166415 Fri Oct 18 07:40:47 -0700 2002 9 14 Washington DC & Baltimore Area 0 889100 We enjoy a bottle of wine with dinner several times a week. What we do not have, is the budget to spend $100+ on wine weekly. So I am asking this esteemed audience if you can give me suggestions of good, inexpensive table wines. Two I can suggest myself are Australian-- Yellow Tail Shiraz, $7 a bottle and a rich enjoyable wine, and 'The Stump Jump' a red blend that is very good for less than $10. (The name refers to a plow that can hop over roots and stumps?!?) Anyway, can anyone recommend good red and white table wines that won't break the bank? Sorry if this has been discussed before, I missed it. Thanks in advance. Fri Oct 18 07:40:47 -0700 2002 0 Johnlw 1 889103 Rather than suggesting a particular brand (because both tastes and what's available locally differ) I suggest finding a local wine merchant. Most of them are quite happy to work with you and find you wines that you like from $6 to $60 (and up!). If you are in the Alexandria area, I can't recommend Rick's Wine and Gourmet on Duke Street (in the old Hechinger's -- now Giant -- shopping center) highly enough. Interesting selection, and Rick always has new stuff to try. I can testify to the fact that he has some really good wines for $7 a bottle. Okay, I'll give a specific rec: di Lenardo Merlot. And I don't even like Merlot all that much! 8-) And it's $7. Good luck and happy hunting! Fri Oct 18 08:59:11 -0700 2002 889100 0 Marra 1 889105 There ae many good inexpensive wines available. I would recommend a web site www.tablewine.com. They review reasonably priced wines every month and write about how they go alone and with food. They have a good archive too. Some of my favorites are the 2000 Louis Bernard Cote de Rhone (about $12), Laurel Glen's REDS, Rancho Zabaco for Zins (thye make three levels, all good), Almost anything by Columbia Crest in their Grand Estate series, Gallo of Sonoma merlots and chards, A Mano Primitivo Puglia, Bogle Petit Syrah (a very good wine but a robust grape), and Nobilo Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough. Fri Oct 18 09:04:41 -0700 2002 889100 0 dinwiddie 2 889113 Thanks Dinwiddie! That website, www.tablewine.com was very useful. I think the authors became a little repetitive with their descriptive phrases, but none the less, there was a nice selection of articles. I look forward to heading out tomorrow with my notes and pickingup a few cases. Fri Oct 18 10:18:02 -0700 2002 889105 0 Pappy 1 889107 John, I am a wine lover and drink a glass or two almost every night with dinner so I too am always looking for great wine in the $10 and under category. A few whites that I like are Cotes de Gastogne, an off dry French Sauvignon Blanc, any Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand (esp. Marlbourough region, Noblio is good), a good crisp Italian Frascati served very cold, Ste. Chapellett Riesling from Idaho. Some good cheaper reds include Italian Santa Cristina (Sangiovese), Monte Antico, Col di Sasso (blend) and any Barbera (La Sera being very good but about $15), French "Parallel 45" Cotes du Rhone, Fortant de France (sp?), Rosenblum Zinfandel as a spluge. I think the cheapest, most consistent wines are the French Vin d'Pays. I regularly try $6 bottles of wine from France that are just great. Hope these suggestions help! Fri Oct 18 09:22:19 -0700 2002 889100 0 David De Silva 1 889110 Trader Joe's in VA has some great values in wine. (The Montgomery County stores don't carry wine; TJ's management doesn't want to deal with the County bureaucracy, apparently.) Related issue: section 11022 of HR 2215, a bill that has passed the House and Senate in identical form, but which has not yet been signed by the President, is entitled "Direct Shipment of Wine" and permits shipments of wine directly from wineries to consumers in certain, limited situations (e.g., the purchaser must be physically present at the winery; the wine is for personal use only and not for resale; the purchaser could have carried the wine himself/herself lawfully into the State/DC to which the wine is shipped). Does anyone know what this is intended to do? Does it preempt more restrictive laws (e.g., such as Maryland's)? I've seen nothing on this in the press. Fri Oct 18 10:12:27 -0700 2002 889100 0 Monroe 1 889111 Over the past several months I have posted on this board several times my purchasing wine for 60 to 70% of its listed price by taking advantage of various offers. Please scroll down and look for these posts. Generally I am talking about combining sale prices at Total with their occasional $30.00 off coupons ($30 off of $150 purchase). I am also referring to occasional sales at D. C. stores including Calvert Woodley, Chevy Chase, etc. which feature similar types of savings. Examples include Estancia Cabernet ($16.99 for about $10), Chateau Souverain Merlot ($22.99 for $10.99 recently at Total and this is an EXCELLENT merlot at the $20 price), Cheateau St. Michelle merlot ($17.00 for 10.25 at Total), Kendall Jackson chardonnay ($14.00 for 8.50), etc. There are many, many good wines that if you shop wisely and can afford to buy by the case you can save a great deal of money on. This is NOT the only way that I buy wine. But for everyday wine if your daily limit is about $10 this is one of the best ways to drink good wine within that budget. Probably half of my 500 plus bottles are purchased like this. Also, wines such as the reds I mentioned above improve with two or three years of bottle age. Fri Oct 18 10:14:03 -0700 2002 889100 0 Joe H. 1 889117 i'm a big proponent of the $12 and under wines, because there are many out there. i usually get mine at trader joe's and costplus worldmarket. i've had consistent good luck with pepperwood grove (pinot noir is fine), barefoot cellars sauvignon blanc, and talus. it's bourdeaux season, and Harris Teeter had Mouton Cadet on sale for $8 (white)and $9 (red). generally, i find that chilean and argentinian wines are also cheap but good too. Fri Oct 18 11:32:58 -0700 2002 889100 0 sunshine 1 889118 I am copying all these suggestions, and will browse the wares at the local wine merchant later today. www.tablewine.com is pretty cool, thanks for the link. There was a wine store in Columbia that closed a couple of months ago. It sold wines from nearly every region in the world and every bottle was $10 or less. I was sorry when it closed, there were always so many interesting new wines to try. Fri Oct 18 12:22:56 -0700 2002 889100 0 Johnlw 1 889123 For a few dollars more, the quality level can go up considerably. I like Selaks Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough (from NZ) (about $14), Leasingham Bin 61 Shiraz is super (about $17), and there are loads of others. I will 2nd the thought on anything from the Columbia Crest Grand Estates series, which ranges from $8-12. Fri Oct 18 15:01:06 -0700 2002 889100 0 Rok