wine on a dime

at wine on a dime we aim to find the best budget wines on the market. because everyone should be able to appreciate wine, even on a budget

[cheapwinespot]

winking owl shiraz tonight! aldi’s own signature wine brand. probably the cheapest wine i can find, these bad boys run around $2.85.

no vintage

the cork was nice and easy to remove. i realize this has no bearing on the actual wine, but it’s always nice.

the nose is a bit boozey. definitely dark fruit, some black cherry. just a hint of chocolate.

the tasting notes on the bottle are: “subtle flavors of black cherry, blackberry, and a hint of spice”. and, well, that’s a pretty accurate tasting note. not overly dry, it has a good mouthfeel. a bit tart on the finish. but the finish doesn’t linger. 

all the flavors are very subtle, nothing jumps out at you. the flavors are a bit weak, but not bad. 

overall, it’s hard to go too wrong with a wine for $2.85. that said, i’ve certainly had wines that i will never touch again, and this is certainly not one of them. i’ve always found winking owl wines to be a good deal. especially for when you just need some wine to relax at the end of the day and just need something simple.

[cheapwinespot]

Carlo Rossi Paisano This bad boy comes in a jug for $10. That’s my kind of value.  Carlo Rossi used to be a marketed differently under Gallo wines when it was first introduced. Now it is just marketed as Carlo Rossi.  This is meant to be a “unique” wine in that it’s not like another you would find as a Cabernet or Pinot or Merlot. This is Paisano, unique to the brand. What this essentially means is that it is a red blend. The smell was slightly sweet, not much more than the grape I would expect. It’s simple. The taste is surprisingly pleasant for the price. It is semi-sweet, right down the middle. I expected it to be much more harsh. The whole wine is fairly soft. It has a fairly long finish on the back of the palate, a little vanilla.  Not much to say, this is a simple wine with a simple purpose. For the price, this is a good buy. This is an easy drinking wine that you can get in a large quantity without breaking your bank. I approve.

[quarterlifepoetry-blog]

[cheapwinespot]

Oak Leaf Shiraz

no one needs me to review an Oak Leaf wine from walmart. but dammit. i’m going to anyway. Oak Leaf Shiraz. spent $3 on this fella. and it’s pretty much what you expect. these bad boys don’t even list the vintage.  the smell really takes me back to my undergrad. it’s harsh, very fruit forward. reminds me of finding the cheapest wines i could with the sole purpose of getting drunk.  the taste mirrors the smell very well. it is pretty harsh, though not as harsh as their cabernet (or most young cabernets for that matter). like the smell, it is very fruit forward. blackberry, a bit of pepper if i’m looking for it. a bit tart. medium bodied. it leaves a decently long aftertaste, for better or for worse. the finish is, you guessed it, dark fruit. you know what this wine is for. you’re on a budget, you need some wine to get the job done. if you’re looking for taste, you can spend a few more dollars and get a lot more bang for your buck. but if you’re just looking for wine to get a little boozy, this is your drink. you spend three dollars and you feel pretty good when you’re done. and to be honest, that’s hard to beat. 

[cheapwinespot]

Gnarly Head Old Vine Zin 2016 been a good while since i’ve gone out of my way to buy a zin. the smell is a bit earthy, hints of bbq and leather.  the taste is a slightly sweeter version of that. more vanilla comes through, and definitely more fruit. dark cherry, raisin, oak.  it has a smooth finish, with the earthy taste lingering a bit.  i could see this pairing well with barbecue. easy drinking, not harsh. paid around $8 for this, and this holds up quite well for the price.

[cheapwinespot]

today’s drink: Long Barn 2016 Pinot Noir I bought this on a whim yesterday. the photo doesn’t do it justice, but the color was great. not too dark, it had that more pale, slightly brown color that i often find in more mature tasting wines.  a bit sweet on the nose, hints of vanilla. not very boozy. the taste is fantastic. the vanilla comes through in the taste as well. cherries, and maybe a bit of plum. it’s got an earthiness to it that I love. the finish doesn’t have much to it. it isn’t bad, it just doesn’t linger at all.  overall, this is one of the better wines I’ve had for $10. i have definitely had worse wines for more money.

[cheapwinespot]

Ghost Pines 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon I actually had this wine a while back, when my thesis was accepted.  However! I will post the notes I took. I was surprised that there wasn’t more on the nose. Mostly dark fruit and a bit boozy. However, the taste profile was quite different. There wasn’t a lot of oak, but I was surprised at the oak level based on the smell. Not too sweet, heavier on the fruit. I got a lot of black cherry. I read other reviews that said they had quite a bit of a pepper taste, but I didn’t get much of that.  It was a bit harsh, but definitely not bad. Quite agreeable. The aftertaste was a bit sweet, vanilla lingered in my mouth for a bit. A good buy! For about $20, I would buy this again.

[cheapwinespot]

Welcome!

Thanks for stopping by! I’m excited to get this blog going.  I wanted to create a blog for other people like me, who love wine! But on my grad student budget. Feel free to share any thoughts or recommendations! There will be no snobbery here, the only requirement is a love of wine! - Greg