dom, they met while working at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia and chose to get married in a historical home. I was set to attend the ceremony and reception. Seeing friends tie the knot would be fun and moving. And to top it off, there would be wine.
Weddings and wine are pretty complementary. Can you imagine going to a formal party without it? Yet, many couples do not take their wine choices seriously. They tend unfortunately to nod when the barkeep suggests Woodbridge or some other cheap California abomination. As I mingled at the reception, I wondered what my newlywed friends had chosen. The wine nerd in me was intrigued.
I went to my table and saw a white and red bottle of Charles Shaw wine. “Hmm, never heard of it,” I thought to myself. I opened the bottle of merlot and filled my glass. Immediately, I was impressed. Given the number of guests at weddings, most couples opt for about an $8 bottle of wine. And for $8, this Charles Shaw merlot was really good.
Both the nose and palate showed flavors of bright red cherry, strawberry, raspberry, incense, cedar and even watermelon. I was particularly impressed with the finesse of the oak component. Very few inexpensive wines, especially from California, exhibit quality oak. In fact, the oak taste is what I usually detest about cheap California wine. Many vineyards now use oak rods, oak chips and oak essence to inject that strong oak character that Americans always expect from wine. But Charles Shaw knew his oak.
I went up to the groom a bit imbibed and congratulated him on his choice. I also commented that I had never heard of Charles Shaw. He looked at me with some shock and uttered, “You never heard of Three Buck Chuck?”
To think that I was drinking the infamous Three Buck Chuck and did not realize it — it was wine sacrilege! Every wine nerd knows about Three Buck Chuck, the wine from Trader Joe’s that meets decent quality expectations and manages to be $3. Yes, you read correctly — $3! I love Charles Shaw wine. Not only is it enjoyable, it is solid proof that California can make great wine at a low price without succumbing to the Woodbridge albatross.
In the end, despite a low price that would perhaps predict low quality, my historian friends madea great wine decision. Indeed, Charles Shaw should be invited to every wedding and into the homes of American wine enthusiasts.
Jeff’s column runs biweekly Wednesday. He can be reached at j.katra@cavalierdaily.com.
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