Budget Vino

The sparkling wine I'll be serving this holiday season

I'll start off this post by saying 1 thing- I have never been a fan of Rose, and I rarely drink sparkling wine...until now.

A few weeks ago I went to a French restaurant near my house. The kitchen was running behind, and as a result, our reservation was 45 minutes late. To make up for it, the maitre-de gave us glasses of a Rose sparkling wine. Given past experiences, I was not very excited, but of course I couldn't pass up a free glass. It was fantastic!! Called "Louis Bouillot Cremant de Bourgogne Rosé "Perle d'Aurore"", this sparkling rose was dry, mellow in flavor, and perfect in balance. 

Returning home that night, I looked it up online. While the restaurant charged $7 a glass, turns out a local wine store had available bottles for $13.99- an incredible bargain for the quality of the bottle.

As 2011 wraps up and we enter the Christmas-New Years corridor, I have decided that the Louis Bouillot will be the bottle I bring to every brunch, dinner, and party I attend until 2012 (and probably deep into the year). Give it a try. It's unique, delicious, and at $13.99 is a reasonably priced crowd pleaser.

Happy holidays!

Dearly Beloved- A decent red

I was at Trader Joe's the other day, and as I walked through the wine aisle, I was quickly reminded about how many interesting and inexpensive wines they hold in stock. Always a sucker for a cool label, I grabbed the "Dearly Beloved Forever Red." Dearly Beloved is a Mendocino County red blend of Syrah, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Sangiovese Carignane & Grenache.  The allure of this wine definitely comes in its packaging. The bottle is darker than the wine it holds, and has really intricate Mexican artwork painted in a solid white. The bottle really is quite stricking. 

Unfortunately in this case, art did not mimic life. This wine was simply decent. It was drinkable, but also a little disappointing. It was overly fruity, and lacked structure. It was just kind of there.

At $6.99, the price point was reasonable, but there are definitely better options out there for that cost. I don't think I would buy this wine again, unless I decide to start decorating my home with cool wine bottles. :)

An awesome wine at the right price

This budget vino recommendation comes by way of my friend Ivan and his wife Alison. This past Monday night they picked up, and drank, a couple bottles of the 2006 Leone de Castris Salice Salentino Riserva. According to Ivan, this wine was "Awesome, and at the right price."

They picked up their bottles at K&L Wines- one of my favorite wine stores. According to K&L, the 2006 Leone de Castris Salice Salentino Riserva is a 90 point Robert Parker wine. It is an Italian wine of varietals I am not very familiar with, but according to Wine Advocate- "The 2006 Salice Salentino Rosso Riserva 50th Vendemmia (Negroamaro, Malvasia Nera) is a very pretty, nuanced wine laced with wild cherries, plums, graphite and spices...This cask-aged Salice Salentino is a gem, not to mention an absolute steal for the money." For more information, here is a link to the product page at K&L. The wine is currently priced at $9.99. 

Have any other recommendations for me? Definitely send them my way.

 

Wow. Amazing wine Groupon today.

Update:

Try this link

http://www.groupon.com/san-francisco/deals/wine-insiders-san-fran-cali

The holy grail!! An amazing wine at $5.99

I've always been a big fan of Trader Joe's. They consistently have a good selection of budget wines. The other day I found the holy grail. This particular wines bottle is very subtle. An orange "?" is all that appears on the front of the front. However, do not let the question mark fool you. There is no question about this wine. At $5.99, it is the ultimate bargain.The wine is rich and surprisingly complex. It has become my party staple.

If you have a Trader Joe's nearby, give this "Red Table Wine" a try and let me know your thoughts. 

PS...I'm back!! Thanks for sticking around...

Happy new year from Budget Vino- A great red to celebrate

2010 was an interesting year. I unfortunately didn't find myself drinking a lot of budget wines. That is all about to change. This year I commit to returning to my roots- regular consumption of inexpensive bottles of wine. Stay posted, as 2011 should bring some great recession busting options.

In the meantime, splurge a little this new year and give one of my favorites a try- Columbia Crest Horse Heaven Hills (H3) Cabernet Sauvignon. It's a super rich and bold red wine that rivals bottles 2 to 3 times the price. I just bought a bottle yesterday at Safeway grocery for $13. Yes, it's more than $10, but you'll be happy you spent the extra little bit. For more info on the wine, here's a link to the wine info on the company's site.

If you're having people over tonight or anytime soon, I would grab a bottle or two of H3. So very worth it and your guests will surely be impressed.

Happy new year everyone!

Dorian (Budget Vino)

 

Frontier Red re-discovers its magic- Lot 91

A few years ago, I raved about Fess Parker's Frontier Red. I tried the Lot 61 and loved it (link to the post here). It was arguably one of the best budget wines I had ever tried. Then came along Lot 71. I was not a fan at all. The blend just seemed off. To me, it felt like it was missing something. This year, Fess Parker re-discovered the magic of lot 61. The new vintage- Frontier Red Lot 91, is great. It's well balanced, smooth, with a great start and a fantastic finish. It's a perfect sipping wine. 

 

It's not the easiest wine to find, so put it on your list and keep a look out at your local wine store. If you are lucky enough to find it, pick up a bottle and give it a try. I'm curious to hear what you think. I'm truly hoping that Fess Parker can hold onto the quality they've brought forward in this years Frontier Red. If so, they have a customer for life!

