The WINE thread

[xraygoggles]

now when my FIL opens up the Silver Oak on Christmas you'd best believe i'm diving in.

Oh man - Silver Oak, Screaming Eagle, Opus One - those are for special occasions.

For casual nights, my go tos are whites from Central Coast like Zinfandel from Paso Robles, and of course reds from Napa and Sonoma. I'm also growing partial to Roses nowadays.

[burritos]

I know this a faux pas, but I love adding ice to my wine and sometimes I'll bring sprite from my work's junk food supply and add a bit to the wine. I find that I have to drink less of the wine and sense that my dopamine levels spike higher.

[Kamban]

I am not a wine snob.

I just pick up <$10 wines at Costco, especially if they are discounted. Usually reds - pinot or merlot though if you ask me I cannot say if a wine is a Cab or pinot or merlot , If it is smooth that is all I want. $250 or a bottle - Yikes. Even for single malts I stay under $100.

Not yet gone into the moonshine route.

[Mitchel674]

I'm with GlassPusher drinking big California Cabs on a nightly basis. Life is too short to drink bad wine. Current daily drinker is also Quilt which is vegan.

[medicoFIRE]

Spanish red and portuguese red are extremely underappreciated and a better value than french or california red. Anything reserve from Rioja or Ribera del duero will suffice. Tempranillo grape is an acquired taste for some. Try marques de riscal reserva and branch out from there. These are dry wines so look elsewhere if you’re into sweeter or more fruit foreward wines or try granacha grape

[jz-]

Sour Grapes | IMDb

Beware the fraudsters.
Meanwhile, we are living in the golden era of beer production, and I will not miss it.

[MPMD]

Have you ever been to Napa?

i have

really enjoyed it

i appreciate wine esp reds and enjoy them, i just know that if i have 2 glasses i will feel like some large and unpleasant person kicked me in the head. compare to my beloved bourbon and soda which has minimal after effects.

now when my FIL opens up the Silver Oak on Christmas you'd best believe i'm diving in.

always good at these time to remember the greatest literary description of a hangover of all time from Lucky Jim by Kingsley Amos:

Dixon was alive again. Consciousness was upon him before he could get out of the way; not for him the slow, gracious wandering from the halls of sleep, but a summary, forcible ejection. He lay sprawled, too wicked to move, spewed up like a broken spider-crab on the tarry shingle of the morning. The light did him harm, but not as much as looking at things did; he resolved, having done it once, never to move his eyeballs again. A dusty thudding in his head made the scene before him beat like a pulse. His mouth has been used as a latrine by some small creature of the night, and then as its mausoleum. During the night, too, he’d somehow been on a cross-country run and then been expertly beaten up by a secret police. He felt bad.

i realize that there are many non-drinkers on this forum who will read this and shake their heads at those of us who have experienced such things, i am hear to tell you that you are exactly right and we are morons.

[B1GM0N3Y86]

Tend to favor Nebbiolo grapes from the Piedmont region of Italy (Barolo and Barberesco wines) or a nice Classico. Also enjoy a nice Cabernet from Chile or a Bordeaux from France thanks to recent Paris trip.

Domestically tho, we have found some decent inexpensive Blends and Cabernets that pair nicely with our lamb/steak dinners as well (Menage e Trois, Dreaming Tree, Apothic Red, Robert Mandavi).

However, this is when my wife and I aren't sipping on our Old Fashions....

[VentAlarm]

i'm really shocked that this didn't just turn into a convo about who drinks the cheapest moonshine they make in the spare toilet with leftover welch's

i'm not a huge wine guy, reds almost always give me headaches even in small quantities.

beer and brown liquor all the way. currently drinking a lot of Bear Walker - dark maple syrup beer from Nash

Have you ever been to Napa?

[MPMD]

i'm really shocked that this didn't just turn into a convo about who drinks the cheapest moonshine they make in the spare toilet with leftover welch's

i'm not a huge wine guy, reds almost always give me headaches even in small quantities.

beer and brown liquor all the way. currently drinking a lot of Bear Walker - dark maple syrup beer from Nash

[Hoopoe]

I live on the Central Coast of CA and as a result have developed an expensive wine habit. I agree that the wines here can be amazing. My current favorites:

GSM Blends: Top Winery (amazing up and coming blender at a fair price about $50/bottle given the quality), Saxum is wait list only and amazing blends one of the best in the world, Tablas Creek for more subtle French style blends and can be amazing if that is to your palate.
Cab: Daou is a bit overpriced for a lot of their blends but their high end Cab is amazing and rivals the best in Napa. $125 for their Sole of the Lion blend and $275 for their Patrimony if you really want to splurge though it's the same fruit just a more intensive barrel program. Jesse Katz is a wine maker in Healdsburg who makes my other favorite Cabs which are the more rich Napa style under his label at Aperture Cellars and also does an off brand bottling for Valette which is an amazing restaurant. Kathryn Hall is my favorite Napa area cab.
Pinot Noir: A wonderful grape, subtle and nuanced. My favorite right now is Kosta Brown in Sonoma. Three Sticks is another great Sonoma producer.

I agree with above that the Marborough NZ area for Sav Blanc. I love a good South African Chenin Blanc as well, and a dry Reisling from Germany. Some great old world wine producers but I just haven't explored that region much.

It's expensive, too much isn't always good for your health, but it's such an art that you have to really get into to appreciate the nuance and history and develop the palate (or maybe better if you don't).

[dennis]

agree on the paso robles, prices are much better for some amazing reds.

Agree. The Paso Robles and Santa Ynez Valley areas have some great and fortunately undiscovered wines. If you like Syrah Blair Fox can't be beaten.

[GlassPusher]

For Reds California Zins. Paso Robles has amazing wines for about 25% of Napa prices. Check out the Tobin James Wine Club
For Whites New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Marlborough Region
Bubbles. They all can be good in their own way.

agree on the paso robles, prices are much better for some amazing reds.

[VagabondMD]

I am more of an Old World guy. I love Barolo's and Brunello's, Chateauneuf-du-Pape's, Super Tuscan's, and just about anything from Sicily. Unfortunately, the B&B's have to be cellared so darn long, and it is hard to be patient. US-wise, I have a new passion for the Sheridan (WA) reds, including their creative blends (esp Mystique), and Matthiasson in Napa.

[pit.alumni]

For Reds California Zins. Paso Robles has amazing wines for about 25% of Napa prices. Check out the Tobin James Wine Club
For Whites New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Marlborough Region
Bubbles. They all can be good in their own way.