• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

OT: calling all wine connoisseurs and wine snobs.

Started by catal77,

184 posts in this topic

TonyStarkFan

TonyStarkFan

Posted
Posted

If you have a Trader Joe's near you, I would suggest that you check them out. They have a quite substantial selection of red wine for decent prices. They have a pinot noir there that can't be beat for price and taste. I believe that the price is around $ 8.99 per bottle. I don't recall the exact name of the wine, but I believe that it is the Trader Joe's Reserve. It has decorative writing all over the bottle. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
seank

seank

Posted
Posted
If you have a Trader Joe's near you, I would suggest that you check them out. They have a quite substantial selection of red wine for decent prices. They have a pinot noir there that can't be beat for price and taste. I believe that the price is around $ 8.99 per bottle. I don't recall the exact name of the wine, but I believe that it is the Trader Joe's Reserve. It has decorative writing all over the bottle. :)

 

If you have a Trader Joe's near you, stay away from the two-buck Chuck. It's swill. But you can get some very nice wines for nice prices there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
trmoore54

trmoore54

Posted
Posted
Any California Cabernet from a decent winery will do for starters. BV, Mondavi, Stag's Leap, and Beringer are not too expensive (as long as they aren't the Reserve varieties) and pretty reliable.

 

For more adventure, try an Australian Shiraz.

Australian wines are the best in my opinion. Napa is next.
:o

 

Austailian wines CANNOT hold a candle to California wines, inclusive of Sonoma and other regions...so there! :sumo:

 

(NOTE: This is not an opinion...this is a FACT!) :censored:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
trmoore54

trmoore54

Posted
Posted
I live in central California. I bartended my way through college in a high end fine dining restaurant and I have had a great love of wine for over 10 years. I have over 100 bottles around at any given time. I think for the money you cannot go wrong with California wines from the central cost Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, etc. They can compete all day long with the Napa big boys but at a lesser price. Napa wines are world class but you pay extra for it being a Napa wine. Same thing for Sonoma but slightly less so.

 

It is hard to recommend a wine for someone when you don’t know their taste so I recommend that you just drink a bunch of wine. Get together with some friends and family, go to bevmo or Costco or wherever and pick up several bottles and have tasting parties.

 

I also go wine tasting at the wineries around Paso Robles a couple times a year and I am in several wine clubs.

 

In the end go with what you like, price does not mean all that much but I have to be honest, cheap wine can be good but it is still cheap wine. Like comic books there are deals to be had but you get what you pay for. I have paid $100.00 for a bottle I thought was garbage and I am drinking a $18 bottle right now that I think is heaven. :cloud9:

 

The only rule is that there are no rules, go with what you like!

 

Now I must return to my drinking. :applause:

 

Bonny Doon in Santa Cruz puts out some great wines...can't go wrong...try their blend Le Cigare Volante...sublime... :headbang:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
trmoore54

trmoore54

Posted
Posted

OK...I'm no expert but have loved wine and have been drinking wine for a long time...I'm a red man and my wife is a white woman (she is a white woman but in this case I'm referring to wines...primarily dry chardonnays and their european versions as well)...

 

Like the tenor in the movie Sideways, I'm not a big fan of Merlot...but I realize there's some good ones out there...

 

As previously expressed, you will pay a premium for Napa wines...10 years ago there were maybe 100 wineries in Napa and now there are over 850 so there's a lot to navigate through...but the best ones are worth it and there are a TON of great $20-range wines out there. Of course, if you want to spring $100 for a nice Dominus cab that is some righteous stuff...along with just about anything from the Stag's Leap region...2004 was a very good year for CA Cab...

 

There's also a trend (finally) in CA wines to scale back on the big alcohol wines 14+ % alcohol), both red and white, which I'm pleased about...

 

In general, without knowing everyone's taste, I have a tendency to gravitate toward the lighter wines such as Pinot, Sirah and blends in the warmer months and Cabs and heavier blends in the cooler months (but again, not a hard and fast thing)...

 

Oregon makes some fantastic Pinots as well...

 

Just about everything decent I've tried from Spain lately is killer...

 

Argentina is making some great progress with the Malbec...

 

I could go on and on and on but gotta run...

 

And as previously stated, the best advice...drink lots of different wines and drink what you like! If you join an on-line monthly club, or go to a wholesaler such as BevMo or Costco...buy two at least of each new wine you're trying and then the ones you really like, if you'd like to start collecting and laying some down for further aging, order a half-case or case of it depending on your budget...

 

:headbang:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
seank

seank

Posted
Posted
well i think i am gonna have awine tasting with some friends and family . i will pick up bottles recommended in this thread. iwill then let everyone know if we liked any of them.

 

Great idea. Wine is best shared with friends and family.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
EvilAsh

EvilAsh

Posted
Posted
well i think i am gonna have awine tasting with some friends and family . i will pick up bottles recommended in this thread. iwill then let everyone know if we liked any of them.

 

Great idea. Wine is best shared with friends and family.

 

Exactly! ^^

Link to comment
Share on other sites
catal77

catal77

Posted
  • Author
Posted

I really dont know the differences between cabernet , merlot , shiraz or chianti. So every body if you will post up your top 3 or 5 of each if you will. I will be hitting up specs tomorrow for a couple of bottles.

 

A buddy of mine collects wine and swears by this stuff.

