Wine between $25 and $50

Organic/Bio This more or less natural wine estate in Tuscany focuses on biodynamic farming of non-traditional grapes for the region. Like here, a wild blend of Alicante Nero, Mourvedre, Sangiovese and Alicante Bouschet done -... Read More

When we talk about Nebbiolo from Piemonte it’s often in reference to Barolo or Barbaresco. Roero Nebbiolo, though, is something else entirely – less astringent, brighter in fruit and a bit more savory. This is a great... Read More

Organic/Bio From Anna Espelt's granite-soiled Catalunya vineyard surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea on three sides, this is Garnacha with layers and a satisfyingly chunky feel. The dark red fruit and fresh herb/garrigue complexity... Read More

Organic/Bio A tribute from Stephen to his wife and partner, Niki. As he explains, “The night Niki and Stephen met, they half-jokingly agreed to move to Oregon to start a family and farm. Eight weeks later they stood on the... Read More

Organic/Bio As usual, one taste and you'll think, Ah, so THIS is what Willamette Valley Pinot Gris is supposed to taste like! From an organically farmed vineyard south of Salem, it's fermented and aged 50/50 in stainless... Read More

Lower ABV A lovely blend of rich texture and vibrant, refreshing, flavors. As Wine Enthusiast said of the 94 point 2019, This wine brings the notion of a spring mountain meadow to life on the nose. There are hints of chervil and... Read More

As always, a benchmark interpretation of Virginia's most prominent red wine grape made in a rich but balanced and highly drinkable style. The 91 point review from JamesSuckling.com gives you a great idea of what to expect:... Read More

Morgan Twain-Peterson crafts this bold, gutsy, California red from a mixture of vines growing in some of the country's most famed old-vine sites. The base is Bedrock Vineyard (planted 1888), Nervo (1896), and Sodini (1905)... Read More

Like their Etna Bianco, Etna pioneer Benanti’s Etna Rosso is a blend of multiple vineyards on the volcano’s northern and southern slopes and is built for pure pleasure enjoyment! As Vinous says, it “wafts up... Read More

There’s a good case to be made that the clay/limestone plateau of Pomerol gives the greatest Merlot-based wines in the world – and indisputable that wines like Petrus and Le Pin are some of the most expensive Bordeaux... Read More

Lower ABV A tremendous Bourgogne Pinot Noir here with the richness of volume you’d expect in 2022 plus true elegance, finesse and structure to pair with food and reward time in cellar. No surprise to us that Burghound named... Read More

Organic/Bio Lower ABV As always, one of the best values in top-notch Willamette Valley Chardonnay. It's from vines planted 1977-1999 on the estate, picked ripe and fresh (13.1% abv), and fermented and aged in French oak. Definitely... Read More

Organic/Bio Lower ABV Ben Casteel just keeps cranking out great Chardonnay and Pinot from his family estate in the Eola Hills. As always, this is sleek and darkly fruited with just a touch more body/richness than usual. Delcious... Read More

Lower ABV Master of Wine Andreas Kubach and his partners tend their 300 small parcels of old-vines in the Basque highlands of Rioja Alavesa with a simple goal: to capture the character of the region, villages in the region, and... Read More

Master of Wine Andreas Kubach and his partners tend their 300 small parcels of old-vine Tempranillo in the Basque highlands of Rioja Alavesa with a simple goal: to capture the character of the region, villages in the region, and... Read More

There aren’t a lot of “great” California Pinot Noirs at this price point; this is one of them. From a vineyard at the foot of the Santa Cruz Mountains first planted in 1910 and then replanted with cuttings from... Read More

Wine Enthusiast captures the fun and tasty personality of this barrel-aged, Oregon, Chardonnay nicely in the 90 point review: “The aromatic set of lemon, lime and lychee is a tropical Chardonnay paradise. A wisp of plumeria... Read More

Lower ABV Off and on through the early 20th century, Gamay grew in the Cote d’Or alongside Pinot Noir, so it’s not surprising it can shine in Bjornson’s estate vineyard next to Pinot in the Willamette Valley.... Read More

Just a delightful, ready to love, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir from a blend of Estate and Van Duzer Vyd fruit. The dark raspberry and red cherry fruit are delicious and fun and buoyed by a lift of red berry acidity and fine, light,... Read More

Lower ABV Juan Antonio Ponce completely fractures any expectations you have for wine made from Bobal (often a dark, dusky, earthy, grape) from Manchuela (blisteringly hot). This is from 40-60 year-old vines, made with 100% whole... Read More

Organic/Bio As Vinous says, Gilberto Bonipert is one of the rising stars of Alto Piemonte, the region above Barolo and Barbaresco that reaches into the foothills of the Alps. This is his all-steel Nebbiolo and it’s a treat... Read More

Bouchaine releases its Chardonnays late so they have a chance to really flower in bottle. Like here, where the oak has integrated with the rich pear fruit and acids come up to keep things fresh and highly drinkable. As Suckling... Read More

Organic/Bio Suckling says in the 92 point review, “A serious, textured and delicious Chianti Classico. The nose expresses notes of spiced cherries, warm herbs and baking spices. It’s medium-bodied with fine tannins.... Read More

Organic/Bio What do Cognac makers drink for an aperitif or at lunch? Pineau des Charentes! And this is one of the very finest from Cognac's first organic estate. The wine starts with fresh, unfermented, juice from the Cognac... Read More

