What are the best bottles of wine for under $20?

What kind of wine?

I like Yellowtail chardonnay. In fact my adviser eschews far more expensive wine in favor of it. Maybe that’s how I developed a taste for it…

10 bottles of 2 buck Chuck

@gemiwing red or white

My favorite winery is Chateau St. Michelle, from Washington State. You can’t go wrong with any of their wines, and it is available pretty much everywhere.

OK.
Bonterra Chardonnay is nice and buttery/sweet with a light pepper finish. It’s a good entry wine.

I purchased a bottle of Tisdale red wine for $3.99… and it doesn’t taste half bad…

I like mine over a couple of ice cubes… and it taste pretty good !

I like Casillero del Diablo, especially the Carmenere. It’s a little pricey (~$16/bottle) but I think it’s better than many wines I’ve had that cost far more.

@buckyboy28 Lat time I checked (and this was a while ago) that Two-buck Chuck was up to $3.99/bottle due to supply and demand.

Our grocery stores sell a wide variety of Wines. I lived in Wyoming before moving to Montana and in Wyoming you must go to a liquor store to buy wine. But anyway go to either you Liquor Store or your Grocery Store, there are tons of wines out there for under $20.
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I’d take Dom Perigon! It isn’t under $20 but it some good wine! I have a bottle waiting to be POPPED! HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!

I’ve found lately that any red wine using grapes from the “Lodi” region of California have been very good and can usually be purchased for much less than $20.

@NUNYA – You can buy wine at Albertson’s and Safeway here in WY.

There are plenty of great one’s out there, but it all depends on your taste. I enjoy a nice bottle of South Africa’s “Goat Do Roam” and Lindeman’s Shiraz on the cheap end. In my experience, paying more than $20 is usually unnecessary, there are a great deal of cheaper wines that are very good. Ask your liquor store owner for their favorites in the stock they carry for the best in your area.

Castello del Poggio Moscato is good. It costs between $10–20 and is available at many local grocery stores.

Get yourself anything from Bogle especially their Zinfandel, ~$12 I believe.

It’s hard to go out and look for a specific bottle, but it’s a lot easier to search for wines in a price range by region or by grape. I usually pay about $10— 15 for wines and I’m always pretty happy with the results. Wines from the new world and from up-and-coming regions are less expensive for the level of quality because they are less well-known. I have a lot easier time buying these than wines from, say, France, because France sells wine by the region and the winery. So you have to know every region to know what is in it and which ones are known for quality. There are a number of regions/ grapes I like a lot, and that’s a lot easier to remember than a specific type of wine at first.

Whites:
Vihno Verde from Portugal. You can usually find good ones for under $10. It is a dry wine and to me, literally tastes “green.” The flavor is very fresh and snappy.
Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. Nothing else in the world tastes like this. They often taste like citrus fruits, green apples, or even grass. Soooo good, and there are many great examples between $10 and $20.
Chardonnay or Chardonnay/Semillon blends from Australia. California Chardonnay is very well-known, but it’s very hit or miss and the taste of oak or vanilla can be overwhelming and cover up the fruityness of the grapes. (Sometimes they add fake oak or vanilla flavoring.) Real standout California Chardonnays are often very famous and expensive, like Cakebread. Chardonnay from other regions of the world is more often unoaked and has lots of nice rich fruit flavors. Semillon tastes a lot like honeydew melons (to me, anyway.)
Falanghina from Italy or Greece. It’s nice and fruity, like peaches and pears.
Gewurtztraminer from Austria or Germany, and also great ones from the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York. It means “spicy Traminer,” traminer being the type of grape. The wine does taste a teeny bit spicy, and it has a nice flowery aroma.
Chenin Blanc from South Africa. Dry and sometimes a little bubbly, very aromatic and fruity, with notes of honey.

Reds: (I really know a lot more about whites, and my brain is getting tired of writing.)
Cabernet Sauvignon from California is an obvious choice. Wines from the Paso Robles region are delicious and affordable.
Zinfandel from California tastes a lot like dark berries and chocolate. Not white Zinfandel.
Shiraz and Shiraz blends from Australia. Australian winemaking style is to blend different types of grapes to achieve a balanced flavor. They’ll list the blend by the amount of grape. So Cabernet Shiraz is mostly Cabernet, but a Shiraz Merlot is mostly Shiraz. Penfolds is nice and affordable for everyday drinking.
Pinot Noir from Oregon Many of these are expensive because Pinot Noir is difficult to grow, but there are some great affordable ones out there. They often taste earthy or leathery.
Malbec from Argentina or really anything red from Argentina. Malbec has a strong, distinctive flavor that is hard for me to describe… maybe I’d call it deep, acidic, and pungent. It’s great with grilled meats. They’re super affordable.

