New to this forum but so far, it seems like a great community. Thought I’d ask for thoughts on everyday wines for myself and to share. You see, I finally built out my cellar at the beginning of this year and I find myself working to defend the wines I want to keep/age. I’m trying to select a few wines to have on hand that help keep me from digging into the “nice stuff”.
Ideally, these are bottles between $20 and $60 that you wouldn’t mind sharing (higher production, consistent). Here’s what I’m thinking, but totally open to other ideas and appreciate any input!
So, so much out there for under $60. That’s a high cellar defender threshold. What do you like to drink?
Carlisle
Bedrock
CdR all the way to some CdP in your range
Chablis
Tons of Bordeaux under $60
Great “daily” Champagne in that range including Vilmart, H. Gotourbe, Dethune, VS, Mousse
As Kyle said there’s a ton of stuff out there in that range so it will depend on what you like, but one of my main weeknight go to category are Cru Beaujolais. Food friendly, drink now or hang onto them a couple of years. There’s no shortage of threads on here about Beaujolias, but if you need a couple of producers, I’d recommend Thivin, Coudert, Chanrion, Yohan Lardy, and Jean Michel Dupre. But there are tons of others and most are in the $20-30 range.
I also drink a lot of Oregon Pinot and most producers Willamette Valley bottlings will fit in there as well. Willamette Valley bottlings from Evesham Wood, Goodfellow, Violin, Shiba Wichern, Vincent, Ayres, and Crowley are all under $30 and drink well on release but will hold several years.
Welcome to the board! There is a recent thread for “best wines under $50 (2022 edition)” that should be pretty helpful, including a link to a Google doc with all the suggestions.
Thanks very much for the suggestions. I’ll seek these out to try and see if they’re my speed. My primary tastes tend to be California/Oregon. I do love some great old world wines, but I’m only passable in French and Italians (not fluent by any means). I’ve got plenty of growing to do in the old world.
I have a few wines I enjoy from Washington State, but usually they’re a little overly fruity for me. I’m an east coaster so my wife and I tend to hit wineries on the mid-atlantic (monticello ava is our favorite on the east coast).
Appreciate these suggestions greatly. I’m usually hawking cellar tracker for ideas and this board is already fantastic.
Domain Eden Cabernet
Mount Eden Wolff Vineyard Chardonnay
Ridge Geyserville or Lytton Springs
But, there is a great, big, beautiful world out there.
Vajra Barolo Albe
Produttori Barbaresco Normale
Chateau la Lagune
La Croix de Beaucaillou
Any Chablis from Christian Moreau or Moreau Naudet
Hudelot-Noellat Bourgogne Rouge
Chateau Pradeaux
There’s a ton of really nice Southern Rhone red wine available for under $30, from Cotes du Rhone, to Lirac, to Rasteau, to Vacqueyras, to Cairanne, to even some Gignondas. Grenache is King (or perhaps “Queen” is more appropriate) in the Southern Rhone, and to my tastes Grenache grown and bottled in the Southern Rhone really is unique (although, admittedly, I need to try lots more Grenache from Spain - it’s just hard to find in my local market).
Not sure if you are a fan of Beaujolais, but it is a treasure trove of quality. Drinking right now yet another 2019 Lapierre Morgon San Soufre. Hard to imagine many better wines in the $40 and under category. This is an exceptional wine. And incredibly food friendly. I cannot keep my grubby paws off this wine.
Also a big fan of these top tier Beaujolais producers:
agree with everyone that there are so any options when you start to get outside of domestic wines. but there’s awesome ones domestically too. Bedrock and Ridge were already mentioned, Walter Scott, Patricia green, Kelley fox, and Goodfellow for Oregon are solid solid bets.
I also like Radio Coteau in that range, Pax, Arnot Robets, Jolie Laide, Desire Lines, Sandhi, Drouhin Oregon…
There is no better opportunity to stock up on high quality California and Oregon wines at a reasonable price than BerserkerDay on January 27 and the preview/Berserker Business sales available to Grand Cru and Monopole Cru members on January 26. Check out last year’s offers at BerserkerDay 13 (TODAY! OFFERS POSTING IN HERE) - - WineBerserkers.
For “everyday wines” in WHITE I almost exclusively drink Austria, either from Styria (mostly) or Wachau/Kamptal … (9-15 €)
In RED usually Cotes-du-Rhone … or Languedoc/Minervois/Corbieres/Roussillion … (also 8-15 €) … incl. some red from Burgenland (Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch)
E.g. Mistral from Domaine Ferrand is less rhan 8,- and really good …
Not sure which ones you enjoy or have tried. Overly fruity is what I associate with wines made for mass distribution, Columbia Crest, 14 Hands, some others. At your suggested price point, $20-$60 there are literally thousands of Washington wines. But yes, access on the East Coast is a problem.
One I recommend often is JB Neufeld, Cab Sauv, Sauv Blanc, and Syrah, available on Berserker Day, or winery direct. Yes, they have fruit, but Cab Sauv’s especially are built to cellar, 10+ years. Sauv Blanc is $20, Cabs $30-50, Their top end Old Goat (Cab/blend) is ~$55.
On Virginia wines, i have sampled many, having lived there for a while and still with family nearby, and my favorites are Cave Ridge (Shenandoah Valley) and Barboursville.
Oh, another thing I’d add not yet mentioned I don’t think is De Negoce. Large following on Berserkers with mostly negociant wines, where seller has acquired wine from a range of wineries, and repackages/labels for distribution via De Negoce. I’ve had some really good wines, some I regret, But almost all are in your price range (or lower) and sample packs are available for a wide range of wines to try before buy8ing half or whole case quantities (their norm). .
No better wines at $25 than Result of a Crush. These are not Reynvaan 2nd labels these are actually barrels that Matt feels are not good enough to put into the official Reynvaan name. If you like Reynvaan go to winebid as they are less than the mailing list.
I bought six cases of these this fall and almost all are 90 points or higher.
Chris, Thanks for the heads on De Negoce, I’ll check them out. I’ll also give JB Neufeld a try. A friend recently turned me on to Mark Ryan, which I think is damn good.
If you end up doing Virginia wineries anytime soon, I’d recommend the following:
Stinson Vineyard (My favorite VA winery) - Great Petit Verdot and Cab Franc but love their Meritage. Also have a great fun white on the sweeter side called Sugar Hollow White. Great story about the vineyard if you stop in - worth the listen.
Also notable Monticello AVA Spots;
Gabriele Rausse
Glass House
Reynard Florence
Pollak Vineyards
I enjoy all of Mark Ryan’s line-up, have tasted there maybe a half dozen times over the years. I always buy a few of my favorites, but my absolute favorite and annual routine purchase Mark Ryan wine is Lost Soul Syrah. A bit rustic, earthy, funky at times.