The Wine Thread -- what have you been drinking?

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I like Zin, and I just got to taste a terrific one from Downing Family in Napa (Oakville to be precise) -- very restrained and elegant for a zin, which can be overly jammy and huge for my tastes.

Castle Rock cab is very very good for the money -- they're a Napa producer, but their cab is Washington fruit.

Jim, you sound like you're pretty into the Aussie stuff. I envy you getting to drink that Henschke -- sounds awesome. Have you Yalumba's unoaked chard? Very tasty.

― Clarke B., Thursday, 19 February 2004 05:55 (9 years ago) Permalink

"have you *tried*" duh

― Clarke B., Thursday, 19 February 2004 05:56 (9 years ago) Permalink

I am lazy and have been consuming a lot of Yalumba and Banrock Station cask chardonnay and semillions. For cask wines they aren't all that bad though (and certainly arent dirt cheap). Have a nice bottle of Yellowglen sparkling in the fridge we're gonna have after work I think, with a nice rare steak and some roast tatoes.

I cant drink reds, I'm allergic :(

― Trayce (trayce), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:06 (9 years ago) Permalink

I pity you Trayce.

― webcrack (music=crack), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:07 (9 years ago) Permalink

Sorry to hear, that Trayce. I've read that sulfite allergy is similar to lactose intolerance in that more people than you might expect suffer negligible to mild symptoms but don't even register the cause. You're definitely not alone; you probably just have a worse case than most people.

― Clarke B., Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:11 (9 years ago) Permalink

i haven't had the Yalumba, i'll get some on the weekend!

― the surface noise (electricsound), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:16 (9 years ago) Permalink

The odd thing is I can tolerate whites (though if I have too much, I wake up with a severe sinus headache). But reds, I get a nasty headache and blocked sinuses after a few mouthfuls, I really dunno why. If it was the sulfites, wouldnt white do it too? Maybe its the amines, or... I duno.

― Trayce (trayce), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:24 (9 years ago) Permalink

Jim - the Yalumby 2L casks are often on special and the chardonnay and columbard chard are quite drinkable, in that cheap and cheerful "have 6 glasses" kinda way.

― Trayce (trayce), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:25 (9 years ago) Permalink

Clarke, what wine store do you work in?

― webcrack (music=crack), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:27 (9 years ago) Permalink

If it's to be _only_ wine, I'll take zin. So tasty. Plus high alcohol, hurrah. Last year a buddy gave me a bottle of Heywood Estate Chamizal Zinfandel- I just realized that it's 93. I wonder if it has made it this far down the road. I think he got it cellar door, and presumably they'd know exactly how long to cellar it.

― Hunter (Hunter), Thursday, 19 February 2004 06:51 (9 years ago) Permalink

I'm all about spanish red's at the moment, big full bodied gutsy reds, very brash, not full bodied in the same way as a good Barbera or Pauillac, but much cheaper. Particular h9t was Torres Tempranillo, 2000 vintage, I know it's a big brand but very good nonetheless.

― Ed (dali), Thursday, 19 February 2004 11:15 (9 years ago) Permalink

BULLS BLOOD? Isn't that that terrible stuff that not even Lixi and I (who might I add, are well accustomed to Pollo's ~~keg~~house wine) could stomach? Or is it something with a similiar name?

I wished I had a bottle of wine whilst watching Foopballers Wive$ last night but I did not :(

― Sarah (starry), Thursday, 19 February 2004 11:26 (9 years ago) Permalink

My store's called Wine Warehouse. It's not part of a chain or anything, as the name might lead you to believe; the name is actually tongue-in-cheek, as our owner wanted to differentiate the place from boutique-y "bottle shops." We have a lot of smaller producers, and the owner and managers do an amazing job with quality control.

― Clarke B., Thursday, 19 February 2004 12:52 (9 years ago) Permalink

Milller High Life - the champagne of beer. I hate wine.

― Chris V (Chris V), Thursday, 19 February 2004 13:21 (9 years ago) Permalink

This thread is going to be hellish useful in determining when Matt Coastal is back from his holiday.

― Lynskey (Lynskey), Thursday, 19 February 2004 13:37 (9 years ago) Permalink

What did it ever do to you, Chris??

