20 wines under US$20, hot weather edition
Bottles that are built for the heat: light-bodied, agile and low in alcohol, whether red, white, rosé or sparkling.
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I HAVE been writing about wine long enough to have made my share of misjudgements over the years. One was to overemphasise the notion of seasonal drinking, the idea that we gravitate naturally to whites and rosés in the summer and reds in the winter.
I have learnt with experience that I pretty much enjoy the same sorts of wines year-round. I have also evolved away from thinking too hard about matching wines with foods. I have settled on “drink what you like” as my mantra.
Summer is an exception. Maybe I am too sensitive to the heat, but when it is hot out, I want bottles, red or white, that are light-bodied, cooled to a refreshing temperature and low in alcohol, the flip-flops of wines.
I am open to exceptions – I would not say no to a profound red with a hefty roast in an air-conditioned dining room. But for the most part, I’m lounging the summer away in shorts and tees, trying to stay cool and drinking wines that will not weigh me down.
Here are 20 bottles, all under US$20, that largely fit that profile. None touch 14 per cent in alcohol. The reds are the sort you want to chill in the fridge for half an hour or so before drinking. I would consider all but one easy drinking.
Despite the seemingly endless climb of wine prices, it is still not difficult to find intriguing bottles in the US$20 and under category. Most will not be familiar producers or grapes, nor will they come from well-known areas in great demand. But that is why they do not cost very much.
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Still, inflation has had an effect. A 20 Under US$20 column from 10 or 12 years ago will look quite different. Those bottles remain great, but they cost quite a bit more nowadays. So, we make way for other terrific values.
Most of these bottles are from small producers. They will not be available everywhere, but good wine merchants ought to be able to suggest alternatives if necessary. Do not hesitate to make use of the human expertise in good wine shops.
Here are the wines, beginning with the least expensive.
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Viña Zorza: Navarra Garnacha 2022, 13 per cent, US$13.99
Viña Zorzal is a perennial favourite. The wines, made from old-vine, organically farmed grapes, are such great values that I don’t mind repeating myself. The 2022 garnacha is fresh, with plenty of chalky red fruit flavours and fine tannins that give it shape. (Bowler Wine, New York)
L’Acino: Calabria Giramondo 2020, 12.5 per cent, US$16
This white is made entirely of malvasia grown organically in Calabria, the toe of the Italian boot. It is wildly fragrant, as if perfumed by a field of flowers, yet it’s bone dry and lively, with a refreshingly bitter aftertaste. (Louis/Dressner Selections, New York)
Col di Luna: Veneto Flora Rosato Frizzante NV, 11 per cent, US$16.99
This gently sparkling, unfiltered rosato is made with organically farmed raboso, a grape local to the Veneto region of northeastern Italy. It is spicy, floral and, at just 11 per cent alcohol, a perfect picnic wine. (PortoVino, Buffalo, New York)
Brand: Landwein Rhein the Electric Chardonnay Acid Test 2022, 11.5 per cent, US$16.99
The Brand brothers, Daniel and Jonas, make delicious wines that are almost always great values, like this bottle with its cheeky name. It is primarily chardonnay, grown organically in the northern Pfalz, with about 10 per cent riesling, which gives it a nice mineral undertone. The result is vibrant and energetic. Electric, come to think of it, is just the right term. (Vom Boden, Brooklyn, New York)
Quinta de Santiago: Vinho Verde Assinatura de Família 2022, 10.5 per cent, US$16.99
Well-made vinho verde from northern Portugal is always a great summer wine: light-bodied, low in alcohol and as invigorating as a beach breeze. This vinho verde, from Quinta de Santiago, is lovely, dry and fresh, with herbal and citrus flavours and a gorgeous texture. (Grand Cru Selections, New York)
Aigner: Kremstal Weinzierlberg Riesling 2021, 13.5 per cent, US$16.99
The Aigner family has been farming in the Kremstal region for nine generations. This riesling is richer and more powerful than a German riesling might be, as is often the case with Austrian rieslings, but it is bright, dry and stony, with an almost gravelly texture. It is delicious right now, but it will also age well. (Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, Pennsylvania)
François Chidaine: Touraine Rouge 2022, 12.5 per cent, US$17.99
Unlike some of the other reds on this list, this Touraine rouge is not just delicious easy drinking. It is more structured, more serious, belying its price. The wine is a blend of côt, as malbec is known in this part of the Loire, cabernet franc and pineau d’Aunis. It is rich and spicy, the kind of bottle you might choose for a fatty steak, which will help to mellow the tannins. Or you could age it a few years. (Polaner Selections, Mount Kisco, New York)
Vaona: Valpolicella Classico 2022, 12.5 per cent, US$17.99
I am a big believer in Valpolicella Classico. I love the wine’s lightness and combination of sweet and bitter flavours, which are versatile with food. Vaona is one of my favourite Valpolicella producers. The bottle is made with organic grapes and with minimal manipulation in the cellar. It is fresh and full of those classic Valpolicella flavours. (Massonois, New York)
Château Pey-Bonhomme-les-Tours: Blaye-Côtes de Bordeaux 2021, 12.5 per cent, US$17.99
