You don’t need to spend $300 per person to have a great food and wine pairing. Besides, sommeliers can be snooty, driving drunk is dumb and dangerous and, economically, times are tougher than a cell mate named “Nasty Nate.” 


Fortunately, there’s a way to deliver a divine seven-course pairing for seven people at $25 a head. Here’s how a handful of friends and I pulled it off, keeping in mind that this is a loose guide with approximate food prices and modest portions designed to inspire similar wine seeking and resourcefulness, not define strict marching orders:


It’s always nice to start with an aperitif, so we put Dubonnet Rouge, France ($15 at Safeway) on the rocks and garnished it with a twist. This works perfectly with Spanish olives and olive oil garnished with orange zest ($5). 


Once it’s time for everyone to sit down, we pour the multi-vintage Zonin Prosecco from Veneto, Italy ($6.99 at Trader Joe’s) into champagne flutes. The light-colored bubbly is crisp and cleanses the palette, making a good match for the chilled butternut squash soup ($5 at Trader Joe’s). We served the soup in a shot glass for style points.


The 2009 Espiral Alvarinho, Vino Verde, Portugual ($3.99 at Trader Joe’s) comes next, with intense acidity and a touch of lively lemon-life. The slightly effervescent wine has great minerality; it pairs perfectly with blue point oysters ($1.25 each at Sea Harvest) dipped in a mignonette sauce.


The 2008 Louis Latour “Grande Ardeche’” Chardonnay, Languedoc, France ($7.99 at Trader Joe’s) is gold in color and buttery with pineapple nuances. French Chardonnay is usually crisper, but this one has a fat California style. A bacon-wrapped scallop over sautéed spinach ($10 at Safeway) is a rich dish and therefore complements the wine like a big swell does Mavericks.


Pinot Noir is a good transition into the reds because the tannins are soft and it’s one of the lightest red wine varietals. The 2009 Vintjs Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, Oregon ($8.99 at Trader Joe’s) works well with a Archer Farms wild mushroom risotto ($1.99/box at Target), but it represents the least favorite wine of the evening. To do things differently, we could invest more money on this course, since inexpensive Pinot Noir that tastes good does not really exist.


The next wine is the serious 2004 Graeser Cabernet Sauvignon, Diamond Mountain, California ($25, from a friend’s cellar). This heavyweight is earthy, dusty and juicy. Unlike some Napa Cabernets that are over-oaked, alcoholy and lacking distinction, this gem was complex like a Dostoevsky novel. The roasted beef sirloin over polenta with au jus ($15 at Trader Joe’s) makes this tannic wine taste like butter.


Most people think a cheese course demands a sweet wine. Not true. Think of the wine as your coffee and the cheese as your half and half. The 2006 Macrostie “Wildcat Mountain Vineyard” Syrah, Sonoma, California ($25 at Costco) is dark, tannic and offers complex nuances of blueberries and black pepper and is perfect with Comté and Morbiere cheese served with apple slices and tropical fruit jam ($10 at Trader Joe’s). The cheese is pungent and would’ve overpowered a delicate Pinot Noir. In fact, the Morbiere is so powerful that it smells like a funky locker room – but many people go ga-ga for that sort of stinky cheese. A big wine like Zinfandel would also work well with this course.


It’s savvy to serve a wine that’s sweeter than your dessert so it isn’t overwhelmed. Therefore, the M.V. Grahams “Six Grapes” Port, Portugual ($15.99 at Safeway) makes sense. Although the wine is sweet and thick, it has enough acidity to invite another sip. This was the most full-bodied wine of the evening, so we served it last. The chocolate fondue with madeleine cookies ($10 at Trader Joe’s) was light and fluffy yet still decadent and rich.


The sum experience begs the question: Why pay $300 a person when you can do it for $25 at home? It takes some work, but if you love food and wine, creating a memorable evening is simple. Everyone has an amazing time moving through the menu together. By the end of the night, we were singing songs, passing the guitar around and laughing, which made for a scene that’s hard to picture in a stuffy restaurant.