Is There Good Pinot Noir for under $25?

Pinot Noir is a fussy grape, requiring lots of tender, loving care. Good Pinot Noir wine is in high demand; it has been on a roll since 2004. That’s the year the cult wine movie “Sideways” vaulted Pinot Noir into the atmosphere and beyond. If you have not seen “Sideways,” you can stream or rent it on several services. In my estimation, “Sideways” is the best wine movie ever made.

Pinot Noir is the grape of Burgundy in France. The top Burgundy wineries command thousands of dollars for a single bottle of their wine. In the U.S., Pinot Noir is pricey, but usually never beyond the $100 mark. Is there such a thing as a good California Pinot for under $25? The Vintage Tasters decided to find out. Over the last two weeks, we sampled several Pinot Noir wines, all of which were $25 and under. The findings, an unequivocal “Yes!”

We tasted Pinot Noir wines from Mendocino, Sonoma, Carneros, Monterey, and Santa Barbara. Here are the top Pinot Noir wines.

• 2018 Rural Mendocino Pinot Noir – $14.99 Costco – Joe: Rural Mendocino Pinot Noir – The grandsons of John Fetzer follow in the family tradition of making sustainable wines at reasonable prices. The Rural is worthy of a try. Found at the San Bruno Airport Costco.
• 2017 Joel Gott San Barbara Pinot Noir – $18.99 Target – Ray: Reminds me of a French Burgundy, an easy-drinking and tasty Pinot.
• 2017 Buena Vista Winemakers Cuvee Sonoma Count – $20 BevMo
• Jim: A 5-Cent Sale wine, comes to $20 a bottle when you purchase two. An outstanding value in my opinion. Delicious!
• 2018 Hess Select Central Coast Pinot Noir – $18.99 Total Wine – George: I will buy this Pinot again. Tastes as good as some of my $40 wines.
• 2017 Westerhold Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir – $17.99 Bottle Barn – Bruce: It is $42 at the winery’s online wine shop. I purchased six bottles of this Pinot Noir. It is a big Pinot with complex flavors. Excellent wine at a great price. Bottle Barn is in Santa Rosa, but will ship.
• 2018 J. Lohr Falcon’s Perch Monterey Pinot Noir – $13.99 Total Wine – Joe B: Lovely red fruit shines in this light-to-medium-bodied Pinot. Love this wine with any Salmon dish.

We tasted several other Pinot Noir wines (see photo above). The wines listed are the ones we will buy again and can safely recommend to the readers of GoodCheapVino.

Do you have a good and inexpensive Pinot Noir to recommend? What is it and where can we buy it?

Additional Pinot Noir Information

• Learn about the Pinot Noir Grape
• Russian River Valley – A few wineries we like to visit
• Salmon loves Pinot Noir – Pietro Barbecue Salmon recipe