Clay Station Wines Are a Super Buy

One of the most popular questions I’m asked by those who drink wine on an infrequent or semi-regular basis is, “what’s a good wine I can get for $10 or less?”

I’m not sure why $10 seems to be the magic number for some people when purchasing a wine. Perhaps it’s that psychological price point where double digits take over and a bit of uneasiness begins to creep in that one might be spending too much on a bottle of wine.

Whatever the reason, most every wine drinker seems to like a good bargain and I’ve got a suggestion or two that might help fit the bill.

Clay Station wines, located in Lodi, California, is doing a nice job of producing both red and white wines for $9.99 a bottle that are not only adequate, they’re quite good for wines in this price range. In fact, I’ll even go so far as to say that they’re comparable to wines that might cost you upwards of double the price.

Here a couple of Clay Station wines I recently tried and found to be particularly good:

2004 Viognier: This tasty white wine is filled with luscious flavors of stone fruits such as peach and apricot. The finish is faintly sweet and suggests fresh honeydew melon.

2004 Old Vine Zinfandel: A tremendous value for a California zin. It’s loaded with dark, ultra-ripe plum flavors that melt into a lengthy, velvety finish that’s highlighted by touches of spice.

You may be able to find Clay Station wines at selected Fred Meyer and Haggen Food Stores, although a better bet would be to try the Zephyr Bistro, located at 11 Bellwether Way in Bellingham, which currently has the wines in stock or available for order.