Trader Joe's Wine Store

Trader Joe's Wine Shop
138 E 14th St
(between 4th Ave & Irving Pl)
New York, NY 10003

There has been no other store in NYC that has inspired my curiosity like Trader Joe's. The lines at this store are always inordinately long, like the namesake grocery store next store. I wondered to myself: is the wine really that good or really that cheap?

To answer this question, I decided to have a wine tasting of several Trader Joe's wines. It also happened to be the 35th anniversary of the "Judgment of Paris," the famous historical wine showdown where California wines triumphed over their French counterparts in a blind taste test. What better way to answer my question than to hold a comparative tasting: Trader Joe's European wine section vs. their specialty wine store counterparts.

The wines were as follows:
TJ's Piesporter Michelsberg Spatlese ($6.99) vs. Eitlesbacher Karthuserhofberg Spatlese ($34.99).
La Cheteau Vouvray ($6.99) vs. Francois Pinon "Silex Noir" Vouvray 2008
Reserve Perrin Cotes du Rhone ($8.99) vs. Domain Monpertuis "Vignoble de la Ramiere" 2008 ($15.99)
La Loggia Barbaresco 2006 ($12.99) vs. Sori Paolin "Cascina Luisin" 2004 ($43.99)

I held a blind tasting with these four whites and four reds, and had a group of 9 people swirl and sip through each of the wines.

Unfortunately, Trader Joe's didn't place on top like California did at the original faceoff. The actual Barbaresco, Sori Paolin"Cascina Luisin," placed well ahead of the pack, but the TJ's La Loggia Barbaresco placed a respectable 2nd. The other TJ's wines -- the Spatlese, Vouvray, and the Cotes du Rhone, placed 5th, 6th, and 8th, respectively.

Interestingly enough but not surprisingly, the wines below $10 were not as good, with numerable faults in the aroma and taste of the wine sampled. The wines may be cheap, but you're paying exactly for what you're getting, and there are probably better values at the under $15 table at other wine stores.

However, TJ's has some extremely decent Italian wine. The La Loggia Barbaresco at $12.99 is an absolute steal, and the Barolo at $16.99, is most likely highway robbery. I will be picking up a couple bottles very soon.