Check out all of our products > 10 Great Tips on Buying Good Cheap Wine Wine is a lot more affordable than everyone thinks. For example, a $15 bottle of wine contains 5 servings (at 5 oz/150 ml each), making each serving just $3–a price that beats many craft beers! The one big problem with buying wine is the more you spend the more likely you’re going to get a good wine. The flip side of this,–and the reason why sites like The Reverse Wine Snob are popular– is the less you spend, the more likely you’ll get not-so-good wine. The econ-conscious British call this “QPR” or “quality price ratio.” So how does one get great QPRs? The “Good Wine” Curve An example how the ratio of good wine to bad wine changes based on cost. Recommendations are great, but wine is always changing. A wine might be stupendous on one vintage and then ‘meh’ the next vintage, or in some cases for bulk producers, not even the same wine. There’s also so many wine brands that come out each year (the TTB processes over 100,000 requests a year).

So, no human could possibly give you a rundown of them all (we’ll need wine-tasting robots for that…). Fortunately, you don’t need to taste all the wine in the world to know how to seek out quality.If you don’t learn anything else, learn this) The #1 awesome advice we can give you is to pay attention to value regions. Countries like Spain, Chile and Portugal produce gobs of wine, but don’t have the same prestige (or economic status) as countries like France and the United States. gifts for wine momsYou’ll stumble across more values (across the board from cheap to fancy) than you can possibly ever expect to drink!big red wine and food festival See 2015’s hottest value regionsbest 2009 red wine

More Cheap Wine Buying Tips Trying to avoid those horrible cheap wine headaches? Keep an eye out for wines made with organic grapes, they have more rigorous production requirements. Try lesser-known grape varieties that haven’t quite made their way into the spotlight. Often these varietals offer great value. A few examples include Carménère, Primitivo, Tannat, Bobal, Nero d’Avola and Petite Sirah.good wine from 2010 Buy by the case to take advantage of retailer’s case discounts, which often save you up to 15%.best wine with thanksgiving turkey Most sub-$10 US red wine is produced by a large brand name or a sub-label of a large brand name. best red wine in india for skinSome of these large brands have great track records for decent quality affordable wine, so track your bargain bottle back to the source and seek out more labels like it.

Check out Kobrand (for a list of their producers) , Jackson Family Estates and Chateau St. Michelle. If you think you’re sensitive to sulfites, opt for wines from the EU, organic US wines, or US wines made with organically grown grapes. These wines generally have less sulfites added during production. You should also read this awesome article about sulfites. Wines in Tetra Pak carton packages have lower production/shipping costs and are therefore worth investigating for decent wines. For example, in the US, CalNaturale produces organic wines sold in Tetra Pak that are often quite drinkable. Look to local long-standing wine shops for an ample selection and more flexibility when it comes time to negotiating a case discount, especially for closeouts on older vintages. Avoid relabeled wines (common in supermarket chains) which are usually bulk wines and “shiners.”Here is a wonderful summary of some great online retailers to investigate. BONUS TIP: Drink more white wine.

Empower Your Wine Buying Skills Learn more about what wines to seek out and what wine regions to explore. Wine Folly: The Essential Guide to Wine is the wine drinker’s bible–a visual delight to look at and a powerful resource for knowing wine. Wine Folly Book (on Amazon)How to Pick Wines for Weddings Reds, Whites & Roses Sparklers Money Issues How Much to Buy Customized Programs Resources C ouples naturally want their wedding to be perfect, from the fit of the dress to the awe factor of the cake. Highballs and punch ladled from big bowls have long been staples of wedding ceremonies, yet many of today's brides and grooms seek more sophistication in the beverages they serve at their reception, with wine playing an increasingly large role. Whether you're planning a party for 20 or 200, the questions are still the same: Which wines to buy? How much of each? What does it cost? Can we personalize the experience somehow? And where can I go for more information? We've answered all your questions in 20 money-saving, stress-reducing tips, organized into five categories to help answer all your wine questions.

Please note: Buying wine in bulk—by the case—can save you money. But not all venues or caterers allow the client (you) to choose or bring the wine, so check with everyone involved before purchasing. next: Reds, Whites & RosesWhat are the best places to buy wine online? We selected 9 top online wine retailers in the US and compared them based on selection, pricing, quality, features and site experience. last updated February 23, 2015 Selection: over 10,000 wines Focus: California, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhône and Oregon Pricing: 66% of wines are over $30 Shipping: $13 for 2, $25 for 6 (cross-country Fedex Ground). Location: Redwood City, CA Summary: At first look, K&L Wine Merchants has a circa 2001 look, but once you get browsing you begin to realize that it offers more wine than any other online retailer. The selection is clearly curated, even on the low sub-$10 end where it looks like they are very careful to avoid fake relabeled bulk juice wines.

