Trader Joe's $7.99 French Fizz: An Unexpected Summer Delight

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Hear that pop? That's the sound of summer calling! Domain Dave uncorks a hidden gem that blows away expectations in this refreshing review of Trader Joe's JL Quinson Le Rosé French Fizz. At just $7.99, this frizzante-style bubbly delivers sophistication that defies its humble price tag.

What makes this pink sparkler special isn't just its attractive "Barbie doll pink with a hint of orange" appearance or its clever soda-pop style closure. The magic lies in its unique blend of traditional French red grape varieties rarely seen in American vineyards. With delicate notes of pink lemonade, strawberry, nectarine, and subtle tangerine, this low-alcohol (10.5%) sipper brings surprising elegance to casual summer gatherings.

Domain Dave admits he initially passed over this bottle during previous Trader Joe's visits, assuming it would be overly sweet or one-dimensional. His candid about-face offers a reminder that sometimes the most delightful wine discoveries come when we step outside our comfort zones. This particular find pairs beautifully with summer salads featuring tart dressings like strawberry vinaigrette, making it versatile for warm-weather entertaining. Serve it ice-cold for maximum refreshment, and you'll understand why Dave considers this not merely a "fun" wine but a genuinely nice little sipper worth seeking out before potential price increases hit.

Ready to discover your next favorite affordable summer wine? Subscribe to CheapWineFighter for more honest reviews of budget-friendly bottles that deliver well beyond their price point. And if you've tried this French Fizz, drop a comment letting us know your thoughts!

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:03):
Hey, welcome, it's Domain Dave again for
CheapWineFightercom.
Like we always do and alwayshave been, we were there in 2008
, back in the birth of wine onthe internet, wine reviews on
the internet.
Still here Today.
We've got a Trader Joe's wine,a 799 Summer Bubbly.

(00:23):
We've got a Trader Joe's wine,a 799 Summer Bubbly, frisante.
It's the JL Quinson Le RoséFrench Fizz.
Like I said, it's 799.
It's a product of France wine,which means it's not from one

(00:43):
growing area or the other.
Jl Quinson, they do Provence,they do Chablis up in Burgundy,
they do Beaujolais, they've doneRhone Valley.
They've been around since 1904,but the problem is they don't
have a website anymore, whichthey have too many wines not to
have a website.
So I don't know if they'restill independent winery or
somebody else's label, not thatit matters, because somebody

(01:07):
still knows what they're doingwith this wine.
A fizz is a bubbly, but it's arisante.
There's atmospheres, pressurein the bottle.
That's why there's bubbles.
I mean that keeps the bubblesin the wine.
The pressure pushes down.
They'd all want to escape andyou have a flat wine and you

(01:30):
know, six, seven bars is for achampagne and that's why you
have that big fat cork and thatcage around there that's
tightened up so it keeps the.
You know the pressure wants topush it out and it won't go.
This has a soda pop top, theold-fashioned soda pop top that
you got to get the littlehandhold thing and take it out,

(01:51):
and then it's got this little, alittle fitting on top that
holds it in a snap fitting soyou can put it down there in
between drinks so the fizzdoesn't come out, because these
frisantes are probably closer tosodas I mean carbonated soda
than the art of champagne interms of carbonation.

(02:12):
This is a wine made from TraderJoe's.
This is featured on theFearless Flyer and they said
it's from a blend of red grapesfrom the area, from the region,
which could be anywhere Carillon, syrah, grenache, mavédra, and
then a whole bunch of othergrapes that aren't really

(02:33):
popular in American wine.
You might have had them a lotof times If you've had a
Beaujolais, which is basicallyGamay, or a Rosé from Provence.
There's a blend of grapes.
Most of them aren't reallygrown in California or
Washington.
They're not really from theUnited States.

(02:53):
Occasionally you see them, butthis is going to be a different
kind of blend.
Let's take a sip, because thisis a 10.5 alcohol, kind of low
on alcohol and it's going to bekind of a milder bubbly.
It's basically a dry bubbly.

(03:19):
There's got a little bit ofsweetness to it, but it's more
of that ripe fruit sweetnessthan sugar sweetness.
Got good acidity.
It's not quite lip-smackingacidity, but it makes you want
to take another sip.
The flavors aren't complicated.

(03:39):
There is pink lemonade, there'smaybe some strawberry, maybe
some little bit of spice, maybesome nectarine, maybe I think I
got a little bit of tangerine inthere too.
It's not complicated, butwhat's in your glass actually
tastes really good and it's youknow, keep a chill on it.

(04:02):
Good, and it's, you know, keepa chill on it.
You know you want to get an icebucket and keep this in the ice
bucket because the cooler it is, the more fun it is going to
drink.
I'm going to take another sip.
It's Barbie doll pink with justa hint of orange.
And the bubbles it's notfurious in the bubbles, but
they're nice tight littlebubbles and they keep on going.

(04:30):
This wine's been a Trader Joe'sfor a while and I never picked
it.
Oh, it's a fizz, don't want to,I don't, I don't want one of
those wines and I finally okay,it's a summertime, not having a
wine that's heavy when it's hotoutside is always nice, so I'll
give it a try.
The uh, the block, there's two,there's a, there's the um, the

(04:54):
rosé french fizz, and there'sthe French Fizz Blanc, and the
Blanc is Moscato grapes, whichI'm not crazy about them.
I've had some good Moscatowines, but there's usually a
flavor in there that isn't myfavorite.
It's not terrible, but I pickedthe Rosé and it was

(05:15):
surprisingly elegant.
This is for $7.99.
This is not just a fun wine.
This is a nice little sippingwine.
This is a wine that if you hadmaybe a fancy salad with maybe
strawberry vinegar dressing onit, or not creamy, something

(05:37):
addressing this nice and tart,maybe with cranberries and
whatever in there too, thisthing would go great.
It's just one of those.
You know you don't expect itfor $7.99.
You expect these to be fun.
Okay, they're farther, a littlebit too sweet, but hey, for the
price they're great.
No, this is a kind of a nicewine and, from you know, a wine

(06:00):
of france.
It's not from any growing area,the french don't do that, but
it works here.
Take another sip.
So there you go.
This is the the JL Quinson LaRose French Fizz $7.99 at Trader
Joe's.
I liked it.

(06:21):
I mean, this is a recommendedwine In the summertime.
You want a low-alcohol winethat really tastes delicious and
is easy to drink and it'saffordable.
And get it now, before it'sgoing to be 25% higher.

(06:42):
This is Domain Dave Adios.
Keep it cheap.
We've got a.
What do we got?
I think we've got a Pinot Noircoming up.
I'll be talking to everybody ina couple days.
Keep it cheap, adios.