― Clarke B., Thursday, 19 February 2004 18:14 (9 years ago) Permalink

i just don't like the taste of it. and the breath it gives you is something else.

― Chris V (Chris V), Thursday, 19 February 2004 18:17 (9 years ago) Permalink

A bottle of Portuguese Palmella Garrefeirra awaits. I am very curious.

The label says J P Garrafeira 1995 Palmela. It's got some kind of D.O.C. style registration cert on the back. It's 100% Perequita varietal from Setubal peninsula, and I have no idea in hell what any of that is about, I've never had perequita. It's quite good. I think it's rather like a strong finishing Garnacha. You ever heard of this style Clarke? I got it on sale from a heavily raided case.

― Hunter (Hunter), Friday, 20 February 2004 05:14 (9 years ago) Permalink

Too much ok Rioja tonight, which led to me feeling too woozy to stick around and hear DJ Technics from Baltimore spin at my friend's party tonight. I'm now home, bummed and drunk. Gotta get up early for work anyhow.

― Jay Vee (Manon_70), Friday, 20 February 2004 06:50 (9 years ago) Permalink

bulls blood = gross. i remember some town in hungary.. eger i think its called. you can go visit the vineyards and if you bring a 2-liter bottle, they'll fill it with wine for like 10 cent.

― phil-two (phil-two), Friday, 20 February 2004 06:53 (9 years ago) Permalink

You rang?

― Matt (Matt), Friday, 20 February 2004 16:28 (9 years ago) Permalink

And, as currently stands the last wine I consumed was a fiendishly expensive Condrieu last night. Boo-ya.

― Matt (Matt), Friday, 20 February 2004 16:36 (9 years ago) Permalink

That strawberry stuff from Bonny Doon is still my wine of choice, but I can never find it here. Lately, if I'm drinking wine, I'm drinking Australian tokay (R.L. Buller & Son) or spumante with juice and tequila. I've been cooking with Cabernet Sauvignon when I use red, instead of the Merlots I'd been using almost exclusively for years, and I haven't yet decided if it's quite as versatile; the Pinot Grigio I use for a cooking white can be used for just about anything, but when I use red, I want it to work just as well with a dessert as it does with a beef stew or tomato sauce, and I'm not sure the Cab's pulling that for me.

― Tep (ktepi), Friday, 20 February 2004 16:41 (9 years ago) Permalink

I have almost finished the unwisely-purchased box of tedious red I had originally intended to use for mulling. It was cheap in Sainsburys.

― Markelby (Mark C), Friday, 20 February 2004 16:44 (9 years ago) Permalink

Bully Hill. I cannot believe that I found the mother load in Vermont, brought some back, and now I've only got one bottle left. Wahhh!!! Love My Goat, baby.

― The River Kate (kate), Friday, 20 February 2004 18:16 (9 years ago) Permalink

Tonight I have a Buzet, never heard of the region but it in the upper reaches of the Garonne, near Agen.

― Ed (dali), Friday, 20 February 2004 18:26 (9 years ago) Permalink

This evening I shall be imbibing a bottle of Faustino VII rioja from 2000, which cost me £6 from Threshers.

― Sick Nouthall (Nick Southall), Friday, 20 February 2004 18:30 (9 years ago) Permalink

The Buzet was very enjoyable, not heavy with a pleasantly acidic flavour rounded off with a rich woody fruity taste. One to remember I think.

― Ed (dali), Saturday, 21 February 2004 13:24 (9 years ago) Permalink

Chris V. wrote: Milller High Life - the champagne of beer. I hate wine.

The question now is, what is the Miller High Life of champagne?

Orbit wrote: The best under $20 Champagne/Sparking Wine is Domaine Ste. Michelle Extra dry

Yes!! Yes!! It's never let me down. I can't think of anything even close (quality-wise) for that price. (Suggestions?)

Hunter wrote: At $11 Duck Pond Willamette Pinot Noir is a pretty decent, and obv. way cheap for PN.

Seconded! I was surprised...good stuff.

― Ernest P. (ernestp), Saturday, 21 February 2004 20:41 (9 years ago) Permalink

Breton 1999 Lorinon Crianza Tinto's great; currently only $12 at wine.com

Also, there's a $5 Amontillado Sherry at Trader Joe's that's pretty decent for the price. That is, if we're counting fortified stuffs.

