10 Aldi Wines Worth Picking Up For Fall

As we delve further into fall and temperatures cool, the wines and foods we enjoy become richer and heartier. We look for wines that warm you from the inside and pair well with seasonal, harvest flavors. When you're looking for the best place to shop for wines this time of year, Aldi is a must-visit, especially if you are a value-conscious shopper.

By competing with name-brand prices, Aldi delivers value-driven goods throughout the store, including in its wine department. It can do this because 90% of Aldi's products are store-exclusive private labels. By forgoing big-name brands for private labels, Aldi can source quality items without the markup. The store believes so much in its private label products that it guarantees their quality, offering a money-back guarantee where applicable if you're not completely satisfied.

Of Aldi's private label wines, the Specially Selected options are its premium tier, offering gourmet flavors. It does this while maintaining its overall affordable philosophy, with most selections costing under $10.00 a bottle. As a loyal Aldi shopper for decades, who has tried many of its private label wines, and a Certified Sommelier with 20 years of industry experience reviewing wines, I have found this private label tier of wines to be the best, especially this time of year. From fresh sparkling wines to juicy white and rich red, each is ideal for sipping from now until the end of the year.

This time of year is especially well-suited for popping a bottle of sparkling wine to celebrate the season. Aldi offers a premium selection in its Specially Selected Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG, available for $10.99 for a 750-milliliter bottle. This Italian sparkling wine from the epicenter of premium Prosecco production holds Italy's highest quality tier for wine. 

Meaning Controlled and Guaranteed Designation of Origin, DOCG signifies that the wines follow the strictest regional production regulations, including additional quality-control tests. Like all traditional Prosecco wines, the production uses the Charmat method of secondary fermentation, where the wine's bubbles form in tanks. This method encourages freshness, producing wines best enjoyed shortly after bottling. 

Crafted from the traditional Glera variety, the Extra Dry sparkler, with 11% alcohol, opens with notes of white flowers, green apples, and golden citrus, with hints of stone fruit. It has sweetness, as the Extra Dry style has more residual sugar than a Brut or Extra Brut sparkling wine. However, fresh, natural acidity and a crushed-stone, mineral note indicative of the region keep the palate balanced. It is enjoyable at the beginning of the night to awaken the palate or paired with light brunch dishes. Try it with a creamy quiche Lorraine or a seasonal root vegetable frittata, such as ours with carrots and goat cheese.

Specially Selected Fleur d'Eau Brut Rosé Sparkling Wine is a pretty, fresh, lightly effervescent wine with a juicy yet dry palate. A product of France, Aldi's private label wine is crafted using the Charmat or tank method, where bubbles are created using a large stainless steel tank rather than in the bottle, as in the traditional method. The wine blends predominantly Sangiovese, with Bobal, Tempranillo, and Muscat. It is an unlikely mix of grapes from varieties that are atypical of France. Tempranillo and Bobal are Spanish varieties, and Sangiovese is native to Italy. 

Still, the blend works. The wine opens with aromas of wild berries, peaches, red apples, and roses. On the palate, these characteristics carry through, showing ripe orchard and stone fruit, red berries, and a touch of fresh cream. It isn't the most complex or structured sparkling rosé wine on the market. However, it is a low 11.5% alcohol option that is fresh, fruity, and easy to drink.

Available at select Aldi stores for $9.89 for a 750-milliliter bottle, this sparkling rosé wine pairs well with creamy, cheesy pastas, lobster bisque, or spicy dishes, such as Thai chicken curry. Its bright, crisp liveliness and dancing bubbles help lift the palate, cutting through the richness or spice of each dish.

As fall and winter meals tend to be heavier, lighter, fresher white wines are often welcome additions to a dinner table this time of year. These wines offer freshness and acidity, cutting through rich flavors. Consider light white wines with texture, complexity, and a bit of bottle age, such as the white wines made from the Turbiana variety from Italy's Lugana region near Lake Garda, or the Gavi wines made from Cortese in Italy's Piedmont region for pairing with winter dishes like creamy seafood risotto, vegetable chowders, white bean chili, or roasted white meats. 

Aldi Specially Selected Gavi DOCG is a fine representation of Northwestern Italy. It pairs perfectly with seasonal flavors, particularly for the affordable $9.99 price for a 750-milliliter bottle. The DOCG designation indicates the highest quality classification in Italian wine, with stringent production guidelines and regulations to guarantee its quality. Clean, fresh, and bright, the aromatic white wine opens with citrus blossom, ripe melon, honeysuckle, orchard fruits, and Meyer lemon. Warm, sunshine-filled days ripen fruit throughout the growing season, while cooling maritime breezes through the region keep the grape's natural freshness intact. At 12.5% alcohol, the wine shows a lean mineral note throughout. However, it is balanced by a creaminess that lingers throughout and delivers richness to the palate. Aldi's shelves hide many unexpected finds, and this wine is one of them.

