MUCH easier in my view to play this game if $15 is the price point, and much harder if we are talking reds. Even with “well made” reds in this category, like Monte Antico. I’d much rather have a beer.
A pleasing white that can often be found under (and sometimes WELL under) the $10 price point is Domaine de Pouy Côtes de Gascogne Blanc. Easy quaffing on a hot day.
BTW< what the hell did you do, Jay, that required a mea culpa?
And that’s precisely the point. We who have tasted thousands of wines will take our knowledge and effort and give it, free of charge, to the newbies. We owe it to our livers to pass on the knowledge.
He dissed Kung Fu Girl riesling. I know, right?
Masciarelli Montepulciano d’Abruzzo
This is fun. Looking at K&L I see over 100 choices under $10. This one
2014 Domaine de Verquière Côtes du Rhône
would make a fine lunch wine, though my guess is that it would be better with even a couple years age on it.
Perfectly quaffable wines for under $10 are nearly universally available in southern Europe, sad that it’s trickier to find them here.
Amazingly K&L has over 1700 choices between $10 and $25. I’m putting together a tasting at a San Francisco bistro later this summer to try them all. 
Not as good but as the Pepiere but still a nice summer wine and actually under $10 is the Chateau del La Chesnaire.
This reminded me of a great post from WLDG
http://forums.wineloverspage.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3664
Jamie B_______, WLDG, December 11, 2000: Monte Antico 1994 passed away Sunday December 9 2000 in my kitchen in a suburb of NJ. He was barely 6 years old. Monte was born in October 11, 1994 after a long and difficult laborin the Hills of Tuscany. Since he was born only 12 feet from Montalcino he was not allowed to take the name of his father, Brunello, but used the name of his mother Vina de Tavola. Many referred to him as “Baby Brunello” during his short but interesting life. He claimed noble heritage due to his Sangiovese Grosso roots, but was not allowed by the government to exploit that fact. It didn’t surprise many of us that knew him and the difficulties encountered during his gestation that he would meet his demise so quickly. He was always envious of his older siblings 1991 and 1993 who survive him and are alive and well in a cellar somewhare in Maplewood NJ. He is also survived by 1995 and 1997 Monte Antico. His other brother 1996 has been dead for several years. The family spokesman Neil Epsom released the following statement:
“While we are rather disturbed by the abruptness
of this tragedy, you do realize we make like 50,000
cases of this stuff so spring for another $9 for the
97!”
Franco Bernabei, who delivered Monte could not be reached for comment. Associates claim that he was in seclusion, but would release a statement along with the 1998 vintage shortly. The body was found inside of a Riedel Chianti glass barely breathing and with a thin quality and near brownish edge. Doctors, including myself tried in vain to revive him by swirling and decanting the body but to no avail. During his life he was associated with a Roast Suckling pig, Pasta with Pomedera sauce and various cheeses. But he’ll be best remembered for the way he looked beside a plate of peasant chicken and sausages. Many people claim he had a sort of rivalry going with 1993 Santa Cristina, but he brushed that aside as a purely press driven issue. “We are two different wines!” he would say,but friends and associates always maintained that whilst he was the better of the two he was rather jealous of her press. The remains were spread over a boneless leg of lamb with the ceremonial 21 cloves of garlic salute, where it was allowed to marinate for three hours before being evaporating in the oven. He will be missed.…
This just shows how old I am. Probably haven’t shopped in this price category in 15 years!
Thanks for the post. I remember Jaime B and haven’t seen him post anywhere in a decade or so. If it’s the same guy I’m thinking of I met him at a offline (aka Francisco Family Reunion in 1999 in NJ). What a tasting weekend that was! Wherever Jamie is, I hope he is doing great!
Though I didn’t try it, I’m confident the Rioja that Costco had recently for $6.99 would have been worth the $7, if you were looking to spend $7 on a bottle of wine. As an aside, Kirkland Chateauneuf’s are back, my wife grabbed nine of the last eleven bottles left in the Portland store last weekend.
Darkhorse Merlot from Gallo. It would be placed after their cab and red blend in a flight because it’s bigger. 90pts WE for the 2013.
I think the one category under $10 that still has much appeal to me is New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. If you go to the grocery store, and particularly if you look around at what is on discount that day and/or if you get the discount for buying six bottles, you can find several solid producers’ offerings for $7-10. Oyster Bay, Villa Maria, Kim Crawford (this has creeped up in price, not sure you can get for under $10 anymore), Matua, Monkey Bay, not sure all the other names off hand.
These are very dependable, food-friendly wines, that generally work decently with civilians as well as with wine enthusiasts. They’re also very good for picnics, light lunches, discreet plastic cup drinking while watching youth sporting events, and other daytime wine drinking.
I would suggest getting the most recent vintages - they are usually best in their first year from release, so if you see the 13, 14 and 15 on the shelf among the various brands, buy the 15.
This is also a good recommendation for ordering at restaurants, particularly if you’re having seafood. Wines like these will probably be in the $20s or $30s per bottle on a restaurant list, will go well with your fish or shellfish, will be reasonably well-received by your company without driving the bill into any uncomfortable territory. It’s what I usually recommend to friends who ask me what they should order on restaurant wine lists (in situations where I don’t have the actual list in question to be able to give specific recommendations).
Beyond that, I agree with the chorus that the wines to recommend go up exponentially in number and quality if you raise the bar to $15.
Ditto! A Jamie B. post is a trip down memory lane.
Hey now, Kung Fu Girl is great to cook mussels with bacon & leeks in.
I’ve enjoyed Domaine Garrigue Cuvee Romaine CdR for $10-12, Querceto Chianti Classico for $8-10, Les Grands Marechaux Cotes de Blaye for $10-12.
Picpoul-de-Pinet is often worth a try, and is usually under $10. One producer I have liked is Gaujal.
I haven’t had Pine Ridge Chenin Blanc/Viognier lately and don’t know if it is still under $10, but it was always a reliable choice
If you can find it, Château d’Oupia Vin de Pays de l’Hérault Les Hérétiques is a very good red, and about $10.
Rieslings from the Finger Lakes have drifted upward in price, and are a minefield, but if you live in NY you can still find good ones under $10, many of them better than Kung Fu Girl. Standing Stone is a reliable low cost producer.
Finally, I don’t even know if they exist any more, but Ste Chapelle in Idaho used to make respectable mass market rieslings for a very low price. If they’re still around I would expect them to be better, and cheaper, than Kung Fu Girl.
Not as good as it used to be. I opened that at the same blind dinner where I opened the La Vieille Ferme and absolutely no one liked it (including me - and I was a fan 15 or so years ago). It got dumped pretty quickly.
Seconded on the Picpoul, Monte Antico, and Masciarelli Montepulciano.
You can often find a decent Rioja Crianza for $10, recently for me it’s been Pecina and Montecillo.
There are a number of tasty Dao wines under $10. Last one I found was Quinta de Correio, both red and white.
Not seen the Pepiere under $10 for quite a few vintages, but that would be a no brainer.
Even moving the mark to $12.50 would open a lot more possibilities.
Chateau Bois Redon Bordeaux Superior, Mix 6 price at Total Wine = $9.88
Current vintage is 2013. Not bad after a long decant.
2014 Herdade do Esporão Vinho Regional Alentejano Monte Velho.
Not sure if it’s generally available below $10 but I got some for $8.35.