The Wine Thread -- what have you been drinking?

Bonny Doon Big House Red - cheap and great!

Hitori Musume Junmainigori Sake - The most traditional and complex Nigori out there at this price (~$20/720mL).

Sheesh Gygax, Randal Grahm's jock is going to start charging you rent pretty soon!

Haha, nah, I that wine *is* really solid, although this time of year, my thoughts turn more towards the equally cheap and great Pacific Rim Dry Riesling...

ooh i do like a nice Blass red.. good choice Nick

cb, i have been a fan since 97... did you ever see the wine spectator feeture on him?

Haven't seen that, Gygax, but I'd love to; I have a ton of respect for the guy. The wine industry could definitely use more iconoclasts, and a better sense of humor.

he is sadly very ill. he has some sort of spinal infection, and has essentially had to step away from the helm of Bonny Doon, which I phear has resulted in the steepening decline in the quality of their wines: the Cardinal Zin is truly rotten. i believe they are trying to grow to a million case brand, which would put it up with some pretty homogenized CA producers. but, for Doonistas - Big House Pink, formerly Vin Gris de Cigare. Old Telegram is still pretty choice, and their Vin du Glacier Muscat is luscious

i had no idea... that is very horrible news. any links?

Some Añoranza White from the Airen region of La Macha in SPain which tasted a good deal bettert than the fiver I paid for it. Spain is turning up some incredible bargains at the moment.

I was a very big fan of the Big House Red 01, then tried the 02 and thought it was sorta meh. I don't say that as confirmation of the alleged decline of quality of their wine in general tho. Local seemed to be clearing out the 01 and I bought a bunch at $8per, so yay.

As these inexpensive mongrel red table wines seem all the rage now, any other recommendations? I bought one from Washington the other day cos it was way cheap, it had something bad/corky going on...

I last had their riesling like 3 years ago and it was very tasty but that very well might be the ONLY reisling I've ever had.

Yesterday I saw--low carb wine. Fucking Fatkins.

I am somewhat obsessed with Bully Hill (upstate NY) wines these days. They are super cheap and kind of odd. Sadly, I live in the People's Republic of Montgomery County, MD, which retains a monopoly on wine sales and makes it difficult for me to get my goat. Any New Yorkers who would like to arrange to illegally send me a mixed case would be showered with my undying love and affection.

Anyhow, check out their website. The place has a bizarre history and cool label art.

I'd love to try some NY wines, but man are they hard to find in central Virginia.

That is terrible news about Grahm -- what an amazing person. I hope things improve on that front.

Ed, Spain is an amazing source for affordable fine wines, especially right now. I hope they don't get infected by over-inflation like some areas I know (*cough* California *cough*). I could put together a mixed case for barely over $100 of just killer wines, both red and white.

Over-inflation? surely you jest.

It's really just the boutique wineries that seem to know no price ceiling -- I mean, really, there are California cabernets out there for $50 and up (way, way up) which in no way deserve to fetch that sort of price. But people pay for these wines, vintage after vintage, people whose financial resources are exceeded only by their gullibility.

It's wine bonanza time at the moment as Morrisons have bought out Safeways which is bad long term (Morrison's list is distinctly less interesting than safeways) but great at the moment as lots of good wine is getting sold off cheap. There's a fabulous '97 Graves for a fiver which I'm going through a lot of at the moment.

i'm drinking an '01 beresford shiraz. very dry..

we've had lots of great and fairly cheap stuff from oddbins recently. unfortunately i haven't paid all that much attention to what it's been, because my flatmate has been in charge of the wine buying recently on account of her knowing loads more about it than me, cos she had to learn lots about wine for work (!).

We've just finished our last bottle of Viognier, which is a damn shame as it's lovely, can't remember which Vineyard it's from though. We need a trip to France quite urgently, we're running desperately short of whites and down to our last ten bottles or so of red. Mind you a small revelation we've had is the Banrock station shiraz box - decently drinkable and way less than a tenner in France.

oh for a car. and a driving license, come to think of it.

I'm in the midst of one of the most sublime wine experiences I've ever had. My birthday is this coming Saturday, so I bought myself (as a gift) a bottle of 2000 Donnhoff Riesling Spatlese from the Niederhauser Hermansholle site. A mouthful, I know, but Riesling is one of my favorite things on earth, and this is probably the best I've ever tasted. No, not probably -- it freaking *is*.

