April 19, 2008

Wines Under 100 Dimes

We were talking with some friends recently about the problem of finding a decent wine that hits the sweet spot where our budgets and consciences meet - its around the $10 mark for us.  For a while now I've been collecting a list of wines that in theory meet the dual requirements of affordability and drinkability so as a public service I'm going to start posting them here (which will have the added benefit of allowing me to get rid of some of these slips of paper).  Very few, if any, of these are my own personal discoveries - I've simply kept my eyes open the last couple of years for magazine articles, newspaper articles, and blog posts that recommend good, affordable wines and jotted them down in a little notebook I carry around and when/if I find them in the grocery/liquor store we give them a try.  When I can I will point to the original source but for most of these I can't remember where they were first discovered so apologies for that, but I will try to point to what others who supposedly know better than I say when possible.  I'm also no sommelier so I won't be including colorful or helpful descriptions.  Your recommendations would be appreciated as well.  Here's our first offering:

Louis Jadot Beaujolais Villages 2006, $9.99 - this is a nice dry red wine from France that we enjoyed with a light tomato pasta and sauteed kale, 12.5% alcohol.

From The Wine Lovers Page, on the 2005 vintage: 
This is a very dark reddish-violet wine, clear at the edge and almost black at the center. Its aromas and flavors are classic Beaujolais: Juicy strawberries and clean, "dusty" earthy notes, crisp and mouth-watering, refreshing and balanced. Fine Beaujolais, and about 30 minutes in the refrigerator brings it to a perfect serving temperature.

The crew at Cork'd gives it an 83.7.

The highly esteemed Columbus Dispatch likes it as well.

My wife says:
It doesn't make me sleepy.

We found it at our local HEB you can use Wine-Searcher to see if it is in your neck of the woods.

3 comments:

scott cunningham said...

Hear Hear (or is it here here?)! Hooray for these posts!

David said...

Here is the latest grape that we have been swilling. At 5.99 from our local grocer we are quite pleased with it....

J said...

Nice find - I want to say that I've seen it around here somewhere, we'll try and track it down.

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