Pey-Bonhomme-les-Tours is one of a handful of Bordeaux labels issued by Famille Hubert. Each is a sensational value. The Huberts farm all their vineyards biodynamically, and their wines are always subtle and surprisingly complex for their prices. The ‘21 Pey-Bonhomme is light-bodied yet intense and lightly structured with savoury, saline flavours of red fruits that linger long after you’ve swallowed. (Fruit of the Vines, Long Island City, New York)
Bertha: Cava Brut Nature Reserva 2021, 11.5 per cent, US$18
Many good producers of Spanish sparkling wine no longer use the Cava designation, believing that it is synonymous with cheap swill. Bertha is an exception. Its grapes, the traditional trio of xarello, macabeu and parellada, are organically farmed, and the wine is floral and herbal, with life and energy. It’s an excellent deal among sparkling wines. (A Transatlantic Bubbles Selection/Classic Wines, Stamford, Connecticut)
Cirelli: Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2022, 13 per cent, US$18.99
Francesco and Michela Cirelli are among the young producers who have energised the Abruzzo region on the Adriatic coast of Italy. They have a diverse organic farm of which vines are just a small part, and their wines are superb. The ‘22 is fresh and alive in the glass, with bittersweet flavours of red fruits. It would be terrific lightly chilled with pasta and red sauce or grilled meats. (Zev Rovine Selections, Brooklyn, New York)
Éric Texier: Vin de France Chat Fou 2022, 12.5 per cent, US$18.99
This red from the Northern Rhône Valley is made by Éric Texier, one of my favourite sources for soulful Rhône wines. His primary focus is syrah wines that often require a good bit of ageing, but this is a blend of organically grown grenache and cinsault augmented with 20 per cent clairette, a white grape that gives it an exhilarating lift. For a glass of enlivening deliciousness, serve lightly chilled. (Louis/Dressner Selections)
Maison Noir: Horseshoes and Hand Grenades American Red Wine NV, 13.7 per cent, US$19.96
André Hueston Mack, the sommelier and culinary entrepreneur, also has a négociant house, Maison Noir, which offers wines, generally from Oregon. This red blend combines syrah from Oregon with cabernet sauvignon and merlot from Washington state. It will not offer a sense of a particular place, but it is juicy and Earthy with dark fruit flavours, a delicious accompaniment to grilled burgers.
Holger Koch: Badischer Landwein Ja Goutte! 2022, 12.5 per cent, US$19.99
Germany is one of the most interesting places in the world for wine, with a growing diversity that goes well beyond riesling. Holger and Gabriele Koch, a husband-and-wife team, are among the most exciting producers. They farm and make wine in Baden, just across the border from Alsace. Indeed, the name of this cuvée, Ja Goutte!, is half-German, half-French, and translates roughly to, “It’s delicious!” Made mostly of grauburgunder, or pinot gris, with small percentages of Müller-Thurgau, pinot blanc and sauvignon blanc, it’s dry, savoury and almost salty, with great energy. (Super Glou, Accord, New York)
Battenfeld-Spanier: Rheinhessen Grüner Sylvaner Trocken 2021, 12 per cent, US$19.99
I confess, before this bottle I’d never heard of grüner sylvaner. Was it a cross between grüner veltliner and silvaner? Or a blend? It turns out it’s simply a synonym in German for silvaner, a grape I love. This is a wonderful bottle, dry and textured and full of herbal and citrus flavours. It is made from biodynamically grown grapes. (Wunderwein, Miami)
Folk Machine: California White Light 2023, 12 per cent, US$19.99
Folk Machine comes from the excellent Hobo Wine, which, under Kenny Likitprakong, offers a variety of labels that showcase different parts of California, all made from organically grown grapes. White Light is a blend of white grapes from all parts of the state, including verdelho, tocai friulano, vermentino, albariño and sauvignon blanc. It is earthy, savoury and crisp.
Red Tail Ridge: Finger Lakes Dry Riesling RTR Estate Vineyard 2022, 12.1 per cent, US$19.99
Here is a wine that tastes like rocks and earth. That may not sound particularly appetising, yet it is an ideal flavour for a dry riesling, which, on the scale of animal, vegetable and mineral, is purely about the mineral side. Red Tail Ridge, one of many excellent Finger Lakes producers, ages this wine primarily in big old barrels, which gives it a pleasingly open texture.
Field Recordings: Paso Robles Fiction Red Wine 2022, 13.5 per cent, US$19.99
Field Recordings makes wines from the Central Coast of California, buying grapes from a wide variety of vineyards. Fiction is a mix of eight grapes, akin to field blends of old, primarily zinfandel, cabernet franc, alicante bouschet and charbono. But it’s got a modern sensibility. It is easygoing, spicy and juicy, another good wine for cookouts, whether in backyards, roofs or parks.
Feudo Montoni: Terre Siciliane Nerello Mascalese Rose di Adele 2022, 13 per cent, US$19.99
Feudo Montoni is one of the most interesting estates in western central Sicily. It farms organically with great thought to its ecosystem and biodiversity, and it makes terrific wines. This rosé unusually has an extra year of age compared with most rosés on the market, which gives it a savoury depth. It is made of nerello mascalese, most familiar as the main grape of Mount Etna, but the rose petal and tar flavours remind me more of nebbiolo. (Wilson Daniels, Napa, California)
Antxiola: Getariako Txakolina 2023, 11 per cent, US$19.99
Getariako Txakolina is the lightly sparkling wine from the Basque region of Spain around the town of Getaria. As is typical of these wines, it’s made with a couple of local grapes, hondurrabi zuri and hondurrabi beltza, and is intended to be easygoing. In that, it succeeds – it is delightful. As with the Col di Luna Flora, it is low in alcohol and makes a nice daytime drink. (Polaner Selections) NYTIMES
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