I used to be able to find all three under $20, but not since the Weller 12 has been repurposed as Pappy and the antique has become much more scarce. MO is also super cheap bourbon country, and we see Special Reserve at $15-16, Antique at about $23. We don’t see the 12 at all but I’m guessing it would clock in around $27-30 after the extended absence from the market, and I question it’s value at that price. It was always one hell of a $20-24 bourbon. It’s not the equal of the 4R Single Barrel though, and I get that at $30, so it’s my benchmark.
Not a great bargain, but $44.99 for 2010 Fleur Cardinale at the Wine Exchange isn’t too shabby. It’s $70 in Portland. (FWIW, RP 95, ST 94, J.Leve 94).
I wish it were 50% off, but it looks like K&L must’ve received a shipment from Qupe. They are clearing out a bunch of mags of older stuff, and 750’s of:
2008 Qupé Syrah The Good Nacido Bien Nacido Vineyard Block X- 59.99
Every Qupe I’ve had has been well balanced. TomHill?
Just had my second PAX syrah ever and it’s not at all what I expected. Elegant not overoaked not overripe. This was the 2004 Keltie. These well aged beauties are available in many places at great prices.
I recently picked up several bottles of the Bereche et Fils Brut Reserve Champagne from Waterford Wines in Milwaukee at a great special price of $29.99 per bottle. The base vintage is 2012, disgorged in July of 2014, with a 7 g/L dosage. While a year or two in bottle would help round out this young bottle of energetic bubbles, it is packed with flavor, energy and acidity and a lot of fun now despite its youth. One of the best value Champagnes I have had in the last several years.
that’s an awesome price!
Whoa, that’s 6 bucks below our wholesale and we DI…
Buy all you can that wine is a steal at that price
I picked up a couple more bottles to give to my daughter and her boyfriend so they’ll have a festive New Year.
Nice thread. I don’t get folks who brag about about a deal they just got and then won’t share the source. Dickwads.
For folks in Portland, the Fred Meyer on Barbur Blvd is closing out 2010 Cameron Abbey Ridge Pinot Noir, 2011 Cameron Clos Electrique Rouge, and 2011 Cameron Clos Electrique Blanc for $48 per with an additional 10% off on 6+ bottles. Picked up two of each myself.
Is it me, or does it seem as if the great deals from 2 years ago are now for the most part gone?
Granted, I’ve found lots of incredible stuff but 2 years ago it seemed like a fire sale on everything.
Agreed, and I’d postulate much of the fire sale deals of 2+ years ago were mainly due to post-2008 liquidation. Things have recovered quite a bit since then.
I think today’s “deals” are all about the incredible 2012 and 2013 vintages in CA. I think that’s why Cameron Hughes is suddenly hot again. And I also think the really great deals haven’t arrived yet.
Here’s a datapoint: I have a vacation home near Murphy’s, CA. I went to one of the wineries, and they were pouring a 2010. That implies to me that they still have 2011s, 2012s and 2013s in bottle somewhere. And 2014 in barrel.
That’s a LOT of inventory to unload! Now I agree that’s a small, unknown winery, but I bet that’s true of many wineries. Not the names, but I bet some of the CA wineries we discuss on this board have more inventory than they would like.
Looking forward to the next couple of years of buying CA wine at good prices.
For many years I have read posts about constipated inventories of back vintages ready to explode (sorry about the visual) onto the market with bargains. These posts are always from credible posters. My question is, WHERE are these backlogs eventually released? Winebid? Your local merchant? Distributors’ secret special-customers-only lists? For my purposes I’m thinking under-$40 Bordeaux that are complex and clean and elegant and have some richness. I have no interest in buying these at full price, even though my Bordeaux-variety stock is super-thin, because it seems there will always be some around, like a Galloni 94-point Barolo. I now treat Cabernet, from any country, like I treat California Chardonnay: if I want one, I can go to Wine Club (or, frankly, Safeway, or at least Whole Foods with Mount Eden Estates just sitting there for under $50) and find a good tasty one, no need to buy and cellar any. But at a fire sale price I would bite on a case of tasty not-oaky Bordeaux. They get dumped where?
Yes but in a way this is fun. I scour and scour and find nothing and then whammo, a cute little bargain, and because of the phenomenon you describe I am that much more grateful. The problem is holding fast and buying nothing when none of them is a true bargain.
My recommendation would be to hack into Neal Mollen’s email.
Distributors’ secret special-customers-only lists?
Ok this one hurts a little to reveal, but I since found Ringland’s Spanish grenaches and that will keep me intrigued for a long time, at least until someone dumps a bunch of old Lopez de Heredia on Winebid at cheap prices (yeah I know different grape):
I have twice stopped by Whole Foods recently and found a sixpack of Birichino grenache. I walk in intimidated by the smart fit beautiful unhappy people and walk out smug and heavily laden.
I saw that there. They occasionally have 20% or 30% sales, and if their 2012 Guillemot Serpentieres or DeVillaine Bouzeron Aligote are still there they will be really good deals (the regular prices are not bad - $37 and $30).