Bargain Wines of the Week: Flipflop Riesling and Pinot Grigio

Over the years we've developed a fondness for what we call "porch wines"—unpretentious yet tasty whites that have just enough zip and fruit to pair well with hot weather, appetizers, and a screen porch. A good porch wine should dance on the tongue and spare the wallet, so friends can enjoy a few bottles without feeling wasteful.

We've recently discovered a West Coast winery named Flipflop that sells a range of reds and whites for only $7 a bottle. These days, that's a gimmick we can get behind—especially when the wines are this good. After trying Flipflop's 2010 California Pinot Grigio and 2009 Washington Riesling, we can enthusiastically say that these are extraordinary porch wines, especially at this price.

We tried both bottles with a group of friends, to get multiple opinions. Everyone agreed: the Pinot Grigio is very good, much richer than the average Pinot Grigio—closer to a Sauvignon Blanc, in fact; and the deep, fruity Riesling is a knockout. For $7 you cannot go wrong with either bottle. Even if you aren't personally a fan of porch wine, we're pretty sure that once the temperature is climbing and the weekend is at hand, your friends will love these.