What's a good value in wines these days?

Looking in the $25-40 a bottle range. Any suggestions?

Thanks.

What varietal?

Looking for cabs and pinot noirs and chardonnay...

For Pinot Noir, grab almost any 2005 Burgundy. The really good cheap stuff of 10 years ago isn't around, courtesy of the boom and concurrent collapse of the dollar. But there's a lot of great stuff over $25. Try the Burgundy Wine Co in NY for suggestions. They know their inventory, and they ship.

For Cabs, a lot of the lesser 2005 Bordeaux are said to have played above their level. Again, a pretty well-populated price range. Might not be ready for a while, though.

Thanks Concordia.

Concordia is right, the 2005 is going to go down as one of the great vintages it seems in France.

I look more new world AF. These will be right at the top of your price point, or over, but try Loring, AP Vin, Merry Edwards, Siduri, or Bett-Scholes (not Black!).

I am not as much a Cab fan and have no US in that price point to recommend.

IMO, best values right now are coming from Aussie, New Zealand, and S. America. S. Africa is about to hit the world scene it looks like. Pinots, cabs, merlots, and malbecs are all strong varietals from those areas.

A friend of mine, Craig Haserot, started a Sonoma vineyard called Sojourn Cellars. Well regarded. Check them out.

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

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A friend of mine, Craig Haserot, started a Sonoma vineyard called Sojourn Cellars. Well regarded. Check them out.

So you wait all this time and make all these posts and end up to be an eff'ing spammer!!!!???

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

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A friend of mine, Craig Haserot, started a Sonoma vineyard called Sojourn Cellars. Well regarded. Check them out.

I've heard of this vineyard but have never tried anything of them. What's with the only being able to order online thing?

Originally Posted by contactme_11

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What's with the only being able to order online thing?

Pretty common these days. It's how I get most of my wines.

Originally Posted by Piobaire

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So you wait all this time and make all these posts and end up to be an eff'ing spammer!!!!???

Just passing along what little wine knowledge I have. Thought some Bay Area locals would appreciate a heads up as his wine is in many restaurants there.

You can only order online because Craig is a small vineyard at this point. Like many boutique wines he is keeping his costs down to keep the prices down.

Originally Posted by Artisan Fan

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Just passing along what little wine knowledge I have. Thought some Bay Area locals would appreciate a heads up as his wine is in many restaurants there.

You can only order online because Craig is a small vineyard at this point. Like many boutique wines he is keeping his costs down to keep the prices down.

Just yanking your chain bud. As I said above, I order from many boutiques that use this as their main or total distribution channel. Go try and join Screaming Eagle or Kosta Browne. It's a multi-year wait to get on the wait list!

Originally Posted by Piobaire

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Just yanking your chain bud. As I said above, I order from many boutiques that use this as their main or total distribution channel. Go try and join Screaming Eagle or Kosta Browne. It's a multi-year wait to get on the wait list!

Cool. I will look into it.

Originally Posted by Piobaire

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Just yanking your chain bud. As I said above, I order from many boutiques that use this as their main or total distribution channel. Go try and join Screaming Eagle or Kosta Browne. It's a multi-year wait to get on the wait list!

My friend has like 20 bottles of some Screaming Eagle.


Any way...To resurrect an old thread. Can anyone recommend some daily drinkers for someone who is not quite as experienced in good wine as yourselves? I am looking to pick up a couple of wines varying between $10-25. Do good values in these price ranges still exist or is this a thing of the past? I tend to enjoy mostly california cabs and pinots, amarone, and some super tuscans.

I cannot afford $40+ bottles of wine on the regular so my girlfriend and I have been bargain hunting for decent wines at reasonable costs. As expected, we had been pretty disappointed so far, but that was soon to change! We had a pretty damn good wine this last weekend. It's a smooth blend that went extremely well with the Spanish Rice and Chorizo my girlfriend and I made for dinner. Slight spice to it, yet it enhanced the saffron and Spanish spices in the meal. Neither of us are wine aficionados, but we enjoyed it greatly, however we could have asked for a longer finish. We were pissed when her roommate drank 2 glasses of it... Castel di Salve Armecolo Salento Rosso, from the Southeastern tip, or "heel", of Italy. 80% Negroamaro and 20% Malvasia Nera di Lecce blend. Got it at Moore Brothers Wine Company in NYC for a slightly inflated price of $17, but that's NYC for you...give it a shot for an inexpensive and mellow red without the tannin or fruit explosion. Can't recall if it was the 2005 or 2007...