2022 Under $20.00 Wine Thread

I am moving up $5.00 whole dollars this year for the new value wine thread. We had a lot of good wines last year: 2021 Under $15.00 Wine Thread - WINE TALK - WineBerserkers


and I don’t think anyone insulted anyone in the thread so keep it positive!

Honestly this was terrible on a pop and pour and improved!

First entry a decant Bordeaux Wine for $13.99.
2018 Château Marjosse - France, Bordeaux (1/11/2022)
Day 1: Pop and pour. Tastes like a grocery store Bordeaux. I have been noticing more and more cheap Bordeaux and Italian wines getting 92 points from critics and then being very disappointed with some (not all). Fruit froward offering with cherry, plum and floral notes. Thin on the palate and finish. Lacks acidity. Not going to score this now and will see over 3 days if it improves (80 points currently).
Day 1.25: Not surprised the wine did improve a few hours later. Roasted chestnuts, cherry, dust, spice and minerals. Certainly not in the 90s but for the price a serviceable weekday wine. Grainy (Agglomerate) Cork 88 points
Day 2: Can’t stress this day 2/3 thing anymore and another stellar result. This is much better on day 2. Bright fruit featuring cherry and plum along with tobacco, minerals, spice and dust. Pretty amazing wine for under $20. 91 points
Day 3: Small berries, good acidity, minerals, tobacco and dust. Excellent value and should age for a while. 91 points

Recommendation: Decant 3 or 4 hours if you want to consume young. Will age for 5 to 8 years no problem. (91 points)

4 Likes

A pair of Catena’s. The Chardonnay is legit!

2019 Bodega Catena Zapata Malbec Paraje Altamira - Argentina, Mendoza, Valle de Uco, Altamira (1/12/2022)
Day 1: Red berries, plum, figs, mild spice and floral notes. A tasty wine with short to medium finish. A crowd pleaser. Grainy (Agglomerate) Cork 90 points
Day 2: Not as good and tasting like a cheap grocery store wine. Plums, cherry and mild spices. Lacks complexity and acidity. One of the few wines to go downhill on day 2. 84 points
Day 3: There is hope for this wine as it is better but not quite as good as the pop and pour. Small berries, dust, pepper, minerals and spice. Much more complexity and nicer on the finish than day 2. 88 points
Recommendation: This is a drink me now wine that has about 4-5 years of enjoyment. No need to decant. (90 points)


2018 Bodega Catena Zapata Chardonnay Tupungato - Argentina, Mendoza, Valle de Uco, Tupungato (1/3/2022)
Day 1: This is really nice. Carmel, tropical fruit, spice, floral, apple and pear. Honestly tastes like a $75 Napa Chardonnay. Medium finish. 92 points
Day 2: Excellent again. Tropical fruit, apple, pear, floral, spice and a touch of oak. Medium finish and another six pack please. 92 points
2019 catena malbec.JPG

I just found this 2017 Barolo at Costco for $14.99. With about an hour decant or more, it is simply fantastic for the price (not very complex, but very true to the Nebbiolo character). I have heard that this producer has been used in prior years to supply the Kirkland Barolo, though I do not know if that is true. No tasting notes as I was not in a place to write anything down, but I will add those later when I drink another bottle if I can.

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Could you imagine 10 years ago a Barolo for $14.99!

Ha. Never! But then again, I had not discovered Costco yet either . . .

Ravi,

Which Costco, where are you located? I know that wines available at Costco varies greatly depending on geographic location.

1 Like

2018 Rémy Ferbras Côtes du Rhône - France, Rhône, Southern Rhône, Côtes du Rhône (1/15/2022)
Day 1: Easy drinking Cotes du Rhone featuring pepper, black cherry, smoke, spice, minerals and roasted peppers. Medium Plus finish. (natural cork) 90 points
Day 2: Crunchy red berries, mild pepper, raspberries, minerals and earth. Not as intense as the pop and pour but a bit smoother. Very nice value. 89 points
Day 2.5: Better with black pepper, minerals, raspberries, cherry, earth and spices. This is just as good as the 2020 St. Cosme and a bit cheaper. Highly recommend this wine. 90+ points
Day 3: Still plenty of life. Nice fruit featuring raspberries, strawberry and cherry. Pepper and minerals on the medium plus finish. Very nice. 90 points
70% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre
Recommendation: A very solid everyday drinker. Drink now to 2026. (90 points)

Close to the 2020 St. Cosme and cheaper at $11.00.
remy ferbras cotes du rhone.JPG

That producer is a bit of a puzzler. At the bottom of the label, it says it’s bottled by the Paola Sordo winery, which is located in Castiglione, according to its website. But the labels says this wine was bottled in Farigliano, which is southwest of Dogliani, well outside the Barolo boundaries. Barolo has to be made within the zone unless the winery was grandfathered in. Perhaps Sordo bought Covalli, which had a winery that was grandfathered??