This is one of those things that makes you amazed, thankful, and humbled simply to be alive, to have the faculties to be able to taste, to savor, and to think. Wines like this turn me into the biggest beverage geek ever. How something like this can come from the earth -- from vines, soil, wind, rain, sunlight -- boggles my mind. And, furthermore, how human beings have learned to guide, shape, and polish the fruits of the earth into something like this, this otherworldly liquid in front of me... I end up marvelling at the entire sequence of events, spread over eons, that brought this wine to my lips. And I feel almost a pang of guilt for being allowed to have something this amazing. I wish I could buy a bottle for everyone on ILX.

So, is everyone moving on to mostly white wines now that the weather is warming up? I know a lot of folks who don't care much for whites at all, but that's crazy -- I always think to myself, "You must have only tried a bunch of crappy California chardonnays, then!"

Right now: a 2002 Vouvray that's nice and dry, a touch of the characteristic Vouvray "musty soil," good floral aromatics, and a citrusy, fairly long finish. Loire whites rule -- this one retails for $10, and I get it for under $6!

It's hot out now... anyone drinking wine these days?

Portugeuse Verde, Alaveda (or something like that) is the winery. refreshing, with a hint of carbonation. Any other Verdes recommended?

Right now, a 2002 Riesling from Studert-Prum in the Mosel region. This one's a kabinett from the Wehlener Sonnenuhr vineyard, a really REALLY steep Mosel valley vineyard with a huge old sundial in the middle of it (so the pickers know when to take breaks and stuff). It looks like this:
http://www.weinerlebnisbegleiter.de/Pictures/p_web_bergweiler_b2.jpg

The wine is delicate but powerful, with good piercing acidity and a luscious body of pure fruit goodness. Goddamn, I love Riesling.

Scotch has pretty much taken over for wine as far as what's in my glass, but I did make coq au vin the other night with Bonny Doon's Syrah Sirrah.

I love the sundial -- it looks like something from a Terry Gilliam film or something.

we had a Capel Vale Semillon from Western Australia the other day, nicely chilled it's an absolute winner.

I had a pretty great Pinot Blanc last night.

Unfortunately I have been drinking Stowells Tempranillo out of a box *SHOCK HORROR* owing to the fact that you couldn't take bottles to glastonbury!

Yikes.

Indeed!!

I'm think about getting into drinking white wine at the moment. Any suggestions? (not v expensive!!)

the capel vale mentioned above was on special at JS a wee while ago for 7 quid - and it was worth every penny, if you can find some buy it in a flash

JS??

Jack Straw's (house).

Alternatively, Sainsburys!

I haven't had a red wine for ages now I am going out with someone who DOESN'T LIKE IT, peon. I have decided! No longer will I compromise on Rosé! NO LONGER the White Zinfandel!! Red wine, red wine, COME TO ME, COME TO ME!

sorry, work acronyms - J Sainsburys

Ooh that's a harsh one sarah! Nothing can quite replace a lovely red wine!
x-post thanks both of you!

How much do you lot spend on a bottle of wine, average like? More than 6 quid feels quite extravagant to me, but under a fiver gets a bit risky unless you're on super supermarket special offer and get something half decent.

You can get decent wines for under £5, but I only tend to do this if I've had the wine before. I tend to look for offers where the bottle is about £8-£10 & is reduced to less than a fiver. I agree that it can feel extravagant, especially if you plan to drink more than one bottle!

a six or seven quid costco wine is usually really good, other than that we tend to either stock up in France, or look for the best offers in the supermarket and snap up as many as we can afford (sometimes more :o(

Generally between five and ten quid. I get quite a lot through work so it's fairly cheap.

I work in a wine shop, and I usually spend between 8 and 15 American dollars on a bottle. That's wholesale cost, though -- the retail price would be around 12 and 24, respectively. I drink wine quite a bit less than I drink beer, so I like to make it a good experience.

I LOVE MY DAD!!! according to the message from the wine merchant, he has sent me:

VINCENT POUILLY FUISSE 99
LES BOUCAULTS SANCERRE 01
CH LIVERSAN HAUT MEDOC 96

Ima gonna over to Lauren's house for that there Boucaults Sancerre. Yummy stuff, that.

