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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Oct 19, 2010 12:51 pm 
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parchy wrote:
Like cheap Merlots, cheap Zin is really, really awful. The mid range on those varietals are almost nonexistant.


Oh, and the absolute worse cheap varietal is Pinot Noir. I've had $7 bottles of Zin, Cab Sav, Merlot, and Pinot, and when done cheap, Pinot Noir is by far the worst. On the flip though...I've had some killer bottles of Oregon Pinot Noir for under $20 and they've been fantastic.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Oct 19, 2010 4:16 pm 
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darth_vedder wrote:
parchy wrote:
Like cheap Merlots, cheap Zin is really, really awful. The mid range on those varietals are almost nonexistant.


Cheap wine is awful,It all has that stale, sugary taste. I've been trying to find some good bottles for under $10, but typically fail. But...once I step up to about $15 or so, the quality vastly improves. Like the difference between a $9 bottle and a $15 is huge, where as the difference between a $15 and a $20 isn't always that big.


This is really subjective and just depends on what you're buying and the vintage of the wine. I've had $200+ bottles of vintage St. Estephe that didn't stack up with a $10-a-glass Sonoma Cutrer. But, for the most part, mass-produced vineyards - like Mondavi's operation now, for example - produce wines that are so lacking in nuance anyway that it's nearly pointless to compare them. If you're drinking a Coppola, you're not going to sit around admiring the bouquet of the nose and the legs on the glass. You're just going to drink it, probably not completely realizing what you're drinking. And that's fine. That said, depending on the part of the country you're in, it's hard to find good deals on legit wine, so you pick up what you can find. For those lucky enough to live on the Pacific Coast, well, they can get awesome wines for cheap, like $20. You pay a comparable price elsewhere and you're getting mass produced crap. Whether it's $10 or $20, in all honestly, makes little difference. Again, that's unless you've got quality vineyards in your state. Most of the good stuff never crosses state lines anyway.

All cheap wine is not awful - though most of it is - and the taste gulf between cheap and expensive is at its widest, in my experience, with Merlot. Like the Pinot grape, its so finicky that if you don't give it just the right coastal environs, its nearly useless. It's a really delicate grape, and only good wine growers know how to produce it on its own. I've had more shitty Merlot than any other varietal, and that's why so many vintners are blending it now, because they know it's too weak to make on its own. That's why, for the most part, 100% Merlots are pretty damn expensive, and the shitty stuff is all under 15 bucks. Needless to say, it's all really, really awful. Maybe its just my taste, but I can gulp down a $12 Mondavi Pinot. Give me a comparable Merlot, and it's swill.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 2:12 am 
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Bogle Petite Sirah is pretty good, and last i checked was on sale at some wine stores for like 8 bucks. I think the normal retail price is like 10-12 though.

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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Wed Oct 20, 2010 1:01 pm 
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parchy wrote:
darth_vedder wrote:
parchy wrote:
Like cheap Merlots, cheap Zin is really, really awful. The mid range on those varietals are almost nonexistant.


Cheap wine is awful,It all has that stale, sugary taste. I've been trying to find some good bottles for under $10, but typically fail. But...once I step up to about $15 or so, the quality vastly improves. Like the difference between a $9 bottle and a $15 is huge, where as the difference between a $15 and a $20 isn't always that big.


This is really subjective and just depends on what you're buying and the vintage of the wine. I've had $200+ bottles of vintage St. Estephe that didn't stack up with a $10-a-glass Sonoma Cutrer. But, for the most part, mass-produced vineyards - like Mondavi's operation now, for example - produce wines that are so lacking in nuance anyway that it's nearly pointless to compare them. If you're drinking a Coppola, you're not going to sit around admiring the bouquet of the nose and the legs on the glass. You're just going to drink it, probably not completely realizing what you're drinking. And that's fine. That said, depending on the part of the country you're in, it's hard to find good deals on legit wine, so you pick up what you can find. For those lucky enough to live on the Pacific Coast, well, they can get awesome wines for cheap, like $20. You pay a comparable price elsewhere and you're getting mass produced crap. Whether it's $10 or $20, in all honestly, makes little difference. Again, that's unless you've got quality vineyards in your state. Most of the good stuff never crosses state lines anyway.

All cheap wine is not awful - though most of it is - and the taste gulf between cheap and expensive is at its widest, in my experience, with Merlot. Like the Pinot grape, its so finicky that if you don't give it just the right coastal environs, its nearly useless. It's a really delicate grape, and only good wine growers know how to produce it on its own. I've had more shitty Merlot than any other varietal, and that's why so many vintners are blending it now, because they know it's too weak to make on its own. That's why, for the most part, 100% Merlots are pretty damn expensive, and the shitty stuff is all under 15 bucks. Needless to say, it's all really, really awful. Maybe its just my taste, but I can gulp down a $12 Mondavi Pinot. Give me a comparable Merlot, and it's swill.


I should have clarified...by "cheap" I didn't mean just price. I meant just that taste of cheap quality wine. I've spent $20 on wine, and it that taste. I don't know exactly what it is, so I just call it the "cheap taste". I should probably come up with a better name for it.

All this wine talk has me thinking I should go to Total Wine this weekend. They have literally hundreds of excellent wines under $20. Maybe I'll splurge and get a $40+ bottle...