Pinot Grigio is one of the most popular wine varieties in the country because of its light body, uncomplicated, approachable, fruity flavor profile, and fresh acidity. The variety is grown worldwide, delivering a range of styles, from mineral-driven and bone-dry to very fruity and juicy. I find the options from Northeastern Italy among the finest examples, delivering more than expected, particularly those from Alto Adige. 

Aldi's Specially Selected Alto Adige Pinot Grigio is from the region's high-elevation Tre-Venezie area. It interlaces notes of ripe melon, juicy pineapple, and green apple with citrus cream and white flowers. While some pinot grigio wines leave me wanting more, tasting watery and flat, this one offers a balanced blend of fruit and acidity, with an earthy, mineral-laced backbone that keeps the palate intrigued. At 13.5% alcohol, this medium-bodied wine has ample freshness and pairs harmoniously well with brûléed baked brie, corn chowder, crispy calamari, or braised chicken thighs with lemon and olives.

Located in the foothills of the Dolomite Mountains at the entrance to the Italian Alps, Alto Adige's high-elevation vineyards produce gorgeous cool-climate white wines, particularly aromatic varieties, such as Pinot Grigio. Influenced by the Adige and Isarco Rivers, the area enjoys an Alpine and a Mediterranean climate. Grapes have been grown here since before the Romans arrived. Aldi's selection is available for $8.99 for a 750-milliliter bottle. It is a steal for a wine from the area.

If you believe that rosé wine is only for summertime sipping, you are missing out. Rosé makes an ideal accompaniment for pairing with foods any time of year, especially with grilled salmon, spicy jerk marinated pork chops, and everything that is served for your Thanksgiving dinner. Winemakers craft rosé from red grape varieties, with brief skin contact contributing color, subtle structure, and texture. These characteristics are often desirable during colder weather months. However, the tannins are less pronounced than in a typical red wine, making it ideal for those who want a wine without an overwhelming tannic profile. 

Specially Selected Côtes de Provence Rosé comes from one of the premier growing regions for rosé wine in France. Côtes de Provence enjoys sunshine-filled days and warm breezes off the Mediterranean Sea throughout the growing season. The microclimate easily ripens hearty red grape varieties such as Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, and Mourvedre, the typical blend of grapes in the region's rosé wines. 

At 13% alcohol, the wine has a delicate, pale salmon-pink color, suggesting the juice had a very brief maceration, with notes of wildflowers, garrigue, and stone fruits. Golden peaches, raspberries, and ripe melon flavors unfold on the palate, mingling with dried lavender, sagebrush, and thyme. Costing only $8.45 for a 750-milliliter bottle, the wine's Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC) status is the highest classification for wines in France, designating its quality, origin, authenticity, and style.

Pinot Noir is a wine I can drink year-round. It has a light-to-medium body, great acidity, light but present tannin, and fruity, earthy flavors of ripe berries, cherries, wildflowers, forest floor, and herbs. It is a difficult-to-grow variety due to its delicate nature, with thin skins and temperamental tendencies, which can easily develop mildew and disease if not properly cared for. The extra care required in the vineyard typically drives the cost of quality pinot noir up, which makes Florility Pinot Noir an exciting find. The wine is made by the carbon-neutral, B Corp EthicDrinks Company.

This organically grown pinot noir from France, with 13% alcohol, layers ripe strawberry, cherry, and cranberry with notes of black tea, soft herbs, and a funky note of wet leaves, tar, and earth. At a highly affordable price of $7.99 for a 750-milliliter bottle, the uncomplicated wine isn't the most complex. However, I wouldn't expect it to be for the price.

Still, I appreciate its sustainable production, the use of organic fruit, and its fresh, balanced taste. It will pair well with the flavors of fall, such as roasted turkey, duck, or Cornish game hens. Or try it with vegetarian mushroom risotto or a multi-grain salad with roasted vegetables.

If you are in the mood for a wine that doesn't need much contemplation or serious analysis, Outlander Meritage Red Blend is a great option. I am not saying the wine lacks character or balanced taste. It absolutely does, but sometimes all you want is "Legally Blonde" instead of "Macbeth." Available for a surprisingly low cost of $7.79 for a 750-milliliter bottle, the wine blends Cabernet Sauvignon with Petit Verdot, Merlot, and Malbec. 

It is a classic Bordeaux-style blend from vineyards in California's Paso Robles region. Paso Robles lies inland in California's Central Coast, where hot days are tempered by cool nights and marine influences from the Pacific Ocean. Here, daytime temperatures grow exceedingly hot throughout the growing season, pushing the fruit to ripen, producing fruit with inky color, full-bodied character, and rich, juicy, ripe fruit flavors. At night, temperatures shift, cooling the evening and helping the fruit retain its natural freshness. 

