“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

Reader's Comments

  1. Dr. Debs | October 10th, 2008 at 7:47 pm

    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.