That towering wall of wine bottles can be darn intimidating.

Cabernets, chardonnays, pinot grigios, pinot noirs, white zinfandels, red zinfandels, merlots – from places near (Illinois, with our French-American hybrid grapes and fruit wines) and far (Australia, France, Italy, Spain and Chile to name but a few). And you have to find one that you like.

You can find that wine by pure chance, like blindly picking out a bottle just because it has a striking label. Or you can do more thorough research, like going to a tasting at a wine shop or reading reviews from wine publications and surfing the Internet. Friends can also be a big help with their suggestions.

Well, I want to be your friend. And so do eight readers who sent in their favorite, less than $20 house wines. A house wine is a wine you always have on hand because it is good and it is inexpensive. Yes, "good" really can co-exist with "inexpensive" when it comes to wine – it just takes some serious searching.

I did not get the chance to try all the 13 wines recommended by the eight readers who sent me their suggestions. But I did try some of them – and enjoyed them. A big thank you to everyone who took the time to write. Readers' favorite house wines (my comments follow) include:

Bruce Nix of Monticello recommends a dry Tuscan red, the 2007 Aquila D'Oro Toscana, that's "dirt cheap" (less than $5 a bottle) at Trader Joe's.

Me: Bruce, I will try the wine when you and other Trader Joe's fans convince corporate to build an oft-rumored store somewhere in Champaign-Urbana.

Al Hintz of Danville likes wines on the sweeter side and there's certainly nothing wrong with that. Al and his wife like two wines from Pheasant Hollow, a southern Illinois winery located at Whittington, the Black & Blue (blackberry- and blueberry-flavored wine) and the Red & Blue, cherry- and blueberry-flavored wine), both about $11. The wines are pretty widely available from several Champaign-Urbana wine retailers. The Hintzes also like Beringer white zinfandel, $6, the most popular white zinfandel on the planet.

Me: Several people sent me wine recommendations that are on the sweeter side and it might be a good idea for wine shops to have a "sweet wine" – not a dessert wine – section. Many Midwesterners have a sweeter palate and wines with a higher sugar content have long been the bestsellers at Illinois wineries.

I got a message via Twitter from <@>emcook about two Cycles Gladiator wines, a label of the Hahn Family Wines group of Soledad, Calif. She loves the syrah and chardonnay, both around $10.

Me: I tried the Cycles Gladiator syrah – love the label, by the way – and liked it a lot. It's a chewy, juicy, meaty red with aromas of plum, dark cherry, black raspberry and even a bit of pencil lead (a good thing). It has flavors of dark cherry, ripe plum, black raspberry, white pepper and a nice, long finish. With good acidity, this would also be nice accompaniment with a hearty meal like lasagna. Think of it as Pavarotti on a bicycle. Very good.

J.L. Knell of Champaign enjoys a glass of the 2007 White River chenin blanc from South Africa. "At under $14 a bottle it's a true steal," he writes. "Wonderful light flavor (not too fruity) makes it great with most meals and also make it a nice drink on its own." As for reds, Knell prefers "most any Spanish Rioja."

Me: J.L.: I looked for the White River, but could not find it. I will, however, keep my eyes open and hopefully find a bottle for a future tasting.

Sandy Arthur of Arcola and her husband enjoy the occasional glass of Gallo moscato (about $8 for a 1.5-liter bottle and widely available).

"It is somewhat sweet, but we keep it on hand," she writes. "It's good with food or just enjoying a glass when we get in at night."

Me: Thank you for writing Sandy. I did not get a chance to try the moscato but will try to buy a bottle for a future tasting.

Jeanne A. Walsh of Loda has a thoughtful daughter who introduced her to the Herding Cats chardonnay. The wine is a pleasure "in taste and price," Walsh writes. It sells for around $10 a bottle and I found it on sale for $8.

Me: From an Internet search, this winery appears to specialize in blends and I could not find a chardonnay, but only the chenin blanc/chardonnay blend (the winery also makes a chardonnay/viognier blend, in addition to a couple of red blends), so Jeanne I hope this is what you had in mind.

The chenin blanc/chard blend tastes like a sunshiney, summery afternoon. It's is very good with its tight structure and flavors of peach, tropical fruit (ripe pineapple) and marshmallow. It has a yeasty nose of peach and tropical fruit. With nice acidity, this would also be a good food wine. I also liked the label of two sprinting cheetahs. Very good.

Lisa Storm Fink of Philo wrote via Twitter and "loves the Beviamo moscato d'asti, $11 at Sam's or Friar Tuck. Cool blue bottle, too!"

Me: Lisa, they no longer carry the Beviamo at Friar Tuck and I did not make it to Sam's. Moscato d'asti, a fruity, light and fizzy wine, also makes me think of summer, sunshine and picnics. Although I'm more of a prosecco kind-of-guy when it comes to Italian sparklers, a good moscato d'asti can be a nice alternative.

Randy Cordle, who lives in my southern Champaign County neighborhood in rural Sadorus (I'm next door in rural Pesotum), recommends two house wines: the Barefoot zinfandel (I bought it on sale for $7) and the Peter Vella cabernet sauvignon boxed wine (about $15 for a 5-liter box).

"I will say that this hands down my favorite red zin at any price," Cordle writes about the Barefoot. And about the Peter Vella, he adds "I used to turn my nose up at box wine, but this is really pretty nice, if a bit nondescript. But hey, it meets the drinkable, but affordable criteria."

Me: The barefoot is an easy-drinking zinfandel, with a nose of dark cherry and red raspberry and a flavor dominated by dark cherry with a bit of red raspberry and red licorice thrown in for good measure. A good buy for a zinfandel, although I prefer zins with more of a jammy, blackberry profile. Not that it matters, but I'm not crazy about the label. It made me think of someone dipping his or her purple foot in my wine glass.