A Louis Jadot Pouilly Fuisse is right at $20. I think it’s good.

Have you thought of Mad Dog 20/20 or Thunderbird for 20 bucks you could get 10 of them in every color in the rainbow.

Lindemans, an Australian wine.

i don’t drink but i hear that Boxed wines are improving in quality now

I’m no connoisseur, but I really enjoy the Australian Yellowtail wines.

Cost Plus World Market carries Electric Reindeer during the holidays, and I have it on good authority that the reds are tasty. (I believe they run about $7.)

not a fan of wine, but Oak Leaf is cheap and tastes the same to me as the more expensive stuff

I am assuming you are not an oenophile and not looking for anything too exotic so I will stick with mostly American or other simple wines, and since I do not know if you prefer white or red I will give my best opinion of both. In addition, I will give you some examples of foods pairings, since I doubt you are drinking wine simply for the idea of getting your high on. I will also give you a few examples of sparkling wines and “just because I feel like drinking wine” wines. These latter types are great for a day out picnic with someone special, or just a lazy afternoon with friends having some cheese and crackers
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Sparkling Wines – I’m a big fan of sparkling wine, and they’re good for more than just toasting to your guest’s good health before dinner. They can be used as a substitute for a dinner wine, depending on the course. For poultry (like turkey), try N.V. Mumm Napa Cuvée M. Using late harvest Muscat grapes, this wine is a reasonably priced sparkler that is always a hit. Also nice, with a more robust taste is N.V. Domaine des Roches Crémant de Bourgogne Rosé. Both of these wines are in the under $20 range in my area.
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Red Wines – Kenwood Zinfandel (2002–2006) – goes great with red meat dishes or spicy/saucy pasta dishes, Dry Creek Vineyards Zinfandel (2006) – excellent with pork roast, Hayman & Hill Pinot Noir Reserve (2007) – goes very well with salmon, lobster and meat dishes. Gotham Langhorne Creek Shiraz (2008 – This is a bold and feisty wine that goes well with any spicy or heavy dish and finishes quite well. If you are looking for Chianti to go with your spaghetti and meatballs, you can’t beat Castello di Monastero Chianti Classico (2005)
After dinner serve a port wine with your dessert – something like; Quinta do Noval LB Vintage Character (quite a nice port for the price)
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White Wines – There are the standards; Clos du Bois Chardonnay (2007–2009) and Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve Chardonnay (2005–2009) that both go well with most chicken, white fish (like blackened Grouper) or cream sauce pasta dishes. Try to get the 2005 Kendall Jackson if you find it…it is excellent. Then there a few hidden gems like Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio that will go well with most anything, even just cheese, bread and fruit. If you are looking to experiment with pairing food and wine for your Christmas meal, try something like the 2008 Weingut Gritsch Grüner Veltliner Mauritiushof Axpont Federspiel. I know, the name is a mouthful but it goes perfectly with either turkey or ham. Even Columbia Crest Chardonnay is a good bet at less than $10 a bottle.
After dinner, consider serving a sherry as an aperitif. Domecq Manzanilla is a good choice.
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Wines for Whatever, Whenever – Dry Creek Vineyards, Chenin Blanc (Chenin Blanc is not a well-known grape to many American wine drinkers. It’s like a Sauvignon Blanc, but with a little more melon and lighter citrus notes.) This is a light and reasonably priced wine. Forestville, Pinot Noir – (You can find this little gem for about $4 a bottle!) And don’t dismiss this wine because it’s cheap! This wine is not a stunning example of Pinot Noir by any means, but it’s light, consistent, simple, and most importantly, sound. It’s an easy-going and easy to find wine. Some of the flavors that come through are a light cherry, strawberry and caramel. It is not heavy on the palate and won’t overpower your picnic food.
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I hope this helps….Mangiano! Buon appetito.

@supercricketman When they start giving free plastic glass’s and a bag of ice with that box wine, I might buy some. hahahahaha

One of my faves is Beringer White Zinfandel.

Do not buy anything with an animal on the label. This advice has served we well.

@75movies That’s interesting…...wonder why that is…....Damn, now I WANT to buy something with an animal on it…lol

@tdreichert It’s because of some bad experiences with a certain wine that has been mentioned above. Starts with a yellow and ends in tail.

@tdreichert As I said you can’t go wrong with Mad Dog 20/20 or Thurderbird ,,,get one of each they’re usually 2 for $ 4

@Pretty_Lilly thanks for the sugestion, but I’ve had some bad experiences w/ md 20/20 while in high school…..just the thought of it is making me qeezy….

@Les REALLY? I didn’t think they sold it in stores there. I was living in Wyoming until I graduated High School in Riverton. I just didn’t recall beer being in the store. I was SHOCKED when I moved to Montana because of the stores having beer & wine in the grocery store. Thanks!