Wine Peeps is an independent wine blog dedicated to helping you get the most bang for your buck in wine. We do this through blind tastings of wine from around the world and calculations of 
“Wow!†Wines can be Bargains, too
By John ~ October 10th, 2008.
Last month, I posted on Super Bargain Wines for Tough Times, which by our definition are wines with a price less than or equal to $10, of excellent quality (4-star quality or higher), and its price is less than or equal to one-half of wines of the same varietal and the same quality level (5 bangs-for-your-buck).
Today, I’m going to share with you “Wow!†wines (5-star quality) with a price that is less than or equal to one-half of wines of the same varietal and the same quality level (5 bangs-for-your-buck) but with no price limit. Many of these are special occasion wines, but they are also real bargains as compared to their peers.
Out of the thousands of wines we have tasted over the years, below is a list of super “Wow!†wines (5-star quality and 5 bangs-for-your-buck). We have listed the vintage that established this wine as a “Wow!†wine for us, but we believe you can confidently purchase their current vintage and expect an excellent wine drinking experience.
| VINTAGE | WINERY | LOCATION | VARIETAL/TYPE | PRICE | QUALITY | QPR |
| 2000 | Columbia Crest Gr Est | Washington | Cab Sauv | $8.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2004 | Quilceda Creek Galitzine Vineyard | Washington | Cab Sauv | $83.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2000 | Seven Hills Seven Hills Vineyard | Washington | Merlot | $32.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2001 | Sebastiani Secolo | California | Bordeaux Style | $30.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2002 | Henschke Keyneton Estate Euphonium | AUSTRALIA | Shiraz-Cab-Mer | $27.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 1996 | Lafite Rothschild Pauillac | FRANCE | Bordeaux | $270.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2002 | Peter Lehmann Barossa | AUSTRALIA | Shiraz | $14.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2005 | Fielding Hills Wahluke Slope | Washington | Syrah | $40.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2004 | Shingle Peak (Matua) | NEW ZEALAND | Sauv Blanc | $16.00 | 5 | 5 |
| 2006 | Chateau Dereszla Aszu 5 Puttonyos | HUNGARY | Tokaji | $60.00 | 5 | 5 |
Filed under: American Wine, Australian Wine, Cabernet Sauvignon, California Wine, Dessert Wine, Five-Bangs For Your Buck Wines, Five-Star Quality Wines, French Wine, Hungarian Wine, Merlot, New Zealand Wine, Red Wine, Shiraz/Syrah, Washington State Wine, White Wine, Wines Over $25, Wines Under $10, Wines Under $15, Wines Under $20, Wines Under $25
I LOVE IT. This is what I mean by QPR, too. It’s not just finding the cheapest bottle–it’s finding amazing wine that actually tastes like what you paid for it. One of the best QPR wines I ever had was a $120 bottle of 1985 Ch. Leoville-Las Cases. It was amazing, julst like your ’96 Lafite (I’m guessing). I love any list that includes Columbia Crest along with Rothschild. Both represent different ends of the value spectrum. Great post.