URGENT! Is Ice Wine Worth it?

[MNSusan]

We have friends who are at the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot RIGHT NOW. I had asked them to pick up a bottle of ice wine for me. They just called to tell me its $51/bottle. Now we like our wine and all, but have rarely spent that much for any bottle.

Is Ice Wine worth it, and what makes it so special?

Many thanks!
Susan

 

[safetymom]

I bought a bottle of that wine after tasting it at the Canada booth. My family loves it. It is pricy but you only serve a small amount so it will last. You will enjoy it.

http://wine.about.com/library/types/bl_icewine.htm

This is an article explaining ice wine.

 

[dirkus]

Yes, it is definitely worth it!!! (At least I think so...) We love it.

 

[icelady]

The Ice Wine is very good but the bottle is small in volume.

 

[Mortlives]

Allow me to be the dissenting voice. I've always found it far too sweet and syrupy. But that's probably what people like about it. If you like very sweet wine, you'll probably enjoy it. But if you like your wine very dry, avoid ice wine, you won't like it.

Kungaloosh!
Morticia.

 

[MNSusan]

Thank you for your quick replies. And thanks, safetymom, for the article. I also found a site that reviewed the wine. There were six reviews, including Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate, wine.com and others. Every review was a 99 of 100! And after reading how they make it (pick the grapes frozen!), I understand why its so expensive.

I called and asked our friends to get a bottle for us (I *love* cell phones). Could be a $50 mistake for us, Mortlives! We'll see.

 

[Baloo]

I found Ice Wine in my liquor store here for $41 a bottle!

 

[Ted and Holly]

I have seen the same Inniskillin bottle (half bottle) for $75 at the World Market in Orlando. I have seen it online for $48. In this case, Disney is not marking it up terribly more than others around.

$41 is a GREAT price.

There are Ice Wine makers in Canada that do not pick the grapes frozen, but will freeze the grapes themselves. This is generally regarded as less desirable and less expensive. I have never had it, but I have heard that the quality is very near the "real thing".

Ted

 

[Mortlives]

Originally posted by MNSusan
Could be a $50 mistake for us, Mortlives! We'll see.

I hope not. What you might want to do, if you don't have a sweet tooth yourselves, is invite over people who do to share it with you. That way, it can be a special occasion type thing, and at least someone is bound to enjoy it. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't say it's necessarily a mistake. I get a couple of bottles for my brother every year for Christmas because he loves it.

Kungaloosh!
Morticia.

 

[Ted and Holly]

Originally posted by Mortlives
I hope not. What you might want to do, if you don't have a sweet tooth yourselves, is invite over people who do to share it with you. That way, it can be a special occasion type thing, and at least someone is bound to enjoy it. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't say it's necessarily a mistake. I get a couple of bottles for my brother every year for Christmas because he loves it.

Kungaloosh!
Morticia.

Morticia brings up a very important point. Not all wines are good for all occassions. Obviously, Ice Wine would fall under the sweet, desert wine category.

Like most wines, it does best when paired with food or occassion that fits it.

You would not drunk a glass of cabernet savignon with a piece of cheesecake, just as you would not drink a glass of ice wine with a piece of steak.

I don't think you should be turned off (or on) from the fact that it is a sweet wine. Take advantage of it and have it during a desert. Many times, the wine and food pairing equal more than the sum of the two parts.

Can you tell I have been watching Andre Immer?

Ted

 

[FatCow]

Originally posted by Mortlives
Allow me to be the dissenting voice. I've always found it far too sweet and syrupy. But that's probably what people like about it. If you like very sweet wine, you'll probably enjoy it. But if you like your wine very dry, avoid ice wine, you won't like it.

Kungaloosh!
Morticia.

At least you're not the only dissenting voice. I feel the same way too.

 

[markºoº]

The ice wine will be 1/2 bottle (375ml) for the $51. Based on our experience, a price of $51 is about right for ice wine. We got addicted to ice wine when we tried some from Michigan. Now we always have a bottle on hand for special occasions.

The wine should be well chilled and you serve only a small glass (about 1/2 of a normal white wine serving) to each guest. Save the bottle for a special occasion or to complement a special dessert and share with several others. It is best to drink the entire bottle in one evening.

 

[Ted and Holly]

Originally posted by markºoº
The ice wine will be 1/2 bottle (375ml) for the $51. Based on our experience, a price of $51 is about right for ice wine. We got addicted to ice wine when we tried some from Michigan. Now we always have a bottle on hand for special occasions.

The wine should be well chilled and you serve only a small glass (about 1/2 of a normal white wine serving) to each guest. Save the bottle for a special occasion or to complement a special dessert and share with several others. It is best to drink the entire bottle in one evening.

Mark, have you seen the Inniskillin sparkling ice wine? I bet that would be nice at the bottom of a flute.

Ted