So I like to have a couple drinks after work to let loose. I must say that I'm not a picky drinker, although I prefer a quality beer over a watered down one. I'm willing to compromise.

Anyway, as of right now, I've been getting Two-Buck Chucks (Charles Shaw) at Trader Joe's when I drink wine. You can't beat that! For beer, they have good deals on 6-packs at $2.99. Yeah, they're brands you've never heard of--Simpler Times and Red Oval--but they do the trick.

So my question to you GRS'ers is: what are your favorite bargain drinks?

I like Henry Weinhard's beer. IMHO it strikes a good balance between price and flavor.

(I *love* their rootbeer, which is the best commercial root beer I've ever tasted. Very malty.)

You know what, I was actually going to put the same thing. It's pretty good quality beer and for less than $10 for a 12-pack, it's a steal. And yes, they also make some quality root beer.

You want the ultimate in cheap wine/beer, make your own.

I make 15-20 gallons of hard cider per year, I bottle it into the equivalent of wine bottles and I worked it out that they cost about $2/bottle to produce. Plus they are fun.

As for beer, its not quite as cheap, but I won't drink any of the cheaper beers, so when I go to the store I am going to be shelling out at least $1.50/bottle for local breweries, etc. I have started brewing my own beer and I would say it is comparable to a micro brewery and it costs me $35 for a kit that will make 48 bottles of beer.

Give it a try, its a lot of fun to do, and people get a kick out of it when they come over.

Colt 45.

Don't let the smooth taste fool ya.

Definitely going to try brewing my own beer. I'll be joining a brewing club soon so I'll be equipped to do it right

Never really got into Malt Liquor

I never minded the taste of Miller High Life, though became my favorite beer after they commissioned Errol Morris to do a few adverts. The fact that it's just about the cheapest thing in a cooler is just a bonus.

The absolute most uncontrollable portion of my budget is the amount of money I spend going out for drinks with colleagues and friends. Where I live, a round of drinks for 5 people can go anywhere from $25 to $60 depending on if it's just pints of lager or cocktails. It's a real issue trying to budget for that kind of large swing because some weeks I'll go by without a single night out and other weeks it's 2-3 nights, depending on events, and a 'big night' can get quite expensive...

try the cheaper brands to see what you like or drink less often a week and save the money for the better stuff

We used to drink maybe a beer or two once a week. We have cut that down to once every two weeks.

I don't mind shelling out $20 for a great bottle of wine; but if I spend that much, that's all I'll spend for the month. I like Trader Joe's for this reason, so I'm with the OP on this. If you don't know which wine to buy, ask the staff and tell them your budget. It's like having a personal sommlier!

I like the Tisdale label for wine. They are a bottled wine, and their Merlot and Shiraz are very nice. It's very reasonably priced as well. For parties, I'm inclined to use box wine. Quality for each "varietal" varies, but I've been pleased with Chablis and Blush from several makers. For more ideas about inexpensive box wine, see http://www.frugal-living-freedom.com/box-wine.html. For bottled wine, see http://www.frugal-living-freedom.com/good-cheap-wines.html.

A friend of mine in Texas is fond of Natural Light for beer. It's about as cheap as I've seen any beer. I'm more fond of dark beers, like Moose Drool, Oil Can Stout and 90 Shillings, so I have no recommendations to make for a good cheap beer.