166646 Thu Dec 12 14:35:48 -0800 2002 5 14 Washington DC & Baltimore Area 0 890449 I've seen some discussion of favorite wines in the $10 range. Do people have favorite wines, readily available in this area, in the next price bracket (app. $15-$25)? Thu Dec 12 14:35:48 -0800 2002 0 Doug 1 890450 As we speak '99 BV Rutherford is on sale at Calvert Woodley for $15.79, regularly $25-26. Two wines from the Wine Spectators Top 100 for 2002 are '98 Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre which, with coupons, is about $15 from Total and Chateau Souverain '99 Merlot which can also be purchased for about this with coupons from Total. Both of these wines along with 2000 Montes Carmenere (which two weeks ago was on the Fall Sale at MacArthur for $10.99) need to be purchased by the case when Total, C/W etc., Chevy Chase, etc. have them as virtual loss leaders. Several months ago Chauteau Souverain Merlot was $10.99 at Total. That's HALF of its list price. Also Chateau St. Michelle Merlot is a bargain at $12.00 at Total as well as Chateau Souverain Chardonnay and Columbia Crest Grand Estates Chardonnay. Thu Dec 12 14:49:33 -0800 2002 890449 0 Joe H. 1 890462 My favorite in this range (the upper end of this range) is Rosemount's GSM. A wonderful wine. I saw it a few days ago at a wine shop on M St. between, I believe, 18th and 19th (right next door to a "gentleman's club"). There are a lot of reviews of this wine, in various vintages, on the Wine Lover's Page, link below. Anyone else here tried it? Link: http://www.wineloverspage.com/ Thu Dec 12 19:18:58 -0800 2002 890449 0 DanM 2 890465 Perhaps more than a specific winery itself, there are some types of wines or countries that produce really great value wines in this price range. For instance, my favourite white wine is viognier, and I don't think I've spent more than $20.00 on any one. I also enjoy many zinfandels (I just had a fine Seghesio that's under $20.00). Also, as previously mentioned, wines from Chile, Spain, and South Africa often come in under $20.00 and are quite yummy. If you're looking for a specific winery, however, I would highly recommend that you look into Ridge wines. They make a variety of varietals that fall into the price range, and they are generally first-rate. And to answer your question specifically, my favourite wine in your price range is Pesquera. I think if you look hard, you can find it for $25.00 a bottle. Big, chewy, long Spanish red that used to go for $16.00 but now that people have found out how well it is made, it's a tad bit more expensive. Hope this helps. Thu Dec 12 20:05:52 -0800 2002 890462 0 asun 1 890472 Some wines that I buy regularly and are easily available are: The Allegrini Palazzo Della Torre, which was mentioned before, I buy this wine every year. Try the Paraiso Springs Pinor Noir, the 2000 is outstanding for the price. (I think I spend $21.99 for it) Chateau Souverain Alexander Merlot (the 1999 was a great buy) is usually good, but then they are one of the best quality/price ratio wines from CA and their Chards and Cab Sauv. are also good bets. Chateau Cap De Merle is a good buy. 2000 is a great year for Bordeaux and this St. Emilion-style wine (Merlot/Cab Franc)is a great buy for about $17. Look for other 2000 Bordeauxs in this price range. Other good producers of Cab. Sauv. in this range are Villa Mt. Eden, Rosemont, Hess (the 99 is excellent), Carmenet, and Greg Norman Estates. Firesteed Pinot Noir is always pretty good as is Acacia and Argyle. Also try to find Babcock, BearBoat, Navarro. For that matter, DeLoach makes some nice PN in this range. Zinfandels from Ridge, Ravenswood, and Renwood (they always say go with the three Rs) are good and they make some in this range. Cline Syrahs are also good. The truth is, that in this price range, there are literally thousands of good wines. Also look at some of the Frei Ranch wines from Gallo. The Rosemont GSM is probably a little out of the range you set but very good. Columbia Crest Estate series wines are also good and in this range. Personally, I don't like the BV Rutherford wines (but they are definately better than the Costal series) but that is more a matter of personal taste and the fact that I love BV's Tapestry and GDLs which are much more expensive. The wines coming out of Spain recently are also very good buys and in this range can be excellent. Go with established producers like Bodegas Lan and Bodegas Breton (or be adventuresome and try soem others). Other Australian wines to try are Leasingham Bin 61, Yarra Burn, and Wolf Blass (especially the whites) Good buys in Sauvignon Blanc are available from New Zealand (especially Marlborough) Try wines from the Rhone and the Lanquedoc regions of France for some very good values. Sorry to run on but to be honest, this is the price range where you get the best bang for you buck. Fri Dec 13 09:42:31 -0800 2002 890449 0 dinwiddie 2 890487 Rosenblum is supposed to be another good "R" zinfandel. Fri Dec 13 18:28:33 -0800 2002 890472 0 Bob W.