Just imagine taking the richest, most mouthcoating, just-pressed wine grape juice and then adding enough high-end VSOP Cognac to it to bring the alcohol up to around 17%. Then put the blend into Cognac barrels for a minimum of... Read More

Natural winemaker Chris Brockway and importer Tim Elenteny created Brea to bring low-intervention winemaking to traditional Cabernet grapes, making something authentic (but not weird!). They crush it with this Cabernet from a... Read More

Brick & Mortar is really a California sparkling house, meaning they grow a lot of cool-climate Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. When Pinot gets a bit too ripe for fizz, it’s perfect for elegant, pure, juicy still wines like this... Read More

Butler Nephew makes nice vintage Port, but Tawny is really the house specialty and where they excel. The Tawny style here is a bit more elegant and noticably brighter than most, although there's still plenty of toasted nut... Read More

Smells great, tastes even better, crazy good price for high quality white Burgundy. That’s really what you need to know here, but we’ll try to give you a little more. It’s from vineyards on the Puligny border... Read More

Coco Chanel used to advise that the last thing a fashionable person should do before walking out the door is take off one accessory - less is more. Here, despite a brief stay in barrel, the winery left the oak at home and lets... Read More

This is old-school Barolo at it's best. Fruit from across Barolo, 30 days on the skins and 24 months in large oak cask gives a wine of outstanding intensity and grip. As James Suckling says in the 95 point review, A structured... Read More

Organic/Bio From the Reventos Cava family, this is a 50/50 blend of Garnacha and the almost extinct Sumoll grape done mostly in concrete and with minimal sulfur. Vinous's 93 point review gives you a great idea of what to expect:... Read More

Winemaker Neil Koch has worked with superstar Philippe Melka at benchmark Napa Cab houses like Seavey Vineyards, Bryant Family and Vineyard 29 and helped make the bold whites and Chardonnays of Lewis Cellars as assistant winemaker... Read More

If you don't think of Alto Adige for Chardonnay...well, you will after this! From hand-harvested grapes done 50/50 in steel and big, old, oak casks, it has the richness to satisfy California fans and purity, acidity and minerality... Read More

At any other winery, this would be their top Pinot Blanc, if not their top white overall. It's from a super-steep, mountainside, site with barren quartz soils and huge swings in day/night temperature. Wine Spectator describes... Read More

Locally founded and crafted in small batches by Peter Pastan and Kat Hamidi, the vermouth is striking. It starts with a burst of cranberry and orange zest and is quickly followed by an exotic spicy bouquet. It masterfully combines... Read More

Peter Pastan and Kat Hamidi’s creativity and tinkering knock it out of the park again. Take a base of quality Santa Barbara AVA wine and aromatize it with 15 different botanicals and you get Capitoline's new addition,... Read More

A wildly complex, not too sweet, and deserving of being sipped solo – or with a splash of soda – on the rocks Vermut from Tera Alta in Catalonia. It’s Macabeau base wine, darkened with dried green walnuts and... Read More

Lower ABV No, we’d never heard of Pelaverga either. It’s an old grape from the Barolo region that today is still hanging on here and there in the hills to the north. Gian Luca Colombo makes this alongside his Barolo... Read More

This rich, sweet, liqueur made from blackcurrants macerated in alcohol originated in Burgundy in the 1840s where it soon found its way into glasses of tart Aligote (a “Kir”) and then frothy Champagne (a “Kir... Read More

The 3rd wine of this 2nd growth estate comes from younger vines and is mainly Merlot with just a touch of new French oak. As Vinous says, a pretty bouquet, featuring light blackcurrant and cedar scents. It’s understated... Read More

Once again a blend of Merlot and Cabernet, all aged in oak, from the tiny Saint Emilion “satellite” Saint-Georges. Separated from it’s more famous neighbor but just a small stream, Saint-Georges Saint-Emilion... Read More

Topline: This is crazy delicious Pinot Noir and very fine red Burgundy that's seriously under-priced. Grab it before the market catches on. Caroline Fyot and Alexia Russo created this small estate in Mercurey in 2018 and make... Read More

Organic/Bio A big wine at a very big (or small depending on how you look at it) savings price! Like the Montfaucon winery, these vines grow just across the Rhone River from Chateauneuf du Pape. The surface of the vineyards look... Read More

The second wine of one of a very top Pessac estate, this delivers extra richness from 39% Merlot with plenty of Cabernet Sauvignon structure and grip, all polished by 30 months in 75% new oak. As Vinous says in the 91-93 point... Read More

Very nicely mature, this is directly delicious and while definitely sweet, avoids feeling heavy or cloying. As Wine Advocate says in the 92 point review, Tasted at the château, the 2004 Château Doisy-Védrines... Read More

Just outside Saint Emilion, this blend of Merlot plus a splash of Cabernet delivers a classic Right Bank drinking experience plus the benefit of bottle age. Lovely redcurrant, cherry and fresh blackberry fruit is wrapped in savory... Read More

Organic/Bio In a few weeks from this writing, I’ll have dinner with winemaker Lou Rochet and get her to explain the details here. For now we know that this is about equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot with a dollop of... Read More

Danielle Meunier's great-grandfather purchased this estate around 1860 and was winning awards in Paris by 1912. In 1959 her parents began bottling all of the production which Danielle continued on taking over in 1972. Although... Read More

Already delicious, this stylish Left Bank red on gravel soils is only going to get better over the next 10-15 years. It's showing excellent ripeness and an unusually silky mouth feel with pretty perfume from the 5% Cabernet... Read More