Day Of The Dead Red-$8 Dearly Beloved I Thee Red 2023

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A skull on the label and real structure in the glass—this $7.99 Trader Joe’s classic surprised us in the best way. We uncork Dearly Beloved I The Red 2023 and follow the clues: who makes it now, why the blend works, and how Lodi’s delta breezes turn a hot inland zone into a value powerhouse. If you’ve ever wondered how Petite Sirah, Tannat, Tempranillo, and a touch of Zinfandel can line up without turning sweet or simple, we break down the roles each grape plays and why the result is more than a party trick.

We talk craft and climate. Precept Wines currently steers this long-running label, sourcing from Lodi vineyards where cool morning fog and evening winds preserve acidity while ripening color and tannins. That’s how you get dense color, dark fruit, and easygoing tannins at a price point that usually trades complexity for sugar. On the palate, expect blackberry and plum, a hint of vanilla, and a red-berry lift—raspberry and pomegranate—that keeps the finish bright. It’s a true comfort wine: smooth enough to sip on its own, sturdy enough for burgers, pizza, or a quick plate of cheese and sausage.

Yes, the Day of the Dead label makes it a natural Halloween pour, but the juice inside earns year-round status. We share why many holiday-themed bottles feel like one-night stands and how this one avoids the gimmick trap. For listeners who chase real value and honest flavor, this is a reminder that Lodi remains a treasure for everyday reds that drink above their price. Pour a glass, settle into a cool evening, and taste why structure, balance, and smart sourcing matter more than hype.

If you enjoy these value deep-dives, follow the show, share it with a friend who loves a bargain bottle, and leave a quick review—what under-$10 red should we uncork next?

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:02):
Hey hello, Domain Dave, cheap winefinder.
Again, um we write up a reviewof a value of price wine.
We've been doing it for a longtime as a resource.
Uh there's a lot of peoplewriting about expensive wines,
but uh the wines that everybodydrinks, you know, they don't
really give it their best shot,and and we do.

(00:24):
We try to be as honest aspossible, and that's where we're
at today.
I've got a$7.99 Trader Joe'swine that's been at selling at
Trader Joe's from um at least2009.
No, it's not Two Buck Chuck.
This one is dearly beloved I theRed, and it's the Vintage 2023.

(00:46):
This is the bottle with the uhthe Day of the Dead uh skull,
painted skull on the uh labeland all the flowers and
everything.
It's a nice bottle, it's beenaround forever, and it's perfect
for Halloween.
And and while it's all red, anda lot of the day of the dead
things are very colorful, thisstill works, especially as a red

(01:08):
wine.
And like I said, it's beenaround forever.
I think three different peoplehave made it for Trader Joe's
over the years, and um PreceptWines, which is the largest uh
wine company in the Northwest,makes this wine nowadays, and
the the um the blend ispetitsra.

(01:30):
Um Zimpandel, tonat, I almostforgot, and uh finally some
tamparinillo.
Uh petitsera was a grape uh thata man named Duraf blended
together with another grape.
I think Ursan, I think.
I'm not sure.
I've never seen it or heard itpronounced before.

(01:51):
But this is back in the Floxrauh disease days of France's
vineyards where whole vinegeswere getting wiped out.
And he put the two grapestogether because the one grape
was um a strong, healthy one,and then Syrah Syrah.
And by the time he got the twothings uh put together and

(02:12):
stable, well, the problems inthe vineyard are over, and no
one wanted that grape anymorebecause Syrah grape was just
doing fine on its own.
But it somehow made it to uhAustralia and the United States,
where you often find it blendedwith Zinfandel.
It's not uncommon to have aZinfandel wine be 92% Zinfandel
and 8% Petite Syrah, and it'salso a staple in red blends,

(02:34):
like here.
Uh, Tanat is a blending grapefrom France.
Uh, it is a the color of thegrape comes from the skins.
You know, when they press thegrapes, and they the longer, the
thicker the grape skins are, themore color comes out.
That's why Pinot Noir you cansee through.
Well, tonat you can't seethrough, and it's got structure,

(02:56):
it's got that deep color, andthat's why you see it.
And for the one thing that'skind of funny, it is the red
grape of Urigre.
If you go to a fancy restaurantin Uruguay anytime soon and you
order a local wine, you'regetting a Tanat.
And Tempernilla, well, that's uhthat's the red grape of um of
Spain that's all over the place.

