Whats everyone drinking these days? Just picked these up from LA wine Co. The white Bordeaux is under 10 with some semillon in the blend is one of my favorite values and the others under 20
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Clos la Coutale Cahors from Kermit Lynch is a perennial fave and around the same price point as your Malbec. K&L’s been blowing out a ton of Lieu Dit Chenin Blanc that drinks very easy for $14.99
I was in LA Wine Co. last week and grabbed a Produttori Langhe Nebbiolo for I think $21.99 so slightly outside the parameters but perhaps helpful nonetheless.
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Drove over to K&L today from west LA only to find it closed 
KLWines delivers to all over LA (for free with orders over $1k).
And you can filter to < $20.
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I could! Maybe I spent too much time in book stores in my youth but I do love to browse in person and seeing what wines surprise me in the moment
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Concrete suggestions at KLWines:
Any Cru Beaujolais. Cru meaning that it carries the name of a village (e.g., Morgon).
The pais from Pedro Parra (Chilean). Pais is perhaps slightly better known as listan negro in the Canary Islands. It is lighter bodied (think pinot or gamay).
Any Italian white, but you’ll have a much better selection of you extend your range to $25 or $30.
Sherry offers outstanding complexity for the buck in case you haven’t dabbled in that. The Valdesino Inocente fino is one of my favorites (albeit above your price range).
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There are quite a few interesting options under $30, but I struggle to find anything I like to drink under $20
Morgon Côte du Py for $18 isn’t bad.
Total Wine has some decent values in their Winery Direct category, though you might have to taste several boring wines of the same type to get one that you like. And you might not like any of them.
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If anybody is ever in the OC go visit Hi Times. The knowledgeable team will help curate from their wide assortment of options at any price point. I try to average out at around $20 so you can mix in some more expensive bottles if you can find a bargain in the low teens.
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I actually picked up a Cruz Vieja Amontillado from wine house that same day! Just didn’t post it due to the 20$ consite. Was just telling someone that as the weather gets warmer my Sherry will get drier.
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Btw K&L is one of the few junk mail i read because they do have some good deals if you are on their mailing list
I miss the posts from Jason Brandt Lewis . So much knowledge of wines .
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Yeah, I noticed that one. Cote du Py is my favorite vineyard in Beaujolais. It happens to be the only vineyard I know — but it’s always good!
Grocery Outlet has some extraordinary if fleeting bottles under $20. Especially if you are able to vet your own choices without outside supervision. (Like Costco, maybe taste a sample bottle in parking lot and buy a case while they have it.)
Never been to Grocery Outlet, I’ll have to check it out one of these days Inglewood location isn’t too bad a drive
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Fleeting is the word. If you like something and go back a day or two later it will likely be sold out.
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Fleeting is right. Also, to some unknowable degree, their stores either only have access to (or buy) different wines in different areas. I frequently read about great values at a GO in another city and it’s not available in my closest store. Same with another GO just 10 miles away from that one. Understandable given small quantities available and individual store franchise owners. The parking lot taste is one strategy. If you know quality producers and good fruit sources that can help a lot. I also see lots of people Googling in the wine area. The first few bottles from their 20% off sale have been pretty good for us.
AFAIK, individual franchises have the option of ordering off a menu products that think will appeal to their customers. Our store actually anticipates several wines they know we will buy in quantity during their wine sale,
I will add that it behooves one to make acquaintance with shop or store managers and/or wine person and let them know what you wines you enjoy and want to buy. Our GO man listens and saves husband’s favorite bottles for him. A good ploy where, as Robert points out, stock may be thin and shoppers scoop up their preferred bottles whenever in stock.
I’ve never seen the same good wine twice at Grocery Outlet. It’s always something I’ve never heard of before and never see again. I presume they’re mostly closeouts from distributors.
The exception was in 2009, during the Great Recession, when somebody (my guess is the Rare Wine Co.) was unloading things like 1996 Clos du Val, 1996 Burgess, 1995 Chappellet, and 1993 Mayacamas Cabernets and GrocOut was selling them for $13-20.
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