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Sun Nov 14, 2010 2:11 am 
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Speaking of cheaper wines, I haven't been drinking much of late (it took me two weeks to go through a bottle of tequila and a bottle of scotch, with help from my wife) so I decided to pick up a bottle of wine at the grocery store tonight and enjoy it before bed. Not usually a grocery store wine shopper, but I got a cheapo zin (Zen of Zin, which if I'm remembering right is a Ravenswood label), and it's surprisingly good. It's pretty bold...a lot of the things that make a zin a zin are very in your face. For the cheapo price, it's a pretty interesting buy.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Sun Nov 14, 2010 7:37 pm 
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McParadigm wrote:
Speaking of cheaper wines, I haven't been drinking much of late (it took me two weeks to go through a bottle of tequila and a bottle of scotch, with help from my wife) so I decided to pick up a bottle of wine at the grocery store tonight and enjoy it before bed. Not usually a grocery store wine shopper, but I got a cheapo zin (Zen of Zin, which if I'm remembering right is a Ravenswood label), and it's surprisingly good. It's pretty bold...a lot of the things that make a zin a zin are very in your face. For the cheapo price, it's a pretty interesting buy.


That's a pretty good one for the price...I think when I got it, it was like $11 or $12, and for that, I was happy with it. Unlike the Coppala brand which is most of the time $17+, and I'm always disappointed.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Thu Nov 25, 2010 8:16 am 
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I went into the liquor store tonight thinking after seeing this thread so many times, I'd pick up some wine for tomorrow. My mind became a fog. I saw most of the names that have been stated in the last page or so, but couldn't remember which had been identified as chit versus great.

Le sigh. Maybe some other time.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Thu Nov 25, 2010 1:52 pm 
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Got some of this to go with Turkey today:

Image


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Thu Nov 25, 2010 4:00 pm 
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Celebrated paying off my wife's car last night. Bought...

Image

I had the 2005, and it was great. This one's good, too. Fruity for a malbec.

Image

EASILY one of the best red blends I've had in a while, and one of the cheapest. 75% cab, 15% syrah, 10% petite syrah. I'm tempted to pick up a case.

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I had a glass of this the other night at a friend's. Definitely a good one for shelving.

Image

I'd heard this was not very tannic or intense, but that it was a great dinner wine. My wife will appreciate the gentleness, and it's also supposed to be very complex, so I won't be bored.

Image

I had the 2007 and liked it a lot. I'm not much for whites, but every now and again I find one I really enjoy. So I bought two.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 4:05 pm 
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We were eating dinner this weekend with someone whose spouse mistakenly ordered them a glass of red wine instead of white wine. This person was so turned off by "wine that's too hot" that he or she reached into his or her glass of water and put several ice cubes into his or her glass of red wine.

:? :| :( :shock: :? :? :? :? :| :oops: :?

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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 4:23 pm 
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thodoks wrote:
We were eating dinner this weekend with someone whose spouse mistakenly ordered them a glass of red wine instead of white wine. This person was so turned off by "wine that's too hot" that he or she reached into his or her glass of water and put several ice cubes into his or her glass of red wine.

:? :| :( :shock: :? :? :? :? :| :oops: :?


Weird indeed. Actually, a lot of red wine should be served slightly chilled. Plus "room temperature" referred to the cellar temps, not the room where people are hanging. Has your friend ever tried a Pinot Noir served around 60 degrees?

http://wine.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Wine_Se ... mperatures


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 4:26 pm 
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darth_vedder wrote:
Has your friend ever tried a Pinot Noir served around 60 degrees?

lol, doubtful

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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 8:31 pm 
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thodoks wrote:
darth_vedder wrote:
Has your friend ever tried a Pinot Noir served around 60 degrees?

lol, doubtful


Shame, he/she should. Red wine is not meant to be served warm or hot (unless its mulled wine). Pinot, Zinfandel, Syrah, etc...can all be served at 60 degrees. This person may like a slightly chilled Pinot Noir, as it's a light bodied, yet full flavor red wine.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 8:37 pm 
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I like my red wine off the shelf actually..


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 8:53 pm 
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I'm fine with it that way too. Sometimes for a Pinot Noir, I'll put in in the fridge for about 15 minutes to get is kinda chilled. One day, I'll probably just buy me a wine fridge so I can store white and red wines and have different temperatures for them. I'm pretty sure some are made where you can store whites in the 40's and reds in the 60's.


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 8:55 pm 
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we have a 12 bottle wine fridge with some nice reds in it...I just decant them and drink them less chilled..


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Tue Nov 30, 2010 9:11 pm 
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Eventually, I want to get something like this...maybe a bit smaller:

http://www.amazon.com/EdgeStar-Stainles ... 408&sr=8-6


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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 3:37 am 
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appreciating wine is something I've always wanted to do. I usually just drink what I like...

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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 3:48 am 
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My absolute favorite: http://www.orinswift.com/wines/the_prisoner.php


Ive tried almost all the wines by Orin Swift, all are quite amazing.

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 Post subject: Re: Wine Thread
PostPosted: Thu Dec 02, 2010 2:13 pm 
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HBK wrote:
My absolute favorite: http://www.orinswift.com/wines/the_prisoner.php


Ive tried almost all the wines by Orin Swift, all are quite amazing.


That looks good. I like the Zin, Cab Sav, Petit Sirah blend.


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