Inexpensive Wines for Wedding
 

My department admin is getting married next year, and is looking for wine recommendations for inexpensive but decent wines, both red and white, dry and sweet. Any suggestions? Inexpensive means probably $10-15/bottle.

It is going to sound cheap AF but Mr. Fink loves the Kirkland (Costco) Marlborough Sauvignon blanc (same as Kim Crawford apparently) for white. He is Italian so wine is a big deal to him and he loves this. Better than a lot of brand name whites at double or more the price and at $6.99 it is a steal. For red, his house wine is Meiomi Pinot Noir at around $16. It is excellent for the price.

I think she's looking for cheap AF but good, so I'll pass along those recommendations!

When we got married I had a similar budget but was also snobbish enough that I didn't want it to be a wine that everyone knew was cheap. We ended up getting a recommendation from a friend for a discount wine place, asking them what would work with our headcount/budget/menu, trying a few suggestions and then buying cases of the ones we liked. I have a vague memory that you live in a place with state liquor stores, however, so that route may not work as well.

Bogle Old Vines zin was always my go-to cheap bottle back in the day. I wonder what I'd think of it now...

We do live in a place with state liquor stores, although we can now buy wine in grocery stores. However, IIRC, wine prices are similar at both, likely some sort of law.

Bogle Merlot and Petite Sirah are two other good choices.
Chateau Souverain or Columbia Crest Cabernet Sauvignons both are ~$10

The $6 bottles at Trader Joe’s / Costco are great.

https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/dini...12-bottle.html

check out posts #888 & 893:
https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/dini...onight-60.html

Thanks!

If times are truly desperate, here is a go to source…BumWine.com

LOL, not that desperate!

We served these at my daughters wedding last month. Recommended by Dallas wholesale director for Sigel's wine.

Natale Verga Dolce Lina Sweet Red $7.99
Natale Verga Pinot Grigio $ 6.99
Ironside Red Blend $9.59
La Riviera Rose Cotes $9.99

The Costco Kirkland Signature label wines are really good bang for buck wise. The Malbec was a great buy at I believe $8 or $9.

Look at the Yalumba wines, both red & white. The Yalumba Unwooded Chardonnay is very good. My grocery has it for $9.99.

Fortunately, most people looking at a wine label have no idea whether its a $5, $50, or $500 bottle, so as long as they avoid the mass market supermarket brands like Barefoot, Yellowtail, or Two-Buck Chuck (Charles Shaw), the options in the $10-$15 range are nearly endless. Have them focus more on the type or varietal versus a specific label since they'll want wines that appeal to everyone. If it's only going to be one red and one white, then avoid the really bold styles like Cab. Sauvignon or rich/oaky style Chardonnays, as those can be off putting to some. Having a couple of each, red and white, obviously allows them to cover all the bases more easily. Also, if it's a summertime/warm-weather outdoor wedding, rosé is usually a crowd pleaser. Years from now, no one is going to remember what wine they were served or what they ate at the wedding anyway.

Some caterers and event spaces insist that wine be purchased through them. What arrangements is the bride making? For liability reasons, it's better to have professional servers pour the wine versus DIY or self serve.

BTW, is she sure that guests will want sweet wine? Sweet red can be terrible and decent sweet white would be desert wine, which isn't cheap.

Her space is simply just an event space. She is on her own with lining up caterers, bartenders, providing the alcohol, etc. She will have bartenders, but those are not employed by the event space or the caterer.

Many of her friends prefer sweet wines.

Concerning a red wine, I can highly recommend the Cabernet Sauvignon from Alexander Valley Vineyards in Sonoma County. The good folks there have been making an affordable, quality Cab for many years now. In fact, this is the red wine we served at our wedding several years ago and everyone loved it. A price check reveals it's about $19.00 a bottle at our local Total Wine & More location. So it may be a bit north of your budget....but it's worth every penny.

And I can also highly recommend a visit to the Alexander Valley Vineyards winery located in the valley of the same name north of Santa Rosa (STS). We have been visiting this winery for many years now and have always enjoyed their tasting and tour.

omg! Yes ,I love that wine.. Their merlots and blends have proven to be great as well..

Bogle: Old vine zin, merlot, blends
Cline: ancient vines zin
River Road: unoaked chardonnay
Matua or 13 Celsius: Sauvignon Blanc
Olema: merlots and rosé
other blends Apothic, Menage a 3
and my personal favorite the velvet devil merlot from Washington state.
you can also check the app vivino to check out wines and prices. Good luck

Lots of good Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand in that range.

Nothing earth shattering but very quaffable at a wedding, especially if there is a fish on the menu.

At our wedding we had Fernlands SB as one of our whites. Alongside a solid French Chardonnay that we picked up in bulk from Costco.

For red there are some good Malbecs in that price range that will more than holdup to a beef entree.

Robert Mondavi Private Selection Cabernet Red Wine

$10 at total wine and looks classy from a name brand.

(Bolding is mine)

With that bolded bit of information and the price point that they are looking at, I’d look at Rieslings, Pinot Grigio/Gris & any German/Austrian wines that have “halbtrocken” on the label. As far as reds, Pinot Noir, Zinfandel & German Spätburgunders (Pinot Noir). You mentioned “dry” wines, also - look for the unoaked chards and viognier for whites. Dry reds to consider would be Merlot, Shiraz & red blends. (Yes, I know, Cabs are dry, however, the attendees at this function might not like tannic wines.) At this point, I would recommend going to a wine shop and asking for recommendations or, even a grocery store with a strong wine department and a knowledgeable wine buyer, if you have that in your area.

I would like to suggest a French red Rhone for dry....many very good under $15. The labels will generally "look" expensive. For white, if sweet is desired, agree with Riesling, dry Rieslings, but not always, have a bit of sweetness if you don't want sugar wine... If they want sweeter, make a spritzer by adding Sprite. Gross IMO, but a fair amount of people like it. Regardless, wishing them a long and happy life!