I often hear people say they’d like to support the local wine industry but can’t afford $15 to $25 a bottle.

It’s true that many of the best Rogue district wines do retail in that range or even higher — but not all. There’s hope for those on a tighter budget.

Bridgeview Vineyards of Cave Junction has the most to offer in the below-$10 range, but you can also find good wines from Foris (Bridgeview’s neighbor) and Valley View Winery in Ruch.

One of the companies affiliated with Eden Valley Orchards of Medford has an inexpensive merlot on the market. A few Ashland Vineyards wines sell for $7-$8, but are harder to find.

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Checking the wine rack at the east Medford Bi-Mart recently, I saw Bridgeview’s 2002 Cabernet-Merlot, 2002 Chardonnay, and 2004 Gewurztraminer, each for $7.49. Bridgeview’s 2003 Blue Moon Pinot Gris and 2001 Pinot Noir were each $9.39. The winery makes more expensive pinot gris and pinot noir but still has these lower-end, more affordable versions.

Foris 2003 Chardonnay was $7.49 at Bi-Mart. This is an excellent wine, perhaps the best of the inexpensive local chardonnays. Foris 2000 Flyover red, a good blend, was $8.68.

Reduced price is not necessarily synonymous with lower quality. Earlier vintages of Bridgeview’s under-$10 Cabernet- Merlot and Pinot Noir have won top awards at the Oregon State Fair.

Valley View’s Chardonnay is harder to find below the $10 mark, but two of its older reds, 2001 Merlot ($8.39) and 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon ($6.99), are still out there.Similar prices are usually the case at stores like Food 4 Less and Winco.

That aforementioned inexpensive Eden Valley Orchards red is called Classic Vintner’s 2001 Merlot from RVW Company, and it sells in the $6-$7 range at the Pacific Wine store in Medford.

When last checked, several older Ashland Vineyards wines were on the shelves at Shop ’N Kart in Ashland: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Shakespeare’s Love white blend, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon priced from $6.25 to $9.98.

Another way to get good local wines for less than $10 is to seek out older vintages on which prices have been slashed. Stores will sometimes reduce prices on wines from earlier years that have not sold out. And if they are reds, they may taste better, too.

The Harry & David store in south Medford sometimes offers such under-$10 sales. I recall seeing an ad recently for Table Rock Merlot at around $5. That wine originally retailed for three or four times that amount.

IT’S NOT LOCAL, BUT another good inexpensive wine is Covey Run 2002 Merlot from Washington state. It was on sale at Albertson’s in Central Point recently for $6.99 (marked down from $9.99). The flavor is on a par with merlots costing two or three times as much. Covey Run also has a 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon and 2003 Chardonnay for the same price.

OMAR’S, THE LONGTIME Ashland restaurant (been around since 1946) has a good wine list with about 50 choices, nearly 20 of them by the glass, priced from $15 a bottle and $4.50 a glass. Nine local wineries are featured. I enjoyed Foris Chardonnay with the salad course and Bridgeview Pinot Noir with some prime rib, each $5. (Each of those wines retails for under $10 at many local markets.)

Omar’s, at 1380 Siskiyou Blvd., plans monthly wine dinners during the winter. Themes will be Spain on Feb. 28 and South America on March 28. A five-course dinner paired with wines costs $70 plus tax and tip.For half that price, diners can get a three-course meal with one glass of wine each Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday through March.

FIVE OF THE GOLD MEDAL winners at last September’s World of Wine Festival at Del Rio Vineyards will be served during a winemaker’s dinner at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 27, at the Jacksonville Inn. They’ll include Cliff Creek 2003 Syrah, which won "best of show." The wines will be paired with a five-course dinner. Cost is $75 including gratuity. Call 899-1900.

WYNNS COONAWARRA ESTATE of Australia has some new wines out, the best of which is its 2002 Cabernet Shiraz Merlot. This is an excellent red blend with subtle flavors and pleasant aftertaste. It’s $16. Another red for the same price is the 2004 Shiraz, not nearly as good. I’m not a big riesling fan, but Wynns 2004 Riesling is a good one with elegant texture and pleasant fruity flavor, also $16.

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Cleve Twitchell is a retired Mail Tribune editor and columnist. E-mail him at clevelinda@msn.com.