The Best Wines at Aldi

Venturing into serious cheap wine territory as we explore the Aldi® USA business model and the best Aldi wines!

It seems only natural, after our Costco and Trader Joe's lists, that Aldi wines should also get some love. And while Aldi stores in the USA have a lot of similarities with Trader Joe's, they are actually separate companies, although still somewhat related…

This complicated tale begins with two billionaire brothers who inherited their father's grocery business. When the two ran into a dispute over whether or not to sell cigarettes, the company was split into two parts, Aldi Nord (North) and Aldi Sud (South). Each company operates independently, although they come from a similar background.

The Aldi stores in the US are operated by Aldi Sud, who also operate the UK stores. Where things take an interesting turn is that in 1979, Aldi Nord bought out the original owner of Trader Joe's in the US and began expanding like crazy, using a similar model to their Aldi Nord stores. So while Aldi Sud and Trader Joe's are separate companies, they do have a similar model business.

Among the chief similarities is the focus on private label brands, including in wine. And while TJ's also mixes in a fair amount of national brands, Aldi does not. In fact, in many Aldi USA stores, the only wines available will be private label.

Just like a lot of other retailers, they do this to cut out middlemen and drive down prices. It seems to be working because while the overall selection of wine at Aldi USA is not huge -- unfortunately, we don't get the amazing selection that the UK and European stores do -- the prices are CHEAP with almost everything less than $10.

Typically stocked with a number of stand-bys, they also rotate in special selections to change up the assortment. We cover both types of wines here in our constantly updated list of The Best Aldi Wines!

And one last note, if it's your first trip to Aldi and you're planning on stocking up on wine, don't forget a quarter for the shopping cart and to bring your own bags!