I’m sure this has likely been discussed on here before, but I am new, a guest and considering subscribership, so I thought I’d toss it out there.
So…what are your favorite wines? Your favorite food/wine parings?
Any rants about the state of wine as we know it? How much of it do you drink?
My favorite wines are:
Barolos, although I can rarely afford them.
I am particularly fond of Mosel, Nahe and other fine Reislings of every stripe, trocken, halbtrocken, kabinett, spatlese, etc. My favorite is aged Rieslings from Donhoff, especially the Oberjauser Brucke and Hermansholle vineyards.
I also really like New Zealand and Sancerre Sauvignons, wines from Bordeaux and Burgundy…
What I do NOT like are overly oaked wines, particularly many white wine selections from California and other Mediterranean climes. Oak is a seasoning, and shouldn’t be a major flavor in wines.
I am also quite fond of huge, jammy California red Zinfandels…Seghesio, Cline, Ridge, Grgich Hills, etc…awesome with roasted pork or by themselves.
Thank you! Overuse of oak is a bane to the industry and adds needlessly to the cost of wines, especially American and some Spanish ones, not to mention that it subjugates fruit flavor into the background.
And red zins…I don’t know what it is, but that sheer amount of brambly black fruit flavor with a massive alcohol body is just alluring.
I actually like big reds with a fair amount of oak, as they generally have the body and concentration to stand up to it, but whites tend to be more delicate and generally need less oak to display their flavor profile correctly.
Another favorite: Condrieu. Viognier is a pretty captivating white grape…very floral.
I also like Alsatian wines quite a lot, although they can also be very expensive, even moreso now that the dollar is so weak against the Euro…
Ha! You’re right, that is pretty good, matching richness with richness…although I tend to prefer an eiswein or an auslese for their acidic cut through all that fat.
I’m glad you posted and hope you stick around; we had a Wine Club going here for about a year, but unfortunately, interest started to die out when we hit the holidays and we just haven’t got back to it again. In addition to the selections provided by flickster, here is a link to the most recent Wine Club thread (always looking for new sommeliers and selections ) and our special Holiday champagne thread. In each thread, you’ll find a link to the previous week’s thread (the selections were actually every other week), and you should be eventually able to make your way back to the beginning.
You’ll probably find a soul mate in John Mace with the Rieslings. And in me with the Zins, although I am a relative novice compared to the rest of our group.
With respect to NZ Sauvignon Blancs: the Kim Crawford was one of our selections and was a terrific success with our club.
With respect to consumption: about two to three bottles a week. My car has developed a pull to the right that is only evidenced when passing a new wine shop. I have to consciously avoid eye contact with anyone in a wine shop, or risk walking out with another bottle that is highly recommended. I am pricing wine racks, and most of them are too small.
Condrieu can be a bit pricey (for my wallet, at least). I was told in a wine shop that is the definitive Viognier. I’ll try it some day, but thought that I’d work up to it. You’ll see on the list that we had the Smoking Loon Viognier as one of our selections. Not particularly to my liking, but I had the Kestrel Viognier and thought it was terrific.
I had a Chilean Carmenere (I think it was Mont Gras) the last two nights, and thought it quite interesting. An almost smoky taste to it. Very drinkable, but I’m wondering if it wouldn’t be more effective in a blend.
I’m particularly fond of Zinfandel and sparkling wines/Champagne and dessert wines like Sauternes and Barsac. And New Zealand Sauv Blanc. And silky Pinot Noirs. And. And…
Some of my favorite combos - Gewürztraminer and ham with mustard. Sauv Blanc and goat cheese. Pinot Noir and mushroom sauces. Sauternes and creme brulee. Fino Sherry and almonds. Ruby Port and chocolate.
Sangiovese and pizza.
Also not a fan of overly oaked wines. In my opinion, if it’s overly oaked, it’s the winemaker’s way of attempting to cover up poor wine quality. I prefer more fruit or earth expressions in my wines.
I drink a glass or two every night. I usually have anywhere from 3 to 6 bottles open at a time so I can always match my wine to my dinner or TV snack, or just to sip or take notes. I purchase something like 2 to 4 cases a month.
