Cheapskate Gourmet: I'll Drink to That!

This week, the Cheapskate finds some sweet deals on hooch at a wallet-friendly neighborhood liquor store.

I was all set to write about something wholesome this time. The thing is, as I was headed out to find something healthy and delicious, I passed by a small liquor store on Monument Boulevard in Concord that had been recommended by a friend who is a beer fanatic.

U-turn.

Sure, enough, Monument Wine & Spirits has all kinds of craft brews, including one called Hebrew—The Chosen Beer. Now, how could you pass that up?

What really caught my eye, though, was a Pezzy King 2005 Sonoma County Zinfandel for $9.99. This is a wine I really like, and it usually goes for $18. I’ve bought it routinely for more than a year, having been introduced to it by a friend who considers it her current favorite. It’s not always the best wine with food, because it is big and fat, even as Zinfandels go, but it’s great on its own.

Because the wine was discounted so deeply, I was worried it had been stored in the heat or otherwise wrecked, so I bought only one bottle and came home to open it and verify it was okay before buying more. It was just fine. In fact, it was in better shape than some of the wines I’ve had to return to BevMo or Costco over the years because they tasted like they’d been stored in a solarium. Another U-turn.

The thing about Monument Wine & Spirits is you have to know what you like. If you have genuine favorites in mind and you know what they generally cost, you could be in for a serious deal. Buyer beware, though. I’d say some of their wines are completely uninteresting, and many cost exactly what they would anywhere else.

I can’t comment on Monument’s liquor prices in general, because I don’t buy a lot of liquor. I did, however, see the scotch my husband likes, and I quickly snatched it off the shelf before someone else saw they were giving the stuff away. Highland Park 12-year-old scotch usually goes for at least $43 for a 750-milliliter bottle. At Monument? A mere $29.98. The 18-year-old was an equally killer deal: $79.97 for the same size bottle, which is usually $100.

Another steal is the Casa Noble tequila, which is $29.97 for the blanco or the reposado. Both go for at least $40, and the reposado is sometimes priced in the $50s.

Next time, I’ll write about oatmeal or spinach. Until then, see you at the liquor store!

Monument Wine & Spirits, 2250 Monument Blvd., Concord, (925) 682-1514.

Posted at 10:30 AM in Cheapskate Gourmet | Permalink