 

Screaming Eagle.

 

hm

 

You might want to try a good Bryant Family cab as well...$1000 and up for many vintages in most restaurants... :devil:

http://www.winezap.com/Bryant-Family-Vineyard-Cabernet-Sauvignon/0/2884

 

Thats a little too rich for my blood.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
szelim

szelim

Posted
Posted
My favorite red,

Rosemount Estate Diamond Label Shiraz :cloud9:

 

bottle_dia_shiraz_img.jpg

 

I actually cannot stand wine...bad hangovers...but that is my favorite red of anything I have ever tried. Splendid.

 

:applause:^^

:headbang:

 

Another vote for Rosemont Shiraz.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
seank

seank

Posted
Posted
I really dont know the differences between cabernet , merlot , shiraz or chianti. So every body if you will post up your top 3 or 5 of each if you will. I will be hitting up specs tomorrow for a couple of bottles.

 

 

Merlot: fruitier and a bit sweeter

Cabernet: Dry

Shiraz/Sirah (Same grape): berries and pepper

Chianti: between Cabernet and Sirah.

 

In order from sweetest to dryest: Merlot, Chianti, Sirah, Cabernet.

 

Pinot Noir and Red Zinfandel are in the middle of that scale, in that order, between Chianti and Sirah. There's also Petite Sirah, which, despite its name, will grab you by the throat and shake. Its Sirah on steriods.

 

Best to find a good local wine store/source and ask lots of questions. If they act snooty, get the hell out of there and go somewhere else.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
PovertyRow

PovertyRow

Posted
Posted

Well, Cata, while there have been many recommendations two important things are letting the red wine breath (this was brought up) but also serving it at the right temperature.

 

As far as breathing the wine can be decanted or it can be poured from several inches above the glass (aim for the center). Check Goolge for "letting wine breath" for tips.

 

Then with temperature, the old adage that red wine should be served at "room temperature" should be discarded unless you live in a castle or a cave! :grin:

 

Depending on the wine the serving temperature for reds can vary from about 59F to 68F. Just hit Google and search on "red wine temperature" and you'll find many hits on the first page that will break this down for you. It is actually better to serve it a little on the colder side of the range as it will soon warm up in the glass.

 

I remember being at an Italian restaraunt on one of San Francisco's rare very warm (about 90) days. The restaraunt was hot and, I ordered a bottle of red first thing. As I suspected, it was as hot as the room. A guaranteed "alcohol" hit that is very unpleasant. They were a bit confused when I sent it back to be refirgerated for about 20 minutes. Never went back there - was in Portrero area.

 

So it IS possible that some of the wines you have tried may actually be much more to your liking if they are allowed to breath properly and are served at the right temperature.

 

Also - do not try to be sophisticated by cupping the wine glass in your palm. All that does is warm the wine up.

 

My taste in red wine runs to Chiantis, Sangiovese and lesser proced Tuscan and Sicilian reds. Things lime Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvigon I have a real problem with. I think it boils down to a dislike of really complex reds.

 

On the other side, I have been a 37 year fan of German Rieslings. Back in Boston even liquor store chains like Martignetti's would have easily 30 or more German Reislings. (Don't include Black Cat or Blue Nun and their ilk in these - they are pretty dreskish). Here in San Francisco they are much less common. A good German riesling will have some sweetness but wonderfully balanced with tannins and fruit and flower and earth. Actually a truly astonishing experience.

 

For the folks reading this who know the German wines - my first experience was when I turned 21 in 1971. To celebrate I got a 1966 Bernkastler Badstube Lay Trockenbeerenauslese. I also bought a 1966 Gruard LaRose (French Bordeaux) at the same time. At only 5 years old they both were a bit young but I had no idea what I was buying. I was just celebrating turing 21 by spending $70 for two bottles of wine. The red I loathed and my friends drank it. The German freaked me (and the rest of us) out and I started reading about them and buying 3 different bottles of different German rieslings a week to try with my friends. I made a scrapbok (about 60 different labels) with notes but it got lost in one of my moves. Dagnabbit!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
szelim

szelim

Posted
Posted
I really dont know the differences between cabernet , merlot , shiraz or chianti. So every body if you will post up your top 3 or 5 of each if you will. I will be hitting up specs tomorrow for a couple of bottles.

 

 

Merlot: fruitier and a bit sweeter

Cabernet: Dry

Shiraz/Sirah (Same grape): berries and pepper

Chianti: between Cabernet and Sirah.

 

In order from sweetest to dryest: Merlot, Chianti, Sirah, Cabernet.

 

Pinot Noir and Red Zinfandel are in the middle of that scale, in that order, between Chianti and Sirah. There's also Petite Sirah, which, despite its name, will grab you by the throat and shake. Its Sirah on steriods.

 

Best to find a good local wine store/source and ask lots of questions. If they act snooty, get the hell out of there and go somewhere else.

Petite Sirah is awesome! Especially Stags' Leap - it'll knock you off your feet. Not for the meek.

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites
VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted

If there is one thing I have learned from this thread it's that you guys spend way too much time drinking wine.

 

Seriously, like anything it's a personal and acquired taste. One person's wine will be another person's vinegar.

 

Seank had what I think was the best pointers for finding out a wine that suits your tastes.

 

Good luck!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Go to topic listing