Towering walls of bottles on either side of you, your pulse is racing and sweat streams down your face. How could you possibly decide between these similar-looking, beautifully packaged red wines? What's a pinot noir? A cabernet sauvignon?
You don't even like red wine, but your new girlfriend's mom is in town and you need something that will please, if not impress — your wallet limits your choices, but your palate fears the possibility of a misstep.
Thankfully, you have this article open on your phone. Take a look and find only red wines rated above 4.0 by more than 50 reviewers, at a value not exceeding $20 and not lower than $17. Plus, they're all available to order online, so really you could have skipped this entire in-person ordeal. With pairing notes from the SAQ under each bottle, you'll be able to suggest a meal your girlfriend could start prepping while you take forever to choose your booze.
So take a deep breath, centre yourself and let's get into the wines.
Tom Gore Cabernet-Sauvignon
Tom Gore red wine.
Price: $19.95
Rating: 4.2/5
Pairing Notes: This wine features a "tannic structure rounded off by ripeness of the sunshine-filled fruit, which fans of full-bodied wines will love." With a cabernet sauvignon like this, rich red meat is a wise pairing, or portobello mushrooms.
Faustino V Rioja Reserva 2017
Faustino V red wine.
Price: $19.60
Rating: 4.3/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ calls this wine, "A Tempranillo of cherries, strawberries and licorice you’ll want to drink with a beef Wellington filet or pork empanadas." Riojas like this one are best-suited to foods that are spicier and meaty, like a chorizo or lamb tapas.
19 Crimes Cabernet-Sauvignon Limestone Coast
19 Crimes red wine.
Price: $19.55
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: This cabernet sauvignon would hold up well paired with a hamburger or another simple, fatty and meaty meal.
Otazu Premium Cuvée Navarra 2019
Otazu red wine.
Price: $19.50
Rating: 4.6/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with rack of lamb, grilled lamb chops or Texas barbecue beef ribs.
19 Crimes Shiraz/Grenache/Mataro
19 Crimes red wine.
Price: $19.55
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with rabbit, filet mignon or French lamb stew. A grenache shiraz mataro blend like this would go nicely with something smokier.
Château Mourgues Du Grès Costières de Nîmes Les Galets 2022
Chateau Mourgues du Gres red wine.
Price: $19.45
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with spicy pork burgers, Mexican-style chicken, or rabbit rillettes (an interesting and perhaps confusing range of dishes). The somewhat more reliable wine resource behind this bottle recommends pairing this wine with poultry or veal.
Christophe Pacalet Beaujolais les Marcellins 2021
Christophe Pacalet red wine.
Price: $19.10
Rating: 4.2/5
Pairing Notes: The pairing notes for this wine suggest that it "be served chilled alongside a beef tartare or veal parmigiana cutlet." This type of bottle would also go well with French-style charcuterie, patés and rillettes.
Errazuriz Max Reserva Cabernet-Sauvignon Valle de Aconcagua
Errazuriz Max red wine.
Price: $19.25
Rating: 4.3/5
Pairing Notes: "Nicely balanced and displaying melted tannins, you’ll love it with braised lamb shanks or beef with mushroom sauce," the wine's SAQ entry reads. As a cabernet sauvignon, it's also a bolder wine, so it needs something hearty to stand up to its flavours.
Cousino-Macul Antiguas Reservas Valle del Maipo
Cousino-Macul red wine.
Price: $19.00
Rating: 4.3/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with moussaka, braised lamb shanks or grilled beef tenderloin. Another cab sauv, so you know the drill — hearty, meaty and even a little spice will take this wine a long way.
Slow Press Cabernet-Sauvignon
Slow Press red wine.
Price: $19.00
Rating: 4.2/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with flank steak, grilled lamb chops or beef tenderloin with chimichurri sauce. Because guess why? It's a cabernet sauvignon. Good job.
Carnivor Cabernet-Sauvignon
Carnivor red wine.
Price: $18.75
Rating: 4.3/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with sesame beef skewers, honey-soy glazed pork or veal ribs with mushrooms. But it'll go well with any other hearty, red meat dish. Because it's (say it with me) a cabernet sauvignon.
Luigi Righetti Campolieti Valpolicella Ripasso
Luigi Righetti red wine.
Price: $18.75
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with a roast turkey, poutine with pulled duck confit, or smoked meat poutine. It's a red blend, so it's not particularly well-suited to any profile of food beyond the specs of any other average red wine, so think meaty, think heavy, and think spicy.
Sella & Mosca Cannonau di Sardegna Riserva
Sella & Mosca red wine.
Price: $18.65
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with filet mignon in peppercorn sauce, lamb burgers with cheddar or cinnamon-and-spice-rub steak. This wine is similar to a grenache, meaning it is dry and full-bodied, going well with mature cheese and white meat.
Carpineto Dogajolo Toscana 2020
Carpineto Dogajolo red wine.
Price: $17.95
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with beef bourguignon, grilled beef tenderloin with blue cheese sauce or elk ossu busco. Aromatic and "supple," it would fit nicely alongside cured meats or lamb as well.
Umberto Cesari Moma Rubicone
Umberto Cesari red wine.
Price: $17.90
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with bison steak, spareribs or lamb kebabs. The brand itself recommends "first courses of meat, cured pork cuts and roasts."
Gran Passione Veneto 2020
Gran Passione red wine.
Price: $17.70
Rating: 4.2/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with duck à l'orange, sausage calzones or beef tartare. A merlot and corvina blend, this wine would be nice with a red pasta sauce, bruschetta and antipasti.
Château Puyfromage Francs Côtes de Bordeaux
Château Puyfromage red wine.
Price: $17.70
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with chicken brochettes and tapenade, venison red wine stew or a steak sandwich with mushrooms. It would also go well with steak and barbecue with its strong, rich flavours.
Labouré-Roi La Princesse Maudite Côteaux Bourguignons
Labouré-Roi red wine.
Price: $17.55
Rating: 4.4/5
Pairing Notes: The SAQ recommends pairing this wine with grilled bass and tomato tapenade, grilled chicken gyros or grilled Greek salad. Good with white meat as much as red, this wine is versatile and tasty.
Hopefully, this list can bring you some comfort in times of darkness, when someone requests a good but inexpensive red wine despite your obvious lack of wine tasting skills and social anxiety about asking for help in an SAQ. Listen, we've mostly all been there. I got you.
This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.
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