A good RED is easy to find...

Here are some of the red wines I have thoroughly enjoyed lately that also represent a good value.

Under $10
2005 Meridian Merlot
2006 Cellar No. 8 Cabernet* and Merlot
2007 Mirassou Pinot Noir
2006 Veramonte Cabernet* & Merlot
2007 Little Penguin Cabernet / Merlot Blend

Under $13
2007 Folie a Deux Menage a Trois Red
2006 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon
2007 Substance Shiraz (Washington)
2006 Bogle Vineyards Petite Syrah or Cabernet

*I prefer the cabernet to the merlot, but that is due to my personal tastes

Veramonte Sauv Blanc

Just a quick note- I finally got to try the Veramonte Sauvignon Blanc that I have pictured in my title picture. It offered the usual fruit and melon flavors, as well as a strong citrus and lime flavor. It was pretty smooth and fairly sweet, but not at the level of a riesling. It's fruity flavors and fresh crispness would be a good compliment to grilled chicken, white fish, pork chops, fruit and salad. It's unoaked as most Sauvignon Blancs are.  At about $9-10 a bottle, it represents a good value in wine and a fine example of a sauvignon blanc.

Louis M. Martini Cabernet- Exellent!

I like this wine so much I bought a half a case yesterday. It's the 2006 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon. LMM has 4 vineyards, and this cab comes from Sonoma County. This is important because the Napa Valley cab is about 80% more money. I got it on sale for $10.99 a bottle and it's the finest Cabernet I've ever tasted. Not only does it have the rich, bold taste of a cabernet, it is also velvety smooth and delicious. At my recent wine tasting several people enjoyed this wine who did not traditionally like reds at all. The local liquor store raised their price to $22/bottle so we made a pilgrimage down to Daveco Liquors (the world's largest liquor store) to snatch up some more of these.

Robert Parker of Wine Advocate gave it 91 points.

UPDATE: We are almost out of LMM now but it did in fact get better with age. A couple months ago (March, 2012) my friends and I really appreciated the silky smoothness and bold rich flavor- it put so many lesser wines to shame. Also, compared to the Napa Valley blend, we actually preferred the Sonoma batch, regardless of price.