― The Second Drummer Drowned (Atila the Honeybun), Saturday, 21 February 2004 20:48 (9 years ago) Permalink

I downed a not insignificant portion of a bottle of Chateau Mouquet last night. The only problem was that I couldn't remember if it cost $4.99 or $12.99 at Trader Joes!

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Saturday, 21 February 2004 20:56 (9 years ago) Permalink

Some very dodgy spanich creme sherry that I got from oddbins for a fiver. I wanted harveys bristol cream, but they didn't have none. Boo hiss etc. It doesn't taste quite as paint thinnery as sherry sometimes can, but still quite odd. Nice picture on the bottle, though, of a lovely spanish missus. Ha-hem.

― The River Kate (kate), Saturday, 21 February 2004 21:06 (9 years ago) Permalink

Nipper To Thread!

(Me? Good South African white. Gosh, that's a strange form of words.)

― the winefox, Saturday, 21 February 2004 21:37 (9 years ago) Permalink

Trader Joe alert= sale + consistency (I hate getting a good bottle and then one that tastes like vinegar and socks)

Columbia Crest Merlot/Cabernet $3.99 Woo-hoo!!!!! has withstood the multiple bottle test! A nice tobacco-y but smooth wine, it has pretty good body and mild tannins, great able wine! I am doing the wine dance now. *hop* *hop*

― Orbit (Orbit), Saturday, 21 February 2004 23:09 (9 years ago) Permalink

This evening a chilean viognier. Following on from the condrieu I think I'm noticing a new trend...must drink red soon...

Orbit, inconsistency in most wine goes with the turf. I think I actually get more corked stuff than not. Go for screwcaps if you want consistency. Sadly, until the trade adopts them as an industry standard then you'll have to take your chances with most wines.

― Matt (Matt), Sunday, 22 February 2004 00:37 (9 years ago) Permalink

You've probably got overheated/badly stored wine; corked bottles happen, but heat damage happens a lot more.

― Orbit (Orbit), Sunday, 22 February 2004 01:18 (9 years ago) Permalink

Chilean viognier -- interesting! What was the Condrieu you had, Matt? I recently had a great Cote-du-Rhone white from Caillou that was half viognier, half grenache blanc. The grenache blanc pulled down some of the raging floral qualities that I like so much in viognier, but that made the wine more balanced and food-friendly, so I can't much complain.

Next up to try is a bottle of '98 Tablas Creek Rouge -- Paso Robles Rhone-styled blend of mourvedre, grenache, syrah, and counoise. I've heard nothing but good things about Tablas Creek stuff, so I'm anxious to try this. Those southern Rhone varietals rock me.

― Clarke B., Sunday, 22 February 2004 01:40 (9 years ago) Permalink

Montecillo Crianza, cheap from Trader Joe's.

― JuliaA (j_bdules), Sunday, 22 February 2004 05:39 (9 years ago) Permalink

1 month passes...

Time for a revival on this one; the Tablas Creek I mentioned in my last post ended up corked, which I think put me off of this thread by association.

Stolenbus and I are finishing up a bottle of 1999 Chateau Gueyrosse (St-Emilion Grand Cru) ($20 or so retail, but this bottle was a free sample -- thank you, job!), which has been extremely tasty. It's so nice to have a restrained, elegant wine once in a while. Everyone goes on and on about how BIG so-and-so California cabernet or Aussie shiraz is, and yeah it's fun to have a compeltely teeth-staining fruit bomb every once in a while, but come on. This wine has a soul, a personality -- it's there for you to talk to, to wonder about, not just to fuck.

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Monday, 29 March 2004 00:12 (9 years ago) Permalink

You make me jealous, sir.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 29 March 2004 00:32 (9 years ago) Permalink

...says Ned, a day-trip away from the best wine-growing regions on the continent. ;-)

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Monday, 29 March 2004 04:56 (9 years ago) Permalink

Ah maaan! Cheap WHITE! Duex boteilles! One bottle was mercilessly "half-inched" for the nightbus journey home but we couldn't bear to drink it. I tried to dispose of it in the bins before we got back into the flat, but my copain wouldn't let me!

When we woke up, I saw the bottle of wine. And instead of crying out loud in horror... I put it in the fridge, and we drank it that evening. Further proof that anything is nice just if it's VERY COLD.