Outlander opens with fruit-forward flavors of blackcurrant, black cherry, and blueberry. The fruit's sweetness shines through, mingling with dark chocolate, mocha, and warm baking spice notes of clove, nutmeg, and allspice. While sweeter than I typically prefer, it pairs well with fall dishes featuring pumpkin spice, such as butternut squash soup, or with spicy Thai red chicken curry, pasta with red sauce, or smoky, flame-grilled burgers.

Made from the Tempranillo variety, Rioja is a great wine for this time of year, as it has a wonderful ability to pair with a range of foods thanks to its medium-to-full body, medium tannins and acidity, and savory black fruit flavors. It is even better when you can find an aged reserva for under $10. Available for $8.49, Aldi's Specially Selected Rioja Reserva ages a minimum of three years, including one year in oak barrels. This is the legal aging requirement for Rioja Reserva. 

This aging time helps produce a wine that has complementary fruit and oak flavors. The taste is not too juicy, as oak and bottle aging help to add structure to the wine. Its flavor is also not overly dense or oaky, which would create imbalance in the wine. Instead, the aging technique delivers a classic Rioja style, as oak brings out the best in the Tempranillo fruit. Fresh and round, the 13.5% alcohol wine opens with blackberry, black cherry, leather, and soft tobacco. It balances savory notes with fruitiness. 

The Specially Selected wine uses only hand-picked Tempranillo fruit from what Aldi describes as their "best vineyards in Rioja." This likely means the fruit comes from the northern and western Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Alta subregions, which have higher elevations and a cooler climate than the southern Rioja Oriental subregion. The DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada) is the highest quality classification for Spanish wines, with selections following the strictest production regulations.

Aldi's Specially Selected Maipo Valley Cabernet Sauvignon comes from the country's leading region for producing the variety. Vines have been growing here since 1540. Today, the region, located just south of Santiago, is known as South America's Bordeaux and home to some of the country's finest wines, including one of the best cabernet sauvignon wines of the year, Don Melchor's premium $160 Cabernet Sauvignon. Aldi's option costs much less, only $9.99 at select locations. Full-bodied without being overly tannic or astringent, the wine shows blue and black fruit flavors of black cherry, cassis, and blackberry, with hints of cedar and graphite. While not overly complex, it has decent structure, reflecting the quality and value the region offers. It pairs well with braised beef short ribs or a hearty, slow-cooked beef chili.

The wines of Chile are a great option for buyers who want affordable quality and varietally correct authenticity, including this selection from Aldi. Historically, producers in the region focused more on selling wines at low prices rather than telling the story of the terroir, hurting the perception and reputation of the country's wines. In recent years, the focus has shifted, with today's producers highlighting terroir-driven quality, particularly with varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon.

Admittedly, I am not a huge fan of sweet wines, as many come across as overly sugary, cloying, and unbalanced. Grande Alberone Luxurious Sweet Italian Red Sparkling Wine is like a bottled dessert. The wine is sweet; however, the wine's effervescent liveliness cuts through the syrupy character, lifting the palate while delivering layers of ripe cherries, licorice, and red berries.

With a low alcohol content of 10.5%, the blend of Italian red grape varieties creates ripe red fruit flavors that are delicious with chocolatey desserts, such as an indulgent chocolate molten lava cake or chocolate mousse. It is one of those classic dessert and wine pairings you must try. Pair it with a dessert that is less sweet, ensuring the flavor profile remains in balance, which is why slightly bitter chocolate works well. While desserts pair well with the wine, it also pairs well with seared foie gras or a creamy, rich chicken liver pâté. The fruity, sweet flavors and fresh acidity in the wine will balance the unctuous richness and saltiness of the fatty dish. Available for under $10 at Aldi, just $9.99 for a 750-milliliter bottle, the bubbly is a sweet and festive way to toast the season.

To decide which Aldi wines to recommend for enjoying this fall season, I researched suggestions from trusted writers and colleagues to gain insight into their opinions. I also drew upon my personal history with each wine as a longtime Aldi shopper who has taste-tested each suggested selection. I believe each option delivers a well-balanced taste that pairs well with foods generally enjoyed during the cooler months of the year. Several are also from regions that may not typically be on the radar but should be, as they offer quality and value.

In reviewing each option, I used my training, knowledge, and expertise as a Certified Sommelier, Certified Specialist of Wine, and Spanish Wine Scholar with over 20 years of industry experience reviewing, writing about, and judging wine. The review notes the price of each wine. However, the cost was not a factor in deciding to include the wine. In general, like many Aldi products, each wine is very affordable.