One neat search feature is the ‘Direct Buy’ sort which shows wines that K&L Wines import. The site is quick to load and a pleasure to gawk at. Selection: over 8,500 wines Pricing: most wines under $30 Shipping: ~$10 per shipment (1–6 bottles) and fulfilled by wineries, importers and distributors around the US. Because the site welcomes independent wineries that may have little to no distribution otherwise, you’ll see many wines on here that you won’t see on other wine shops. On the one hand, this is really cool because you can be exposed to independent producers. On the other hand, if you’re new to wine and don’t know how to look for quality, it’s hard to be sure that you’re getting the product you want. Be sure to select your state before you start browsing. Selection: over 7,500 wines Focus: fine, rare and collectible wines Pricing: 82% are over $30 Summary: WineBid is like the ebay of online wine buying. The site is populated with wines from collector’s cellars and importers/distributors wanting to sell directly to customers.

The user experience isn’t flashy but it is fast and easy to navigate. One exciting feature is the ‘Buy it Now’ wines which offer sub-$20 options that are screaming deals. is designed for experts and no-doubt feels immense and daunting for the novice. Before you dive in, keep in mind that sales are final. Focus: Cheap bold red wine Pricing: 72% are under $30 Value: Average to Good Shipping: $15 for 2 or 6 bottles (cross-country UPS ground). Summary: This site is geared toward value-seeking, bold red wine drinkers offering a large selection from California, Washington and Bordeaux. Since the selection is designed for low prices, it does have a large number of average-to-low quality wines which require savvy shopping. Total Wine is the only online wine store that ships to all 50 states. The site user experience does feel a bit clunky with slow page loads but checkout is easy. Selection: over 7,000 wines Focus: California and New World wines Pricing: 45% are under $30

Shipping: $15 for 2 bottles, $22 for 6 (cross-country UPS ground). Summary: This site is fun to explore because of all the different ways to sort, search and explore wines. The selection is geared toward the bolder fruit-loving palate with tons of California, US and New World wines from Australia, Argentina and Chile. Below $15, the US wine selection should generally be avoided. After texting several people who offer guidance on the ‘Chat with an Expert’ pop-up, we confirmed that they are indeed knowledgeable and work on-site in San Francisco. The checkout is easy and tells you when the order will ship (e.g. ‘will ship today if you order in the next 1 hour’). was that the prices seemed high for what you get, particularly in the sub-$20 realm. Selection: over 3,000 wines Focus: Napa and Burgundy Pricing: 50% are under $30 Tasting notes on most wines Sort by Reviewer, Free-Shipping wines, 90+ wines Fun wine sales-geared blog – 1000 episodes (2006–2011)

Summary: Overall, site has a great selection of still wines priced over $15. There are also many high end wines over $30 that were very low priced for what they were. We did, however, spot several sub-$15 gems from other regions like Portugal, Greece, Germany, Argentina, South Africa and Australia. The shopping and browsing experience is easy and logical with many ways to sort. At the shipping screen, the site even had a ‘poor weather warning’ indicating that they would hold shipments for free until it was safe to ship. Selection: over 1,500 wines Focus: Affordable French and Italian wines Pricing: over 50% are under $30 Shipping: ~$20 for cross-country UPS ground shipping. Free for first time orders over $100. Summary: A fun selection of unique and affordable European wines along with a few New World wine choices. The user experience is a little overwhelming with several drop down menus requiring that you really know what region/varietal you want. Of course, if you know what you want, you might enjoy this.

However, if your search returns more than 100 results they are truncated to just 100 wines, which is annoying if you like to browse. Checkout experience is good and offers a shipping calculator but only ground as a shipping option. Selection: over 1,200 wines Focus: Old world wines Pricing: most wines are over $30 Value: Average to Low Shipping Cost: Free UPS ground shipping for our $70 wine order Summary: The wine selection on this site is very unique and clearly on the trending side of what people like in New York City. Wines tend to be expensive but the expense affords exceptional wines that have clearly been vetted by the staff. The online user experience is somewhat frustrating because the Advanced Search feature has limited options that don’t seem geared for regular wine consumers (e.g. you could search by distributor). Checkout was easy but does require an account and payment information before showing shipping options. Selection: about 1,200 wines