Party Pours

31 stellar, celebratory wines that cost $25 or less

- RAY ISLE,LUCY SIMON,JENNIFER CAUSEY

PEOPLE BUY MORE WINE during the last three months of the year than any other time, and they buy more of that wine in December than any other month. That’s no real surprise—from Thanksgiving to New Year’s is a parade of holidays, family get-togethers, work parties, and more. Dry January? Sure. Dry December? Dream on.

While we are 100% certain that you, our readers, are more savvy, wine-invested, and all-around fun-loving than everyone else (not to mention better cooks), we’re pretty sure you’re in line with the rest of the country in terms of the most popular grape varieties to seek out. Not too surprisingly, the top searches for affordable wines during the holidays are for sparkling wines, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Sauvignon.

So, here’s a grab bag of the best values in those five categories for holiday drinking, none over $25 a bottle. And as always, when buying wine for parties, remember that many stores offer case discounts of 10% to 15% or so. Always good to ask. Happy holidays!

—RAY ISLE

PINOT NOIR

It can be challenging to find Pinot Noir that’s both affordable and appealing and that captures the grape’s unique gift for balancing intensity and grace without going over the $25 threshold. And yet, after much hunting and tasting, we found a few Pinot unicorns: Here are four to look for. —LUCY SIMON

2023 DELOACH HERITAGE RESERVE PINOT NOIR ($15)

It’s hard to find a better California Pinot at this price. DeLoach is known for their higher-end Russian River Valley Pinots, and the same care goes into its Heritage Reserve wines. This red is full of rich cherry-berry fruit with warm baking-spice aromas.

2024 YERING STATION PADDOCK RISE PINOT NOIR ($19)