(03:18):
It's a great grape, but youdon't see it a lot in
California.
But these grapes are all fromlow-dye.
Uh previous, you know, not uhlet me have the last last two or
three vinages have been for lowdye, but before that, the dearly
beloved IV Red was from theCentral Coast, and it was a
whole different blend.
So, what else do we have here?

(03:38):
So we have a good, interesting,not a not, you know, kind of a
uh a left field blend.
You don't always get those threegrapes together, but that
doesn't mean there's anythingwrong with that.
And Lodi is a great place forvalue priced wine.
It is over, it's kind of too farinland where it shouldn't be

(03:59):
able to grow grapes because it'stoo gets too hot, but it's in
the valleys that come off of theuh the delta of the San Pablo
Bay.
Well, the valleys are deepenough and close enough to San
Pablo Bay, that not that it'sthat close, that fog will roll
in in the morning and coolbreezes will come in in the
morning and at night.
So it kind of um mediates thehot days.

(04:30):
It's a tasty wine.
I mean, it just is.
It's a nice sipping wine.
I mean, uh, you can have burgersand stuff with this.
This is uh comfort food wine,not made to be made with food,
but you know, any red wine,pretty much any red, you can
have something with it.
There's some food, uh, a plateof cheese, sausage, something.
You could have that, and I and Irecommend doing that as much as

(04:52):
possible.
This is a sipping wine, it'ssmooth, it's uh dark and you
know, it just sips well.
You once you taste it and kindof figure out what's going on in
your glass, you just enjoy it.
Especially in a cool evening.
Now, this is a Halloween winebecause it has a Day of the Dead
label on it, but it's notstrictly a Halloween wine.

(05:14):
I I usually have a problem withuh you know Christmas wines that
have Santa Claus or something onthe label, because you you're
not gonna drink that if it's notDecember.
Uh, but this is a wine that cango year-round.
Maybe it's probably better whenit's a little cooler outside,
but that has nothing to do withuh the fact that it's a day of
the dead wine, because actuallyday of the dead's in the spring.

(05:41):
Just took another sip.
There's there's a couple of nicevanilla flavors going on here.
You kind of start getting someof that tannins in there.
Tannins are good.
Red wine should always havetannins.
They don't always, you know, alot of times they're kind of
reduced.
And this one, the tannins don'tbite, but they're there.
They give a little structure.
And you get these dark fruitflavors, and you get these kind
of maybe red berries, maybe someraspberries, some maybe some

(06:04):
pomegranate.
All good.
I'm liking this wine the more Isip it.
It doesn't that's not always thecase.
Sometimes I get bored with itafter a while.
Starts out fine, then it's like,oh you again.
No, not this one.

(06:24):
And$7.99 for a Halloween partywine with a day of the dead
label and drinks really good.
I think that's a pretty goodidea.
And you know, if you're nothaving a big party, buy an
extra, buy a couple extrabottles so when it gets cold in
November, you got something goodto drink.
Yeah, this is a quality wine ata very good price.

(06:45):
Dearly beloved IV Red 2023.
Any good$7.99 wine is alrightwith me.
So there you go.
This is Domain Dave,cheapwinefighter.com.
And like us, we like yourpodcast.
We got more wines coming up,like always.
And I'll be talking a coupledays.
I might even find another coupleHalloween wines.
There's not a lot of new labelsout this year, it's been a down

(07:07):
year for a lot of things.
But if I can find another one, Iwill.
But uh, adios and I'll betalking to you.
Adios, bye bye.