Good God, I ventured into Tesco, Dooradoyle, Limerick on Thursday night. That’s the evening before Good Friday, when alcohol can’t be sold. It was like a battlefield. You’d swear Irish people would never ever be able to get hold of a bottle of chardonnay for ever more! Anyway, if you decide to battle through any other day of Easter weekend, these are the top alcohol offers going in the supermarkets;
Tesco
Wine: Half-price ‘Finest’ range of wines, including Block 3 Pinot Grigio down to €8. Also JJ McWilliam Shiraz down from €13.99 to €5, and Vina Sol down from €9.35 to €7. Usual suspects of Faustino, Carmen and Santa Rita are €7, €9, and €9 respectively. *Currently* ( could not seem to find the answer to when this was ending) offering 25% off six bottles of wine.
Beer: Tins and bottle offers include €10 for 8 Beamish (cans), 12 Kopparberg Pear (cans). Also €10 for 15 Stella, 12 Brahma, 15 Becks (all bottles) or 8 Budweiser or 8 Carlsberg (both cans). €15 for 20 Budweiser, 24 Stella or 20 Carlsberg (bottles).
Liquor: Hard stuff offers include €10 Smirnoff Cosmo or Mojitos, €15 for 70cl Smirnoff, 70cl Bushmills, 70cl Gordon’s Gin and 70cl Captain Morgan.
Aldi
Wine: Aldi Booze specials include Macon Villages fpr €6.99 and Terra Del Sol Reserva Sauvignon Blanc for €7.99. The Pinot Grigio Frizzante looks pretty and appealing for a sunny day, and is priced at just €5.99.
Beer: Budweiser is €1.88 per can, not really comparing well to Tesco’s €1.25 per can. Also up for beer are some Premier Largers, the ‘Breda Loyal’ at €1.19 each, or Brasserie Premium French Larger at €4.49 for a pack of ten bottles. Rheinbacher
Liquor: Old Hopking 1599 Premium Gin for €12.99 (Best Gin as voted by International Wine and Spirit Competition 2010), Avoca Irish Whiskey for €15.99.
Lidl
Wine: 6 Bottles of Chianti for €19.96, 6 Bottles of Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon for €21.16, Soave Classico for €19.96. SIX bottles for the same price as two high-end cocktails? Bargain-central as far as I’m concerned! Ooh, and as for the fizzy stuff? €14.99 for French Comte de Brismand Champagne Brut Reserve. Down from €17.99? Not enormous, but enough to toast to! Oh, and this Saturday it’s €4.49 for the Spanish Tarragona Gran Reserva. It comes in a metal net-thingie. That must mean it’s good, right?
Supervalu
Wine: Lots of half-price wines, including Pierre Darcys Champagne 75cl Now €19, Barciño Cava Brut 75cl Now €9, Lone Kauri Sauvignon Blanc 75cl Now €7, Canto Novo Pinot Grigio 75cl Was €11.99 Now €6, Marques De Atillo Rioja 75cl Now €6
Beer: €12 for 12 Corona bottles, and 20 bottles of Budweiser, Carling and Carlsberg for €15.
Liquor: Powers Whiskey 70cl Save €4.99, Smirnoff Vodka 70cl Save €4.90,
Dunnes
Wine: Plenty of wines reduced for Easter, including Monastier Cabernet Sauvingon, Chardonnay and Shiraz, at €6.99, Torres Vina Sol or Sangre de Toro at €7.
Half-price Shloer too if anybody’s being good!
Superquinn
Wine: There’s a special on Italian wines in Superquinn at the moment, meaning it’s a great time to get your Frascati (€6), Chianti (€10) and Prosecco (€12).
Beer: 20pk bottle Budweiser / Carlsberg for €17, 12 330ml bottles of Tiger for €15 and if you’re really gearing up for a party, a 5l keg of Heineken is €18.
Liquor: 70cl bottles of Jack Daniels are reduced to €22.99, Southern Comfort for €18.99 and Hennessey for €26.99
Convenience Stores
Centra’s offering 20 bottles of 300ml Budweiser for €15, half price Marques de Atillo Rioja / Canto Nova Pinto Grigio / Espritu De Chile Reserva Privada Cab Sauv / Sauv Blanc – €6 each. Also included is €9 for 350ml Smirnoff, or €11 for 350ml Captain Morgan. Beer offers include €10 for 8 x 500ml Budweiser / Carlsberg Can Park, or €15 for 20 x 300ml bottles.
Images via Tesco.ie