I’m in charge of wine club now, and part of being in charge of wine club is buying all of the wine when we have our big holiday splurge . However, this month’s schedule had us set up for a blind tasting, which meant that we’d all pool our money and the girl-in-charge (that’d be me) would go wine shopping. This is a big deal. Especially once I took a look at how many people were coming (12) and then looked at the money in my bank account ($12) and then realized that I’d have to buy the wine and then get reimbursed after the fact. Which meant that I’d have to do my little shopping extravaganza as soon my husband’s check entered the account (Thursday – the day prior to wine club).

Okay. No big deal.But then Labor Day happened and my days got all mixed up and I literally realized it was the day before wine club at the very last second and my plan to go to yoga class and skip on over to see the wine guy at Sendik’s to get his recommendations on how to spend my $240-ish was all messed up. Why you ask? Because it was Open House night at Zoe’s school. And that meant that I couldn’t go to my yoga class. But what about the wine? When was I going to buy the wine? And where was I going to buy it from?

And then I had this dream where I was at Sendik’s and the wine guy was trying to get me to buy this bottle of Bordeaux that was on sale for $120 and I was trying to determine how I was going spend that much on one bottle, and would the wine club girls mind that I had to go cheap on all the other bottles because I splurged on that one?

Thank God that was just a dream.

Anyhow. I made it to Sendik’s and the wine guy was totally excited to help me pick out seveneight bottles, and together we came up with what varieties I’d serve and what order to put them in. In all I bought a case of wine, and he practically forced me to buy a couple of cheapies. Reluctantly I put them in my cart, thinking I’d just stick them in my basement and drink them when I was desperate.

“No, no, no.” He said. “Put one is as a sleeper wine, see if they notice that it’s the cheap one.”

So I did. And you know what? They had no idea. And everyone loved it!

Here are the wines that were served (I don’t have the vintage of most of them, I left the bottles at the hostesses home and for some reason didn’t think to write it down):

  • Duckhorn Sauvignon Blanc 2007, $28
  • Rombauer Chardonnay, $32
  • Matanzas Creek Merlot, $34. Oh my gosh, it was fantastic! No one guessed it was a merlot though, it really tasted like a cabernet sauvignon.
  • Banrock Station, Merlot, $3.99. Here was the cheapy, and it did not taste like a $3.99 wine.
  • Santa Margarhita Chiati, $26
  • Dry Creek Vineyard Somers Zinfandel, $25.
  • Flinders Run Shiraz, $30. Most awesome shiraz I’ve had in a long time.
  • Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon, $68. I loved it!