― Sarah (starry), Monday, 29 March 2004 07:29 (9 years ago) Permalink

...says Ned, a day-trip away from the best wine-growing regions on the continent. ;-)

I know what I'm doing. ;-)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 29 March 2004 07:47 (9 years ago) Permalink

I have no doubt that you do, Ned!

I'm interested in the Trader Joe's phenomenon -- they seem to be extremely effective tastemakers. How many of you will buy something based solely on a Trader Joe's recommendation? How reliable do you find them in terms of finding good values?

Beer is more my everyday beverage; I tend to spend a little more on wines and drink them less frequently. I'd rather have an $18-$20 wine once a week than a $9-$10 wine twice a week. That's not to discount good value wines under $10 -- I definitely have my share of them, too -- but I think I've finally gotten my palate to the point where that extra bit of quality and complexity can make a real difference in my enjoyment of a bottle.

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Monday, 29 March 2004 21:43 (9 years ago) Permalink

They usually come up with a good enough blend of 'hey, it's cheap to try' and 'come on, the description's just useful enough, isn't it?'

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 29 March 2004 21:46 (9 years ago) Permalink

What Ned said and:

Trader Joe's carries a bunch of wines (100 or so?) from all over the world priced between $2 and $15. The thing is, none of them are really terrible. If it's sold at TJ's, then they've tasted it for themselves and will sell it, usually for much cheaper than at any other store. I don't think they're "tastemakers" or that I rely on their "recommendation", but if it's sold at Trader Joe's then it's probably drinkable and there's probably nowhere else to get it cheaper.

― Spencer Chow (spencermfi), Monday, 29 March 2004 21:49 (9 years ago) Permalink

I look forward to being able to visit a TJs on my next trip out west, for sure. No, I'm glad to see things besides Robert P*rker influencing what people buy, don't get me wrong. $2 a bottle is unreal, though! You'd think the bottle itself would cost more than that!

Related question, and pertinent to something I'm thinking about/working on right now: do you approach wine (and/or beer) with the same aesthetic rigor as you do music? In what sense? The more I learn about wine, the more I feel comfortable evaluating it aesthetically, even down to things like petty, playful disses based on the type of person who buys a given wine. Maybe this question deserves its own thread...

― Clarke B. (Clarke B.), Monday, 29 March 2004 22:00 (9 years ago) Permalink

I like indie wines.

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 29 March 2004 22:01 (9 years ago) Permalink

I look forward to being able to visit a TJs on my next trip out west, for sure.

...when you meet up with all of us properly I HOPE AND TRUST.

The more I learn about wine, the more I feel comfortable evaluating it aesthetically, even down to things like petty, playful disses based on the type of person who buys a given wine.

! Are you turning into Christgau?

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 29 March 2004 22:04 (9 years ago) Permalink

i drank a lot of malbec last night, trapiche '02. it was excellent but now my head hurts.

― lauren (laurenp), Monday, 29 March 2004 22:06 (9 years ago) Permalink

Skipping 470 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

'Good intensity with beautiful raspberry fruit. Good weight on the palate with a clean Pinot Noir purity, elegant with a good balance, finesse and long length. '

hmmmn

― Nilmar Honorato da Silva, Monday, 5 November 2012 22:31 (6 months ago) Permalink

Also, the rooster wine actualy has a goat on it, but at some point it was a rooster, I think. And both are $4.99 here (LA area) rather than the $5.99 mentioned in the link I posted.

DJP: Your dad's wine as in a favorite of his, or one he's involved in making?

― nickn, Monday, 5 November 2012 23:01 (6 months ago) Permalink

appelation minnesota contrôlée

― Nilmar Honorato da Silva, Monday, 5 November 2012 23:02 (6 months ago) Permalink

how do you grow grapes in the american version of siberia?

― Nilmar Honorato da Silva, Monday, 5 November 2012 23:03 (6 months ago) Permalink

OK, followed the link. Perry Vineyard! How large is the label, production-wise?

