We all know Willamette (rhymes with dammit), Napa gets plenty of nods, Paso is the pet of the press, and Santa Barbara and Sonoma shine, while Walla Walla is working wonders. But lurking in the shadows of notable wine regions on West Coast places like Mendocino and Malibu, Umpqua and Puget Sound all suffer the same fate, namely, that bigger wine regions nearby get all the attention.

In my last article, I listed the Top 75 French Wines to Try Before You Quit Drinking . In this article I look at the “non-dump bucket” list for wines from California. This proved to be a different task. First, very few wineries have a long track record of making great wine. Secondly, while California is diverse, it does not have the diversity of climates and terroir and grape varietals of France. Still, it does produce some of the best wines in the world and any wine lover should make it a point to try as many of them as they can. Here is my list: 1. Shafer Hillside Select Cabernet Sauvignon – It’s hard to pick the first wine. This one is a great wine in every vintage and has been for a long time. Expensive but still possible to afford and made in large enough quantities to be found in grocery stores. Every lover of Cabernet should try this once.

The Village of Cahors is in the southwestern part of France. The area is known for its red wines made predominantly from the Malbec grape, the same grape that is being used in Argentina to make some of the most popular wines being sold today. For those fans of Malbec, it may prove interesting to go back and try some wines from its homeland.

The country of Turkey, then known as Anatolia, began producing wine six thousand years ago. There are exhibits of this early wine industry dating back to 4,000 B.C. in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara. The ancient word for wine by this pre-Hittite civilization was actually Vino. Today, Turkish wines fly under the radar of most people and most wine lovers.

Some of the great wines in Italy, and the world, hail from Tuscany. Other articles have discussed Super Tuscans , and some of the great wines based on the Sangiovese grape including Chianti and Brunello di Montalcino . In this article, another great Sangiovese based wine is explored: Vin Nobile di Montepulciano. The name of this wine can be confusing. Long ago these wines became the chosen wine of nobility hence the Nobile part of the name.

Yellow Tail. There, I said it. The first brand to spring to mind when one uses the words “Australia” and “wine” in the same sentence. You know you’ve drunk it. You may even have enjoyed it, though if you are part of a wine-geek circle, you’re probably reluctant to admit as much. If that’s the case, allow me to take the pressure off and acknowledge what all too many casual quaffers are afraid to admit – the stuff ain’t bad, and for under $8 a bottle, it’s one of the best bargains out there.