CONTEST: Unquenchable thirst for a bargain
Posted by Ben Garfinkel on Thursday, November 17th, 2011Tags for this Article: contest, Natalie MacLean, Wine, wine bargain
You’re either a wine person or you’re going to be one. When you start out, you might be less inclined to spend the big money on a single bottle of wine because, well, you don’t get what makes a wine better than any other (or, you are under austerity measures). The next step might be applying the thinking that as the dollar value goes up, so does the quality. Certainly, if you go on the notion that the more commonly famous wine regions of the world command a premium, you will pay one, but there are places that can produce superlative wines more economically due to labour rates and many other factors.
Can you spot a wine bargain? Are you one of those people who hopes like hell the random liquor store clerk actually knows a thing or two more than you do when you ask for something around $15? Natalie MacLean’s going to set you right. And tell you a yarn while doing so. Recently named the World’s Best Drink Writer at the World Food Media Awards, she’s devoted herself to nosing around the globe to find good wines at bargain prices. Regardless of your ability to afford a $2,000 bottle of Bordeaux, she’ll slough off some of her frugal roots and steer you clear of that rabbit hole.
If you’re in Vancouver this coming Monday, November 21, you can go meet Natalie in person. She’ll be sharing her wisdom over wine and cheese pairings at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel, and reading from her latest book, Unquenchable: A Tipsy Quest for the World’s Best Bargain Wines.
We have a copy of her book to give away. Just comment on what your ‘go to’ bargain wine (varietal, brand, etc) is and how that came to be. We’ll pick a random winner from all the comments we receive. Book prize will be available for pick up from Foodists.ca headquarters!
Posted on November 17th, 2011
Rob Davidson says:
The best bargain here in Ontario (IMHO) is an Argentinian Malbec called Misterio, from Finca Flichman. The 2010 is incredibly full bodied and complex, especially given the $8 pricetag.
It’s become my daily tipple.
Cheers,
Rob
Posted on November 18th, 2011
Morgan Reid says:
I sure do like this blog. OK so my suggestion for a wine that’s reasonably priced yet fully awesome comes from a bit of a food pairing challenge: what to pair with salmon or steelhead? A fortunate problem to have : ) So, we made a coarse mustard, almond, and lime encrusted baked steelhead (in parchment and the wine winner (for under $20) was Gray Monk’s Pinot Auxerrois. It’s hard to find a white with the right body and flavour balance for salmon. Pinot Auxerrois, Gray Monk, $16.99. : )
Posted on November 20th, 2011
jenn chic says:
Fusion is the cheapest I’ve come across in a long time. My mom introduced it to me when I was visiting her in Manitoba. There’s white and red, but it’s my go to red when just needing a glass, or bottle, on rainy night…danger.
Posted on December 9th, 2011
Holly Johnson says:
Sumac Ridge (Guwertz) under $15 is amazing! Local wine enthusiast recommended it to me when I was roaming the aisle of the wine section looking dazed and confused.
Posted on December 22nd, 2011
beth says:
Angel Gate Cabarnet. I dont know much about wine really so I just asked the LCBO employee and she suggest Angel Winery
Posted on January 4th, 2012
Ben Garfinkel says:
Looks like 2012 is going to be the year for some serious wine thrift for Morgan Reid, winner of our copy of Unquenchable! Congrats.
Posted on January 4th, 2012
Morgan Reid says:
Woo hoo! That’s great news. Thank you!!
I love you guys