Wine lovers thread

[Tony-NJ]

Columbia Crest is one of my favorite Merlots

I was introduced to it on my last cruise - I couldn't believe how affordable it is in the stores.

 

[katiebelle21]

y current favorite wine is Red Cat from Hazlitt Vineyards in the Finger Lakes. Red Cat is a semi-sweet, fruity blend. Goes well with hamburgers, pizza & chicken wings!
I used to drink white Zin all the time, but now I love my Red Cat! I think I will have a glass...

I love Red Cat! It is our official house party wine!

 

[Gina]

Our H.E.B. store is usually handing out wine samples on Saturdays. (It's amazing how much more fun grocery shopping is when they're handing out wine!! LOL) A few weeks ago, they were sampling an Italian Moscato sparkling wine called "Petalo Vino Del'Amore." This wine has been HAUNTING me.

Granted, I fall under author Fran Leibowitz's category of people who "wouldn't know fine wine from melted grape popsicles, if it weren't for the label on the bottle"... but this stuff was gooooood! It was light, and sparkly, and kinda fruity. It sorta just floated off my tongue, and I was enchanted.

I know I'm not giving a good description, but I don't know enough to describe it well. Unfortunately, it was $14, and I just couldn't justify it. It's breaking me down, though. LOL

 

[ZephyrHawk]

Well, if we're going to talk >$10 wine, Conundrum (which I had for the first time at Victoria & Alberts) is a personal favorite (about $25 per bottle). For dessert...actually, I have no idea what's it's called...but there's this icewine at the local "dessert and coffe bar" that's $14 a glass, and is divine. Hmmmm...maybe the next time I go I'll actually remember what its called.

 

[HunnyPots]

First off, I know next to NOTHING about wine, other than it comes from grapes and some is red and some is white or pink! But two brands I enjoy are Yellow Tail (shiraz and pino grigio) and Electric Raindeer, which I discovered during the holiday season a couple of years ago. Mostly, I go through the wine section and look for unusual or especially catchy names and I try those! How's that for a scientific method!

 

[Ohiodislover]

First off, I know next to NOTHING about wine, other than it comes from grapes and some is red and some is white or pink! But two brands I enjoy are Yellow Tail (shiraz and pino grigio) and Electric Raindeer, which I discovered during the holiday season a couple of years ago. Mostly, I go through the wine section and look for unusual or especially catchy names and I try those! How's that for a scientific method!

You buy wine like my DH It's not such a bad thing. We have found some good ones!

 

[saremca]

Columbia Crest is a great Merlot.

Last weekend we were at the Italian market and they were sampling wines from Argentina and Chile. We tried a Malbec and a Carmenere. They were both good but the Carmenere really stood out for me. It's less tannic than a Cabernet, kind of like a Merlot. Really tasty and both under $10.

 

[GDUL]

Well, if we're going to talk >$10 wine, Conundrum (which I had for the first time at Victoria & Alberts) is a personal favorite (about $25 per bottle).

Conundrum is a great wine, isn't it? We first had it at Flying Fish and it's been a favorite of ours ever since. For an amazing red, try a bottle of Joseph Phelps Merlot (~$40). We buy this for special occasions.

Back to less expensive but very good wines, if you like zinfandel, try Dancing Bull - usually about $12. You can also buy it's slightly more robust "brother," Rancho Zabacho at about $15. Both are very good!

 

[jodifla]

What a great thread!

We love Columbia Crest and Chateau St. Michelle as well.

 

[Withinthehour]

Out of lurkdom! Welcome!!

I, too, am trying to transition into reds and have not found anything that I like either. Forget Merlot and Shariz, like sucking on cotton balls!

I go to TJ's fairly often and they often have a red and a white. I have yet to find a red I liked (except for a sparkling red Cova, which as delish).

Thanks haha! And you TOTALLY understand what I mean about the reds, cotton balls for sure...some have actually taken my breath away. I really think I need to just go on some wine tastings...

The other thing that stinks is that everybody has great suggestions of cheap wines from costco and trader joes but in my state markets can't sell alcohol. bummer.

 

[Withinthehour]

My current favorite wine is Red Cat from Hazlitt Vineyards in the Finger Lakes. Red Cat is a semi-sweet, fruity blend. Goes well with hamburgers, pizza & chicken wings!
I used to drink white Zin all the time, but now I love my Red Cat! I think I will have a glass...

