I’m not one to adhere rigidly to the idea of drinking seasonally: reds when it’s cold, whites and rosés when the weather heats up. This is textbook nonsense that makes it seem as if temperature is the only consideration in choosing a wine.
But this is winter, a time to hunker down. For many, that means seeking pleasure in long, slow cooking.
In Manhattan, where I live, the idea of a hearth may be fanciful, but the warmth of the oven or stove, with a bubbling pot of beans or a simmering stew, serves the crucial figurative function.
The sorts of deep, soulful flavors that come from blends of herbs and spices, long braises, and meats and birds roasted on the bone require specific sorts of wines. Most often they are reds, but not just any sort of red. These foods demand staying power and the ability to stand up to robust flavors.
Yet they must also fulfill the fundamental roles of providing refreshment and enhancing meals without overpowering them. This means wines that are balanced and energetic, substantial rather than ethereal, yet not blusterous or domineering.
Here are 20 red wines that meet those requirements, not ranked in any particular order. All are in that $15-to-$20 sweet spot where price intersects with quality and distinctiveness to yield great value. You can certainly find plenty of sound wines for less than $15, but chances are they will not be as interesting.
For more than $20, you can start to add in wines that may fit the bill from more highly regarded regions, like the northern Rhône, Priorat, even Burgundy, though pretty soon you could be spending a lot of money.
Staying in the $15-to-$20 range requires searching outside the status areas, and trying wines that often come from little-known regions, are made from grapes that are not celebrated, and are frequently in limited production. If the wines are more familiar, like California cabernet sauvignon or Oregon pinot noir, they will often be made from young vines, or come from surplus grapes that were sold off.
What you won’t find here are fabricated, artificial products made with technological shortcuts or grapes that come from inappropriate areas, which permit production of cheap bottles in great quantities.
This means that most people will be able to find only some of these wines. As always, ask for other recommendations at the best wine shop nearby.
The Shebang series, moderately priced wines from Morgan Twain-Peterson’s excellent Bedrock Wine Company, offers modern versions of California field blends. This spicy, gutsy wine comes from multiple vineyards and appellations, includes many grapes (with probably a lot of zinfandel and carignan), and mixes several vintages. The result is a delicious, long-lasting red with flavors of licorice, herbs and red and black fruits.
Camp’s group of moderately priced Sonoma wines comes from Kenny Likitprakong’s Hobo Wine Company, which makes very good wines from all over California under several labels. This young cabernet is bright and well balanced, with a touch of earth and tannins that simply let you know they are there. It’s easy to enjoy right now, especially with juicy braised meats.
Good, moderately priced pinot noir from California is tough to find, because most of it comes from areas not well suited to the grape. Searching for well-priced pinot noirs is far more rewarding in Oregon, where land and labor costs have not accelerated out of control. This one from Les Brebis, a small producer in the Willamette Valley, is direct and without the sort of artifice often found in inexpensive pinot noirs. Its earthy flavors of red and black fruits and herbs pair well with pork, chicken and salmon.
Why, here’s another one, also from the Willamette, and quite different in style from the Brebis. It’s made from organic and biodynamically grown grapes, and is equally elegant in profile. It’s a little more floral and herbal, and it has a meatier character, with a deliciously savory edge. Try it with hearty soups.
Yet another side of cabernet franc, this one comes from Wölffer Estate on the South Fork of Long Island. It’s rich and expressive, more in the Bordeaux style than the Loire, less subtle, more open and welcoming. It’s balanced and earthy, and though the tannins are still a bit firm, it will go well with a meaty stew.
San Diego? Seriously? While the San Diego coast is more readily associated with beach volleyball and Navy bases, San Diego County is also home to a small wine region with some surprisingly good producers. Vesper Vineyards makes this fruity, smoky, well-balanced carignan tempered by citrus highlights.
Foxglove is the reliable value arm of Varner Wine, which makes fine chardonnays and pinot noirs. Foxglove expands that range with moderately priced wines like this Paso Robles cabernet, which is bold and intense yet not at all a fruit bomb. It’s juicy and balanced, and will go well with steaks and chops.
An earlier version of this article misstated the name of the importer of Fattoria La Rivolta Aglianico del Taburno. It is T. Edward Wines, not T. Edwards Wine.