Always thought of this as a value “good ordinary claret”.

Your timeline notes are very interesting. Perfect pairing … any dish where the recipe has at step seven “… the next day …” :grinning:

I picked up one of these a couple months ago at my local Costco. Tried it a few weeks later (very nice QPR) and when I went back to buy more, there were none left.

NV Roederer Estate Brut Anderson Valley - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (1/16/2022)
Day 2: Excellent. Like I said in previous note the bottles from Haskell’s are excellent. Lively wine with apple, pear, minerals, lemon, spice and a hint of chalk. Great acidity and medium finish. This is probably the best bottle I have tasted from the current NV. 92 points (92 points)


Bought a case from Liquor Boy in St. Louis Park and returned them all as they were all too chalky and bought a few cases from Haskell’s and all have been great. I believe shipping is still a big issue in wine in general. They were the same NV and bought at the same time in the same market. Cold and heat can influence a wine.
roederer brut.jpg

1 Like

LWS had a sale on 2018 Substance Cabernet Sauvignon (Cs) for $8.99. Not a Bordeaux grape fan, but at that price it’s a weekday pop.

2018 Substance Cabernet Sauvignon - aromas of blackberry, cherry, vanilla, tobacco, pencil lead, and hints of green pepper on the nose. Medium(+) in body with medium tannins. Acidity added great weight to the palate with tastes of blackberry, cherry, and black licorice. This was layered with balance. Steal of a deal.

How do they make money at $8.99? That is a crazy deal. In MN best price I have ever seen is around $12. [cheers.gif]

$12 was the best I had previously seen also and that was at Costco! I couldn’t believe it when I saw it

NV Graham Beck Brut Methode Cap Classique

In the $14-16 range and always a terrific value.

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I break down my collection into 4 price tiers. Tier 1 is sub $17. The amount of high quality Tier 1 wines I was able to find in 2020 was great, but it was very difficult in 2021 and I have been debating increasing the prices for each tier. I think I paid more on the low end and got lesser quality than previously for the most part. But here are what was my winners.

$16.29 - 2016 Castelli del Grevepesa Chianti Classico Riserva Clemente VII
$16.28 - 2016 Castelli del Grevepesa Chianti Classico Riserva Castelgreve
$14.11 - 2019 Vinos Valtuille Pago de Valdoneje
$13.03 - 2016 Domaine Baptiste Boutes Minervois
$17.37 - 2016 Draga Ribolla Gialla (I dont really drink white, but I enjoyed this)

Prices include tax and shipping if I had to have them shipped.

3 Likes

Dow’s 2016 LBV Port – $18.99

LBV’s are perfect for me in the wintertime, as I can open a bottle and nurse it over several weekends. This one has gobs of blackberry and blueberry, with a little chocolate and coffee mixed in. Even though this is a very young port, both the spirit and oak seem to be very well integrated at this point, with the wine being very smooth on the palate and with a nice velvety finish. I know that most wine geeks do not drink Port, but these LBV’s are such a great value, with so many of them being less than $25, and this one being less than $20. This one should be able to age for several more years, too.

Another vote for the Roederer Estate NV Anderson Valley. $19.99 at Costco and a few other wine shops. Such a great domestic sparkling wine.

Could use that in MN with the below zero temps!

John Glas wrote:
Could use that in MN with the below zero temps!

We are about 40 miles east of San Francisco and our high temp today was 66 degrees. [cheers.gif]

1 Like

Going to add 1 more.

This was 19.99 on WTSO before tax. Unfortunately, if not through them I cannot imagine seeing it any where near as low as that price again. If it does come up, jump on it!

2013 Rocca di Castagnoli Buriano (cab sauv)