Wine.

rad, michael. i'm thinking grilled sole with a sauce vierge.

In spring time
When you haven't got a dime
Yeah, in spring time
And life seems a crime
Come on over
Cry on my shoulder, and drink
Broken-hearted wine
Tastes fine
In the spring time
Broken-hearted wine
Tastes fine

So you finally see her face at last, and the pain will never pass
You thought she was the only girl in the whole wide world for you
You can come on over
Cry on my shoulder, and drink
Broken-hearted wine
Tastes fine
In the spring time
Broken-hearted wine
Tastes fine

So you don't know what to do
There's just one cure for you
In spring time
When there isn't any reason
Or rhyme
To thinkin'
That you'll be mine
So come on over
Cry on my shoulder, and drink
Broken-hearted wine
Tastes fine
In the spring time
Broken-hearted wine
Tastes fine
In the spring time

I've actually been drinkin' lots of Kiwi sauvignon blancs these days, some of it really good.

gygax, I noticed you mentioned Thep Phnom the other day. Do you live in the lower Haight?

Someone said, drink the water, but I will drink the wine.
Someone said, take a poor man, rich don't have a dime.
So fool yourselves if you will, I just haven't got the time.
If you can drink the water, I will drink the wine.
Someone gave me some small flowers, I held them in my hand.
I looked at them for several hours, I didn't understand.
So fool yourselves if you will, you can hold out your hand,
I'll give back your flowers, and I will take the land.
And I will drink the wine.
Sometimes I'm very very lonely, there's only me to care.
And when I'm very very lonely, I want someone to share,
I'm going to drink the wine, I'm gonna take my time,
And believe in a world that is mine.
Someone gave me flowers, held them in my hand.
Looked at them for many hours, didn't understand.
Go on and fool yourselves if you will, you can hold out your hand,
I'll give back your flowers, and I will take the land.
And I will drink the wine, and I will take the land.
I will drink the wine.

HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE

HERE WE SIT ENJOYING THE SHADE, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
TO DRINK THE DRINKS THAT I HAVE MADE, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
TELL YOU WHY TODAY IS SUNNY, I’M IN LOVE WITH LIPS OF HONEY
WAIT TILL YOU SEE THE WAY SHE WALKS, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE

SHE IS COMING HERE TO STAY, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
I HAVE WAITED FOR THE DAY, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
SHE WRITES OF LOVE IN EVERY LETTER OTHERS HAVE TRIED BUT I WILL GET HER
WAIT TILL YOU SEE THE WAY SHE WALKS, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE

WHAT IS LIFE, WHAT IS SPRING, WHAT ARE ALL THE STARS THAT SHINE
LOVE MY FRIEND IS EVERYTHING AND LOVE WILL SOON BE MINE

POUR IT AS QUICKLY AS YOU CAN, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
POUR IT QUICKLY ONCE AGAIN, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
SHE’S HERE AT LAST MY ONE AND ONLY GOOD BYE FRIENDS AND DON’T BE LONELY
WAIT TILL YOU SEE THE WAY SHE WALKS, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE

BLINK YOUR EYES AND LOVE HAS PASSED, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
HER’S WAS NEVER MEANT TO LAST, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE
SHE INTRODUCED ME TO ANOTHER, NO MY FRIENDS HE’S NOT HER BROTHER
I WILL MISS THE WAY SHE WALKS, HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE

HEY BROTHER POUR THE WINE.

Red, red wine goes to my head,
Makes me forget that I still need her so

Red, red wine, it's up to you
All I can do I've done
Memories won't go, memories won't go

Life is fine every time,
Thoughts of you leave my head
I was wrong, now I find
Just one thing makes me forget

Red, red wine, stay close to me
Don't let me be alone
It's tearing apart my blue heart

Red red wine, you make me feel so fine,
You keep me rockin' all of the time
Red red wine, you make me feel so grand,
I feel a million dollar when you're just in my hand
Red red wine, you make me feel so sad,
Any time I see you go, it make me feel bad
Red red wine, you make me feel so fine,
Monkey back and ease up on the sweet deadline

