How To Choose a Good Bottle of Wine for Under $10

So there you are, standing in the wine aisle, looking up and down, left to right, searching for a little label that says – buy this! This is good! But there is no sign, and you really don’t want to spend a lot. How can you decide, without wasting time searching magazines and websites for hours, which is your local store's best bottle of wine for under $10? Here are eight easy steps that I use:

1. Know what you’re looking for. So you want white with your steak, who cares? Whites are generally cheaper, so if you’re worried, serve chicken or pasta. Chardonnay is a go-to white for most people, but Pinot Grigio is a safe bet also. If you’re a little more daring, Riesling is sweet and icy. But red with steak is perfect, and Merlot is the go-to for reds. Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel and are a bit more bold and daring, but Zinfandel is a little more expensive than Cabernet. For under $10, stay away from Pinot Noir.
2. Look for a sale. I use this as my number one rule of thumb and it never disappoints. Whether you buy at a grocery store, state-run liquor store, or a specialty store, go for the sale signs – look for the bottle with the most dollars off. If a wine is usually $15 and it’s on sale for $10 – Bingo. There’s your good $10 bottle of wine.
3. Pay attention to the label. If the wine has a funny name, or a catchy label (cartoon animal, movie star, holiday theme, anything too intricate), it’s probably not good. And for goodness' sake, don’t buy any bottle that’s shaped like a gun or a cat!
4. Look for points. Some stores help you out by posting “point” scores. Sure, these are subjective because they are someone else’s opinion, but that person probably knows a lot more about wine than you do. Generally, if it ranks 88 points and up on a scale of 100, it’s a good choice. Medals and awards are in the same pool – helpful, but subjective. Selecting a wine that has a few medals stuck to its bottle is probably leading you in the right direction.
5. Feel under the bottle. The depression on the bottom of the bottle (the “punt”) makes it stronger. People may disagree with me, but the bigger the depression, the better your chances that it’s a good wine. If they pay that much attention to bottle production, their grapes must be good, too.
6. Corks don’t matter. Is the cork natural, rubber, or a screw on? Who cares? When you look at the wine, make sure that it’s full up to the beginning of the neck – if it looks low, the cork is bad - but that rarely happens. If it tastes like vinegar, the wine has gone sour – take it back to the store (this is absolutely acceptable).
7. Where is it from? California and Australia are safe bets for this price range. The New York region wines are produced on a smaller scale so they are a bit more expensive. At this price range, Chilean and South African wines are a hit or miss, and French and Italian wines are too confusing.
8. Ask! A cop in an inner city liquor store introduced me to Australian wines – and he was right – they tend to be good and cheap. Never be afraid to ask the people working what they recommend as a good cheap wine. Tell them you just need a good “house” wine if it makes you feel better. Even if they don’t share your tastes, they know what the customers like and buy most of, and that may clue you in to what is good.

So remember - look for a sale, be critical of the bottle, and most of all, ask someone who knows, like the person working at the store! Nothing is better than enjoying a nice glass of wine that didn’t cost a day’s pay!