Recommendation: Definitely buy it (if you can find it)

BudgetVino.com's 10 best budget wines of 2009

As the year comes to a close, it’s time to name what I believe to be the 10 best budget wines of 2009. These wines will always deliver, and will never disappoint. I unfortunately have not had the time to review all of them on BudgetVino.com this year, but rest assured that I (or in the case of the whites, my friends) have consumed many bottles of each numerous times, and think they are all fantastic. They each offer incredible value for their modest prices.

Since some of these wines are lacking a BudgetVino.com review, I am including a link to where you can get more information on each wine, or buy a bottle if interested. Please note the stated vintage for each wine in the list, as I’ve found the quality of some of these wines to be extremely year dependent. For example, the 2006 Cellar No. 8 Cab is a big disappointment when compared to the 2007 offering.

I present the list in no particular order

1. Chalone Vineyard 2007 (Monterey County) Chardonnay

http://shop.safeway.com/dnet/RichProductInformation.aspx?promo_window=1&bpn=189055812

2. 2008 Pomelo Sauvignon Blanc

http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=1048553

3.  Cellar No. 8 Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

http://www.bevmo.com/Shop/ProductDetail.aspx?D=cellar+no.+8&Ntx=mode%2bmatchall&Dx=mode%2bmatchall&Ntk=All&Nty=1&Ntt=cellar+no.+8&N=0&ProductID=15431

4.  St. Francis Red 2006 (48% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Syrah, 3% Zinfandel and 6 % Mixed Blacks (Cabernet Franc, Grenache, Alicante, Malbec)

http://www.bevmo.com/Shop/ProductDetail.aspx?D=st.+francis+red&Ntx=mode%2bmatchall&Dx=mode%2bmatchall&Ntk=All&Nty=1&Ntt=st.+francis+red&N=0&ProductID=19591

5. Peachy Canyon Incredible Red Zinfandel 2006

http://shop.safeway.com/dnet/RichProductInformation.aspx?promo_window=1&bpn=189051141

6.  Liberty School Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

http://www.bevmo.com/Shop/ProductDetail.aspx?D=liberty+school&Ntx=mode%2bmatchall&Dx=mode%2bmatchall&Ntk=All&Nty=1&Ntt=liberty+school&N=0&ProductID=753

7. Castle Rock Pinot Noir Monterrey 2006

http://www.bevmo.com/Shop/ProductDetail.aspx?D=castle+rock&Ntx=mode%2bmatchall&Dx=mode%2bmatchall&Ntk=All&Nty=1&Ntt=castle+rock&N=0&ProductID=21796

8.  Bogle Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

http://www.bevmo.com/Shop/ProductDetail.aspx?D=bogle&Ntx=mode%2bmatchall&Dx=mode%2bmatchall&Ntk=All&Nty=1&Ntt=bogle&N=0&ProductID=759

9. Pascual Toso Malbec Maipu Valley 2008

http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=1046680

10.  2006 Monte Antico Tuscan

http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=1046246

Think a wine should be added to the list? Agree or disagree with my choices? Leave a comment and let me know.

 

A party pleaser- Liberty School Cabernet Sauvignon

Yesterday I had the pleasure of going to my friends Ivan and Alison's house for their daughters 5th birthday party. Every year there are more and more children, and the party gets louder and louder. The adults become more bystanders than participants. My friends and I hide in the living room, sip wine, and talk about how poorly behaved everyones children are. 

Knowing that there would be a large collection of young children at the party, it was imperative that there was enough wine for all the adults to make it through the 3 hours of festivities. I emailed Alison earlier in the week and realized that she was going to need some backup bottles. Given we were going to have pizza and rich snacks, I knew a Cab would be the best option. My choice this time- Liberty School Cabernet Sauvignon. I bought the 2007 Paso Robles vintage back on Thanksgiving, and it was well received. Not wanting to take any risks, I picked up a couple bottles, then headed over to the party. As assumed, the wine went over really well. People generally liked that it was a little on the heavier side, was not too dry, and had a nice smooth finish. All in all it was a party pleaser. I liked it so much that I just bought another bottle for dinner tonight!

Safeway is currently selling the Liberty School Cab for $12 a bottle, but I've also seen it go as low as $9. At $12 it's still worth the money.

Recommendation- Definitely buy it

The perfect budget wine for a Thanksgiving day!

I have always believed that gluttony is a dish best served with wine. In the U.S., if there is any day that defines gluttony, it has to be Thanksgiving. Christmas might bring its feast, but it never reaches the level of absurdity that Thanksgiving delivers. What other day do you eat dinner at 2pm, only to plan to eat leftovers by 7? It’s a day of 2 dinners, potentially some football, and hopefully a lot of wine.

This year, I am responsible for picking up the wine for Thanksgiving. In deciding what to purchase, my challenge is that in a room of 20 people, there’s bound to be different palettes and preferences. I don’t want to buy too many different wines. I would rather settle on 1 staple.

After careful deliberations, I have made my decision.

This year, I am going out on a limb, and declaring that the perfect Thanksgiving wine is Castle Rock Pinot Noir. This wine is a high quality budget Pinot (a rare feat indeed). This wine strikes the perfect balance. It is not too heavy, and definitely not too light. It will pair well with mostly anything that happens to grace your dinner table.

Knowing the drinkers that will be at dinner, I will definitely be buying a large quantity of Castle Rock Pinot Noir this year. If you decide to follow my lead, definitely let me know what you think- once you wake up from your food coma of course!