Red red wine, you give me holy pahzing
Holy pahzing, you make me do my own thing
Red red wine, you give me not awful love
Your kind of lovin' like a blessing from above
Red red wine, I loved you right from the start,
Right from the start, and with all of my heart
Red red wine in an eighties style
Red red wine in a modern beat style
Yeah

Give me a little time, let me clear out my mind
Give me a little time, let me clear out my mind
Give me red wine, the kind make me feel fine
You make me feel fine all of the time
Red red wine, you make me feel so fine
Monkey back and ease up on the sweet deadline
The line broke, the money get choked,
Bunbah, ganjapani, little rubber boat
Red red wine, I'm gonna hold on to you,
Hold on to you 'cause I know you love truth
Red red wine, I'm gonna love you till I die,
Love you till I die, and that's no lie
Red red wine, can't get your off my mind
Wherever you may be, I'll surely find,
I'll surely find. Make no fuss, just leave us

He was killed by a cellular phone explosion
They scattered his ashes across the ocean
The water was used to make baby lotion
The wheels of promotion were set into motion

But the sun still shines in the summertime
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
Think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine

She lived alone in a small apartment
Across the street from the health department
She left her pills in the glove compartment
That was the afternoon her heart went

And the sun still shines in the summertime
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
I think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine
I think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine

I used to fly for United Airlines
Then I got fired for reading High Times
My license expired in almost no time
Now I'm retired, and I think that's fine

Because the sun still shines in the summertime
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
I think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine

Because the sun still shines in the summertime
I'll be yours if you'll be mine
I tried to change, but I changed my mind
I think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine
I think I'll have another glass of Mexican wine
Won't you have another glass of Mexican Wine?

"How old do you think I am," he said?
I said, well, I didn't know.
He said, "I turned 65 about 11 months ago."

I was sittin' in Miami, pouring blended whiskey down
When this old gray, black gentleman was cleaning up the lounge.

There wasn't anyone around, except this old man and me.
The guy who ran the bar was watching Ironside on TV.
Uninvited, he sat down and opened up his mind
On old dogs and children and watermelon wine.

"Ever had a drink of watermelon wine," he asked.
He told me all about it, though I didn't answer back.
"Ain't but three things in this world that's worth a solitary dime,
But old dogs and children and watermelon wine."

He said, "Women think about themselves, when men-folk ain't around.
And friends are hard to find when they discover that you're down."
He said, "I tried it all when I was young and in my natural prime,
Now it's old dogs and children and watermelon wine."

"Old dogs care about you even when you make mistakes.
God bless little children while they're still to young to hate."
When he moved away I found my pen and copied down that line
About old dogs and children and watermelon wine.

I had to catch a plane up to Atlanta that next day.
As I left for my room I saw him picking up my change.
That night I dreamed in peaceful sleep of shady summertime,
Of old dogs and children and watermelon wine.

(NANCY):
Strawberries cherries and an angel's kiss in spring
My summer wine is really made from all these things

(LEE):
I walked in town on silver spurs that jingled to
A song that I had only sang to just a few
She saw my silver spurs and said lets pass some time
And I will give to you summer wine
Ohh-oh-oh summer wine

(NANCY):
Strawberries cherries and an angel's kiss in spring
My summer wine is really made from all these things
Take off your silver spurs and help me pass the time
And I will give to you summer wine
Ohhh-oh summer wine

(LEE):
My eyes grew heavy and my lips they could not speak
I tried to get up but I couldn't find my feet
She reassured me with an unfamiliar line
And then she gave to me more summer wine
Ohh-oh-oh summer wine

(NANCY):
Strawberries cherries and an angel's kiss in spring
My summer wine is really made from all these things
Take off your silver spurs and help me pass the time
And I will give to you summer wine
Mmm-mm summer wine

(LEE):
When I woke up the sun was shining in my eyes
My silver spurs were gone my head felt twice its size
She took my silver spurs a dollar and a dime
And left me cravin' for more summer wine
Ohh-oh-oh summer wine

(NANCY):
Strawberries cherries and an angel's kiss in spring
My summer wine is really made from all these things
Take off your silver spurs and help me pass the time
And I will give to you summer wine
Mmm-mm summer wine