Thanks to that pesky pandemic, it’s been a few years since my massive extended family has come together for a holiday. While I’d love to buy the best of the best to celebrate the occasion, as the person responsible for providing wine for so many thirsty gullets, I’ve decided to prioritize quantity this year. I want, though, to enjoy everything I open, meaning it’s got to be good, real good. 

Here are my picks for a decadent feast on a budget. All of these are available at the New York market, and many are findable beyond that with a little internet sleuthing.

Light Red

Brigaldara, Valpolicella, 2022 $16.99

An oldie, but a goodie. The Brigaldara family have been making great wine at Veneto for nearly 100 years and are focused on biodiversity in their ancient vineyards. Valpolicella is most famous for its high octane, luxurious Amarone Della Valpolicella, a dry, bold, wine made from raisined grapes, and often very expensive because of it. This version is its polar opposite. Although made from the same grape varieties, it’s harvested from younger vines and less esteemed plots, picked earlier, and pressed lightly, for a tart, earthy, cherry tinged quaffer. The color and tannins are light and the acid high, making it a great alternative to Pinot Noir, and pairs well with a wide variety of foods, from fish, to roasted vegetables and rack of lamb. 

Punchy Red

Roc des Anges, Côtes Catalanes Rouge ‘Effet Papillon’, 2022 $13.99

Effet Papillon has been one of my favorite wines for nearly a decade and the price has barely budged in all that time. Marjorie and Stéphane Gallet put down roots and revived ancient vineyards, in one of France’s oldest and nearly-forgotten regions, the Roussillon. Their negociant “Butterfly Effect” wines are used to lure people into their style, and to get a feel for the terroir, as a gateway for the more expensive single vineyard wines. By highlighting the magic of the region with affordable bottles of deep, flavorful, balanced elixir, and an intensity far above their price point would suggest, it’s immediately obvious why one might want to level up with the next wine. This is an excellent alternative for those who like Bordeaux, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Northern Rhone — a big influence for them  — Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec or Shiraz from the New World. Drink with meat, roasted and spiced, and call it a day.

Crisp White

Jurtschitsch, Gruner Veltliner Terrassen Kamptal, 2022 $17.99

Jurtschitsch is an insider wine, beloved by sommeliers and wine geeks, but hasn’t broken through to the mainstream yet. Alwin and his wife Stef took over the family property in 2006 and have become leaders in natural wine, but with the totally clean, classic expressions of the Kamptal terroir. This is not your Grüner in a green glass liter bottle, although it’s not much more expensive than one. Instead you will find spicy arugula, just cut pear, cracked white pepper, and fresh blossoms, carried across your palate by a tingling acidity for an incredibly refreshing experience. Pair with green salads, canapés, oysters, creamy or cold soups, chicken or other poultry, anything with a little extra tartness or spice will find a happy match with this bottle.

Rich White

Roc des Anges, Cotes Catalanes Blanc ‘L’effet Papillon’, 2022 $12.99

Like its red counterpart this punches way above the belt. There is no oak or butter, but the waxy roundness of Grenache blanc with the nectarine tinge of fruit from the sunny Roussillon skies, gives this a broad mouthfeel, without being overly dense or sweet. There are also loads of stony minerality, spicy fresh ginger and even a whiff of salty sea breeze. Pair with your richer white foods; lobster, mashed potatoes, pork chops, creamy soups or roast chicken. Also excellent with curry or thai noodles.

Orange

Field Recordings, Skins, 2022 $19.99

Orange or Amber wine has gone from obscurity to staple in the last decade. But this style, where white grapes are fermented on their skins, picking up color and tannin along the way, is actually the world’s oldest method for winemaking  — all grapes used to be white. Red skins are a “modern” mutation. Most often heard described in the same sentence as the word “natural”, it doesn’t have to be. As the owner of a vine nursery in Central California,  Andrew Jones, is often privy to the best fruit of the region before everyone else. He’s a technically proficient winemaker, who follows a less-is-more approach, to create squeaky clean, yet expressive, classically-styled wines. Skins, his version of orange wine, is not only one of the best tasting, easiest drinking bottles in the category, from anywhere in the world, its also one of the least expensive. Pair with just about anything.

Bubbles

Luis Pato, Baga Espumante Rosado, NV $15.99

After 40 years, Luis Pato is finally getting the recognition he deserves in the US market. He was a stalwart of Bairrada and its grapes, working to save its ancient vineyards, and crafting wines for the ages (high tannin, high acid, earthy, aggressive), which won him quite a few fans during the Parker years. He’s also been a master sparkling wine maker, using the region’s high acid varieties and limestone soils to make excellent bubbles. The prices are laughable, especially when you take into account the extra time and labor it takes to produce. Eighteen months on the lees allows the cherry and rose petal notes to float to the back and the chalky, leesy minerality to take center stage. This is a vivacious wine, textural, dynamic with prickly bubbles and a long tingling finish. Drink as an aperitif, with any fresh seafood, or crispy nibbles, fried chicken is an especially succulent pairing.

Champagne

Marie Weiss, Champagne Brut, NV $38.99

The prices keep going up on the world’s best bubbles, but that doesn’t mean, without sacrificing quality, that  you can’t find a bottle or two of the special stuff with which to celebrate. Marie Weiss is actually the negociant label of Ployez Jaquemart. This just means Laurence Ployez, the woman in charge of the family’s Champagne grower estate, purchases the fruit from trusted farmers, which helps keep costs down — at $49.99 her Ployez-Jacquemart, Champagne Extra Quality Brut, NV is also a superb deal. It has all the toasty brioche, lemon curd, green apple, with the creamy mousse and text book chalky mineral finish you should expect from a bottle of Champagne. The dosage is balanced, meaning the acid shines through, without being too harsh or cutting, or too sweet and cloying. Drink away, Champagne goes with everything, even rib eye.

Dessert

Château Suduiraut, Lions De Suduiraut Sauternes, 2022 $24.99

Christmas is the perfect time of year for a little indulgence. Sauternes, the sweet wine of Bordeaux, is still one of the greatest options out there. Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc are picked with some of the berries having shriveled on the vine thanks to the noble rot, a type of fungus that concentrates the sugar, acid and flavors, but also imparts notes of saffron, marzipan, red pepper and exotic fruits. It’s carefully pressed and fermented, then aged in oak barrels for cohesion and a touch of toast. There is a luxuriousness to its complexity and silky texture, but it avoids the cough-syrup cloyingness of inexpensive dessert wines thanks to its ripping acidity, keeping it buoyant and fresh and going back for another sip. Drink on its own, or pour over ice cream and apple pie for a truly elevated dessert experience. 

Fortified

Lustau, Amontillado Los Arcos Solera Reserva Sherry, NV $18.99

Looking for a digestif without the sugar? Try Sherry. Contrary to popular belief most Sherry is actually dry, bone dry. But true to form, with so many different styles and labels can be incredibly confusing to find the one that fits your palate. Fino and Manzanilla are clear, aged under a type of yeast called flor, which imparts an almond and salty note to the wine. Oloroso is the opposite, aged for years in old casks, oxidizing completely along the way with rancio notes of coffee, chocolate, walnut and raisin. Amontillado, is my perfect balancing act between the two. It starts its life as a fino, accumulating all its attributes, but then is treated as an oloroso, picking up its deeper texture and overt flavors.

The Lustau Los Arcos, aged for a total of 8 years, is a great introduction to this style, showing all of the classic amontillado features, without demanding make a huge investment. I love it with spicy, or super complex dishes, but it’s also great on its own to finish off a big meal.