Just a couple of quick notes on some good wines I've had recently.  Perrin's 2008 Reserve Blanc, a white Cotes-du-Rhone made from 50% Grenache Blanc, 20% Bourboulenc, and 10% each Marsanne, Roussanne, and Viognier, is what a white Cotes-du-Rhone should be, and one of the best ways you could spend ten bucks on a white wine (I paid US$9.98 at Ta Lin in Albuquerque).  I've posted before on Perrin's excellent reds; this shares some characteristics with them, notably a certain almost glyceriny smoothness, but without stickiness... and a characteristic that I'd call "watery" except that sounds bad, and this is good---it's probably associated with being relatively low in alcohol, and not extremely high (nor excessively low) in acid or tannin.  Mainly, it's got intense, but refreshing rather than tiring, flavors, flavors akin to those of a good chardonnay-based wine from the Maconnais, but maybe slightly fruitier and slightly more floral.  And much cleaner, more balanced, and more intense than most of the Macon-Villages and such I come across (in North America, anyway) in this price range.  Some resemblance to nice Spanish whites, like Muga's white Rioja.

A favorite wine at a party I recently attended was the 2006 Clos du Bois North Coast Cabernet.  Nothing super-complex, just a very drinkable, fairly rich, but balanced, Cab.  It Googles up at $12-14, which I'd say is reasonable although not a steal.  (A 2007 Acacia Pinot Noir, tasted afterwards, seemed excessively jammy and just not enjoyable to drink, which surprised me as their Pinots have seemed decent value even in the $20 range, in the past.  Perhaps not fair to judge based just on one bottle.)