Time Magazine Ranks Plum Creek 'Excellent'

When Time Magazine reporter Joel Stein heard that wine was now produced in all 50 states, he decided to try one one from each region. In his words, they ranged from outstanding to dreadful. Fortunately, the Colorado entry from Palisade ranked as one of the best -- Plum Creek Winery's Grand Mesa Cabernet.

Under the headline, "50 States of Wine," Stein's all American wine reviews can be found here. He tasted bottles in the $15 to $20 range.

““I rated each wine Excellent, Good, Bad or Undrinkable,” says Stein. "As for the methodology, wine critic Gary Vaynerchuk, my wife and I tasted 10 randomly selected wines. Another 20 were downed at a wine-tasting party with a dozen friends. One wine I tried while visiting the state that made it. And my wife and I tasted the rest together.

Here's what Stein said about Grand Mesa Cabernet:

"It's too hot with alcohol, too bitter from tannins, too vanilla from oak. But so are most California wines. This red tastes like many big New World wines. It's a Bordeaux blend of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and merlot, and it has nice, dark, smoky fruit and a lot going on for the finish. Maybe you could even age this stuff."