― nickn, Monday, 5 November 2012 23:04 (6 months ago) Permalink

University of MN has an excellent agriculture dept all about creating delicious hardy fruits and vegetables to grow in the MN climate

Dad's vineyard is super small, with about 200 vines. He made about 30 cases of wine in the batch he submitted to the fair

― Gandalf’s Gobble Melt (DJP), Tuesday, 6 November 2012 12:06 (6 months ago) Permalink

in a fit of tightwaddedness i bought a bottle of 2 buck chuck: a charles shaw 2011 california chardonnay. it did the job and didn't taste revolting, but that's about all i can say about it.

also finally scored a bottle of j sparkling wine (the last one at whole foods) i've been looking for one since i had a really delicious bottle of the stuff back in '97, but this bottle tasted nothing like champagne - it was as if regular wine had become carbonated. not particularly impressed this time.

also, if you are going to try to re-enact the champagne blowjob scene from espedair street, i suggest you keep the bubbly at room temperature, not freezing cold, right out of the fridge etc

― messiahwannabe, Thursday, 15 November 2012 21:37 (6 months ago) Permalink

I picked up some Juan Gil Jumilla (Spain) yesterday. An earlier vintage got listed on one of those glossy wine mags in their "100 best of the year" roundup. It is very good and about $17. Vons supermarkets are having a 30% off everything sale with an extra 10% off if you buy 6 of anything, so I got it for under $11. Also picked up some Poppy Pinot Noir for about $8, also something I've had before and liked.

― nickn, Thursday, 15 November 2012 22:04 (6 months ago) Permalink

That one Vons I went to has a pretty impressive wine selection, with a special locked room where I could see $200+ bottles on sale. Never asked to go in, because that's out of my range.

Also a good beer selection.

― nickn, Thursday, 15 November 2012 22:06 (6 months ago) Permalink

1 month passes...

Domaine Grand Cotes du Jura Trousseau 2010 (Jura, France): For some reason, my initial reaction was this wine tastes a bit like beer: I think my mother will like it. The Wikipedia entry for Jura wines states that yeast is used in the production of vin jaune. It is a light-bodied red, however, and has low alcohol content, unlike what is claimed in various Wikipedia entries.

― youn, Monday, 7 January 2013 01:46 (4 months ago) Permalink

vin jaune is aged like seven years in casks

― things that are jokes pretty much (Nilmar Honorato da Silva), Monday, 7 January 2013 01:47 (4 months ago) Permalink

that sounds like a pretty nice wine anyway, maybe like an alsace pinot noir or something? i would like to try more wines from places like jura and savoie

― things that are jokes pretty much (Nilmar Honorato da Silva), Monday, 7 January 2013 01:49 (4 months ago) Permalink

the other day i had some argentine malbec/syrah which was total dogshit and conceivably the worst wine in the world not containing antifreeze, assuming it didn't contain antifreeze

― things that are jokes pretty much (Nilmar Honorato da Silva), Monday, 7 January 2013 01:51 (4 months ago) Permalink

Malbec/Syrah sounds like a weird blend. I usually avoid those 50/50 blends - I had a Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay once that was pretty nasty.

― o. nate, Monday, 7 January 2013 01:55 (4 months ago) Permalink

The different wines that go into rose seem interesting together. For white wines, it seems the most you can do is to use sweet wines for effect. I think I've had good Semillon/Sauvignon blanc. I also remember liking the Qupe Marsanne Roussanne.

― youn, Monday, 7 January 2013 03:22 (4 months ago) Permalink

well semillon/s.v. is p. standard bordeaux shit; malbec/shirz is more like we don't know wtf we're doing

― an eagle named "small government" (call all destroyer), Monday, 7 January 2013 04:19 (4 months ago) Permalink

no it's like whatever the worst cheapest shit to bulk buy and sell we can stick in a bottle for something that costs barely more than the excise tax

usually different varietals are combined maybe 70:30 or 80:20, many of the famous bordeaux wines tend to be either merlot or cabernet sauvignon heavy, or better mendoza wines might be predominantly malbec with some cabernet sauvignon

it's less common to employ a roughy equal amount of two different wines, at least in the old world, though you might find it with grenache/syrah or grenache/tempranillo in southern france and spain, and in australia/chile/etc it tends to be pretty entry level stuff

― things that are jokes pretty much (Nilmar Honorato da Silva), Monday, 7 January 2013 10:34 (4 months ago) Permalink

The 2009 Dee Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is pretty good value for about $12.

― o. nate, Monday, 21 January 2013 03:31 (4 months ago) Permalink

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