3 Reliable Reds Under $7.50

 Trentarte Rosso

About $6. Trader Joe's wine guy: "We sell out of this about a day after we get it."  None of these are complex, but this is thinnest, cleanest and best food wine of these. Recommended if your girl is a cheap date with good taste.

Goliath Giant 47 Pound Rooster Cabernet Sauvingon

A buttery, big friendly cab- the black lab-mix of cabs. I see this around $7 very often. It has the feeling of looking out across Golden Gate park on a partly cloudy day, looking at all the people strolling by the museum, and saying, in the Laird's timeless phrase: "here we see the Hell that is Northern California."

Don Ramon Vino Tinto Barrica 

I see this at $6 to $7.50  in Seattle. The silly old-timey label with its red wax seal works its magic on you  whether you like it or not. Perfect for introducing your Spanish captor to a non-inflected Indo European language.  It's my favorite of these three, a smooth blend, but one of the best all purpose drinking wines I know. Serve at conversations with Cervantes, Goya, or Gandalf, in ceramic goblets.

I mention all of these particularly because they prove consistently good every year.

Special Note: Points, universally reviled, are damned practical for the budget-panicky.  A combination of Wine Spectator points over 87, and a giant price differential from $11-20 down to $5-10 yields good bargains say 80% of the time.

Special note 2: on 2 Buck Chuck. If you can find it, the Australian Cab is the best of the definitely shy of appalling classic.