I fell in LOVE with finger lakes wines a few years back. I would have brought home cases (but I was only 18 when I went on the wine tours )

 

[Muushka]

Thanks haha! And you TOTALLY understand what I mean about the reds, cotton balls for sure...some have actually taken my breath away. I really think I need to just go on some wine tastings...

The other thing that stinks is that everybody has great suggestions of cheap wines from costco and trader joes but in my state markets can't sell alcohol. bummer.

Try the Franzia Chardonnay Select (5 liter box!).

Great for a quick glass of wine, but I wouldn't plan a party around it!

 

[Tony-NJ]

Wow all you folks who like Columbia crest - don't buy too much of it - they will raise their prices!!!

One more that is an old stand by for Chardonay, Kendall Jackson Grand Reserve is very nice.

 

[mickeyboat]

I started out drinking Chardonnay, but it now gives me a headache, so it's reds all the way for me. The first red I loved was Red Truck - the red blend. Now we almost always have Barefoot Merlot ($5.50 at Wal-Mart) around, and we tried the Columbia Crest this weekend when we were out to dinner, and I agree, it was yummy.

My mom sends wine for Christmas. The company / program she buys from is called Seasons and we get a case in the winter and again in the springtime. It's a great way to try lots of different kinds of wine, and the company provides literature on the wines, wine-tasting advice, and a journal where you can write down what you tried and what you thought about it. Best Christmas present ever.

 

[booger73]

Red Cat is an awesome sweet, light, not bitter red (i hate reds, and usually drink whites)

Conundrum is a great white blend -
I drink Riesling's usually and end up with a Dr. Tanisch usually from Germany (which is really good for a sweet white)
Asti's are awesome and will usually drink that if I'm not drinking a Riesling

BUT!!! if you want probably the best white I've ever had.. get a Gaierhof Moscato Giallo Trentino 2006... had it at Palo on the Wonder last year.. so good (it's a sweet wine like a riesling, so just be aware of that)

 

[andysgirl360]

Woo hoo! Winos of the DIS unite!

We need a t-shirt...or at least a secret handshake! LOL

A PP mentioned unoaked wine....has anyone tried the Naked Grape label? I just had their Shiraz and it was great - and I am no fan of red wine. I think I figured out what it is that puts me off...too much oak. So Naked Grape is my new fave..

DH and I just went to a "make your own wine" place, where you mix the juice etc, and they babysit it for you for a few weeks until its ready to bottle. Pretty inexpensive (about $3 or so a bottle) - we picked a Viognier (white - like a Riesling) and a red called Trilogy (a mix of three kinds of red). We bottle it next week, and the white should be good to drink by this summer, the red probably by the fall. Fingers crossed it turns out!

 

[Muushka]

We need a t-shirt...or at least a secret handshake! LOL

A PP mentioned unoaked wine....has anyone tried the Naked Grape label? I just had their Shiraz and it was great - and I am no fan of red wine. I think I figured out what it is that puts me off...too much oak. So Naked Grape is my new fave..

DH and I just went to a "make your own wine" place, where you mix the juice etc, and they babysit it for you for a few weeks until its ready to bottle. Pretty inexpensive (about $3 or so a bottle) - we picked a Viognier (white - like a Riesling) and a red called Trilogy (a mix of three kinds of red). We bottle it next week, and the white should be good to drink by this summer, the red probably by the fall. Fingers crossed it turns out!

Woohoo! Homemade wine!! Please let us all know how it turns out!

 

[GDUL]

Woohoo! Homemade wine!! Please let us all know how it turns out!

My daughter and now son-in-law made wine (1/2 bottles; also filled some with M&Ms for the kids) to give out to guests at their wedding as favors. They made a Pinot Noir which turned out quite nicely. Very drinkable!

 

[GDUL]

Here are a couple of pictures of the wine favors that I mentioned above.

 

[vettechick99]

I really enjoy the Biltmore White Table Wine, although I've only found it at their winery, never at a store. I keep looking though because I know several stores carry the brand.

I am also not above a wine-in-a-box! I am the only one at home that drinks it so a bottle goes bad quickly if I don't finish it off. If it's in a box, it's always fresh! Any great brands to recommend?