Now that the holiday season is behind us, credit card bills are arriving at a furious pace. Wine drinking budgets will undoubtedly take a hit. But that doesn’t mean we have to drink swill.

I started researching (that’s my code word for tasting) wines under $10. With my liver threatening mutiny, I turned to a bit of wisdom from Leonardo DaVinci, who once said, “The discovery of a good wine is increasingly better for mankind than the discovery of a new star.” That’s probably why I got a C- in astronomy at BGSU. So I decided to asked a couple of local wine stars to recommend one of their favorite affordable bottles.

Picpoul De Pinet

Charlie Chambless ran the wine shop at Kirbie’s Meats in Stow for five years until it closed in October 2020. He was recruited last September by Cornerstone Market owner Nick Bartolone to start a wine shop in his Munroe Falls market. Chambless has about 200 bottles in his small but mighty wine department.

New York Yankee slugger Reggie Jackson was known as Mr. October. With 24 wines under $10 rated 90 points or higher, Chambless is my Mr. January.

Chambless selected a $9.99 white wine from France called Picpoul De Pinet. It’s made by Hugues Beaulieu using Picpoul grapes grown in the Languedoc region along the Mediterranean Sea. This is another coastal wine, much like Spains Albarino, that pairs superbly with shellfish. It’s a very aromatic wine with lots of inviting green apple and lime zest scents.

Sauvignon blanc drinkers will love this wine’s citrus flavors.

I picked up some fresh clams to steam and added a splash of Picpoul De Pinet, garlic, olive oil and peperoncino. The wine was fab with the clams, but oh so heavenly while eating rustic Italian bread dipped in the leftover broth.

“I would have it with a steak,” said Chambless. "It’s got the acidity to cut through a fatty meat.”

He quickly added, "This would go with just about any food you want to have it with."

Buy this wine at Cornerstone Market in Munroe Falls; Market District Cuyahoga Falls and Green; both Mustard Seed Market locations; Krieger’s Health Foods Market in Cuyahoga Falls,;Giant Eagle on Norton Road in Stow, Kent Road in Stow, Fairlawn and Medina; Lake’s Beverage in Akron; Acme Montrose; Fishers Foods on Fulton Road; Home Buys in Canton; Buehler’s on River Styx, Forest Meadows and Canton; Top Shelf of Ohio in Jackson Township; Broken Rocks Cafe in Wooster; and Montavino Wine Market in Wooster.

Carlos Serres Rioja

"Spain is where it’s at for value,” said Market District wine steward Jann Filion, who runs the Portage Crossing location.

"Whenever I think $9.99, I think Spain,” she said while pointing out a bottle of 2019 Carlos Serres Rioja. “It’s one of my favorite Spanish reds.

I had a glass of this wine, which is 100% Tempranillo, with a couple of chicken street tacos from The Funky Truckeria in Norton. The wine boasts lots of dried red berry flavors with a hint of spice on the finish. It’s one of the best Rioja’s I have had, and the perfect partner with those tasty tacos. $9.99 never tasted so fine. It’s more than just a taco Tuesday wine. Filion had it with ground turkey on a salad and liked how it paired with the vegetables. “I think it’s super versatile and would go with anything,” said Filion. It’s also a screw top bottle, just like the Picpoul De Pinet.

Buy this wine at Market District Cuyahoga Falls; Krieger’s Health Foods Market in Cuyahoga Falls; both Mustard Seed Market locations; Cornerstone Market in Munroe Falls,; Acme No. 1 in Akron, Green and Whipple Avenue; Giant Eagle on Norton Road, in Stow Waterloo Road, Medina, North Canton, Parma and Mentor; and Barroco Grill Lakewood and Cleveland.

Casa Santos Lima’s 2017 Confidencial Reserva

Spain’s neighbor to the west, Portugal, is also a hot wine-producing region where quality and price meet regularly at $10.

Casa Santos Lima’s 2017 Confidencial Reserva is quite a bargain at $9.99.

It's an easy-drinking wine for sure with dried cherry aromas and flavors. The wine is a blend of 10 top secret grapes, hence the name.

Confidencial Reserva makes a great companion to Bri cheese topped with cherry preserves on your favorite cracker. This wine had enough rich fruit to pair nicely with an order of Chorizo Funky Balls from the Funky Truckeria. The Chorizo Funky Balls are South of the Border deep-fried risotto balls filled with chorizo, goat and Chihuahua cheeses topped with poblano sauce, quest fresco and cilantro. Out of this world delicious!

This is another wine that should be priced higher, but I'm happy it's not.

Buy this wine at both Mustard Seed Market locations; Krieger’s Health Foods Market in Cuyahoga Falls; Cornerstone Market in Munroe Falls; Giant Eagle on Norton Road in Stow; Acme Montrose; Lakes Beverage in Akron; Corkscrew Johnny’s in Richfield; Heinen's in Hudson; Buehler’s on River Styx, Jackson Township and Forest Meadows; Avenue Wine Shop in Canton; Home Buys in Canton; Fisher’s on Fulton; and Top Shelf of Ohio in Jackson Township

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Three must-try wines for less than $10 each