Welcome, if you sign up you should definitely join us in the SDMB wine club. Lots of great suggestions and conversations.
Thanks, Plynck, for planting this in my head while I was on the way to Spec’s this afternoon. I picked up a couple Carmeneres, a Montes and a Vina LaRosa. Going to toss a coin later to see which is being opened tonight
Montes won the coin toss and stepped up to the plate for our enjoyment tonight. This was actually a Cabernet / Carmenere blend ($12.44 at Spec’s). Very nice dark, almost black, color in the glass. Fruity but something of that same smokiness you mentioned as well. Very soft tannins. We enjoyed the bottle while watching a movie after dinner but I could see this pairing up very nicely with any grilled meats.
As I think back over the past year and what wines I have chosen to keep stocked in my rack, a high percentage are from Chile. If I include Argentina in the mix it would be a vast majority. Cheers to our American neighbors to the South
I like fruit wine. My local wine store ferments and bottles some wines I like, but I don’t have an educated sense of wine, I am still learning the names. I like the cherry wines out of Traverse City. I prefer it hot, mulled and with dried cherries in it. I like mead. I have a glass of wine every other day or so.
Argentina and Chile are really high on my quality/value list too.
Have you tried any of Catena’s wines? They are starting to creep up in price, but their Cabernet is a knockout, and so is their Malbec, and they are very consistent from year to year.
Thanks, flickster - I’ll keep an eye out for this one. I’ve liked the Montes wines I’ve bought so far, and I’d like to see how the Carmenere tastes when blended with Cabernet.
I had a Casa Lapostolle Cuvée Alexandre Cabernet Sauvignon last night. I probably should have decanted; it took a bit to open up, but I found it to be very enjoyable. From what I’ve read, almost anything they release with Cuvée Alexandre on the label is usually well reviewed. And like you, I’m finding the South American wines to be great values for the money. I just received an email from a local wine shop with the following disquieting note:
I will try anything from local vineyards or winemakers. This leads to the occasional nasty shock, but is an entertaining way to slooooowy improve my knowledge of wine.
I don’t really have a set method of choosing the wine I drink. I read all of the wine threads here and on a couple of other message boards and try the ones that sound interesting. Once in a while, I ask a fellow shopper at the places I buy wine for a tip. When I find a particular wine I like, I will try other similar wines. Mostly I have an uneducated palate but if I like a wine I will buy more of it and drink it.
Enjoyed another Chilean product tonight. We had a bottle of Cousino Macul Antiguas Reservas Cabernet Sauvignon along with a couple of grilled ribeyes. First time I have tried their Cabernet and I was very impressed. Dark and subtle - irresistible
Ooh, I’ve had that one flickster. It is indeed very good. Rich and warm and tasty.
I went light tonight. An Italian Pinot Grigio paired with some chicken and verjus roasted veggies.
This Pinot Grigio is pretty nice but the delicate lemon and apple flavors are definitely muted by the dish. The acidity of the wine holds its own alongside the verjus though, so it works for me, even if the wine is a little lost. Maybe I should have gone a little lighter on the black pepper. Not the poor wine’s fault!
I actually only chose this wine while buying some others; it caught my eye so I threw it in my cart. It’s packaged in a slick cylindrical bottle used for some high end waters, and since I am a die hard packaging nerd, I could not resist.
I’ll be out at Unified with most of the wine industry dorks of the northwestern hemisphere for a couple of days this week and if I don’t leave there without tasting at least a dozen or two new wines, then I’ve done something very wrong.
Just to set the record straight, I’m not a big Riesling fan. However, I don’t dump on them like a lot of wine snobs do. They have their place with spicy food, but I don’t drink a lot of them. I find that if I want a white to go with spicy food, a good NZ Sauvignon Blanc does nicely. But Riesling is not a bad starter wine with certain aps.
But if I’m just sitting around sipping wine, it’s usually red. Cabs, Pinots and Zins. I’m drinking a lot of Earthquake Zin these days. Lots of Chilean Cabs (can’t beat the price), and some good Napa Cabs when I’m having s really nice meal: Turnbull, Frank Family, and of course Silver Oak and Stags.
) and our special Holiday 
