wines

[surfn]

what is a good recomendation for a beginner wine?

i have never liked any wines i've tried, they are way too dry and sour. my g/f and i got a bottle of dark red carbernet sauvignon (~$10) last night for dinner......and i honeslty thought cough syrup tasted better....lol

i've had a couple of sweeter champagnes that i've like though.

any recomendation of a sweeter wine i can try out? something fruity?

 

[kenske]

great thread. im in the same boat as you. im not really a drinker but hoping to get into wine for social drinking with business peeps.

all u wine experts pleeese chime in.

 

[surfn]

yeah, i'm living in a much more "classy" area right now, right near some wineries etc........there are even some local wine & cheese bars.

while i'm not willing to take it to an extreme, it would be nice to be able to like a few things.


as far as my pallette goes......i'm not a big bear drinker either. there are a couple i like so-so (Killians, Red Hook Honey Brown etc.). but I prefer either the dark or amber woodchuck varieties. or a long-island iced tea.

i'm not big on the super fruity mixed drinks though...way too much sugar.

 

[alexpescado]

I like to drink Riesling or Gerwurztaminer wines from the Alsace region of France. They are wines that go very well with different ethnic foods.
They have a slightly sweet floral taste to them. Other whites you might try are Sauvignon Blanc(Joel Gott) and Pinot Grigio. There are a lot of nice Reds from Chile or maybe a Cotes Du Rhone from France.

 

[Azurel]

Alex has some good recommendations, I also like (Riesling but these are depicted by time of the picking) Spatlese, Auslese, and for the spendy times Ice wines. Ice wine is my absolute fave, tastes like white grape juice with some alcohol....But mind you for a good bottle of Ice wine you will spend $50 to $400 a bottle. The spatlese is more fruity and not as dry and the Auslese is a little drier and has a nice fruity taste. The later the picking the fruitier the wine....Auslese, Spatlese, and last pick of the year Ice wine. There is also a white merlot that is nice one of my fave is Forest fire White merloe by Forest Glen.

 

[kenske]

I had ice wine before. do not remember which one, but i thought it was waaay too sweet.

 

[twon8]

reisling is a good rec. maybe we'll have a wine and cheese table at the frag swap for you charlottesvile types. i've heard that joke for ten years, didn't think it was actually true.

 

[Azurel]

It is sweet for sure, it's considered a desert wine nothing you would have with dinner but after with desert or as desert.......Depends on which vineyard you get it from as well. There are a few levels of sweetness......

 

[twon8]

i personally haven't found a red i can drink, they all make me sweat and ehat up. there are some awful whites as well, which give me acid reflux before it even hits my stomach.

 

[Paintguru]

I love cabernet. Of course, you need to find the brand that you like best even once you zero in on a type. I found most other wines much too dry for my taste.

 

[Hypertek99]

Try Pinot Grigio it's a sweeter wine

 

[JGoslee]

Does Mad Dog 20/20 count as a fine wine? :D
I've only tried a few wines and I really didn't like them. I'll stick to beer and hard liquor.

 

[deadhermitwalkin]

Big fan of Caymus. Hard to find.

 

[surfn]

reisling is a good rec. maybe we'll have a wine and cheese table at the frag swap for you charlottesvile types. i've heard that joke for ten years, didn't think it was actually true.

yeah, i always heard the jokes poking fun of them for the "wine and cheese" kinda thing. but then i saw the bars, that ONLY serve wine and cheese and i was shocked. i was walking downtown and saw 2 guys sitting outside drinking wine and eating cheese......lol

of course, this is the same type of people who's drink of choice for football tailgates is Zima.......lol they are just asking to be made fun of. :hammer:

i personally haven't found a red i can drink, they all make me sweat and ehat up. there are some awful whites as well, which give me acid reflux before it even hits my stomach.

i have the same problem with acid reflux. so the more acidic wines are definitely out. hence wanting to find something sweeter.

Try Pinot Grigio it's a sweeter wine

any particular brand that you can find around VA?

Does Mad Dog 20/20 count as a fine wine? :D
I've only tried a few wines and I really didn't like them. I'll stick to beer and hard liquor.

:hammer::hammer:

 

[msman825]

yah mad dog straight, and the wineing starts the next morning :)

 

[SaraB]

I like the German Rieslings as if find them more sweet and fruity than the U.S. ones.

 

[twon8]

I like the German Rieslings as if find them more sweet and fruity than the U.S. ones.

agreed, they are great served chilled/cold, and i don't drink warm drinks.

i'm sure you can find some reisling locally, shouldn't be more than 15 bucks, ive tried a few different brands and they are all pretty good. they seem to come in blue bottles so look for the blue bottles.

 

[J. Montgomery]

Does Mad Dog 20/20 count as a fine wine? :D

Yeah, bum wine: http://www.bumwine.com/

I'm a wine and liquor person myself. The 'ole standby is Captain Morgan and coke with lime. I like just about any wine, though I prefer to drink more red (I actually have been working on a bottle of Cabernet all afternoon . . . ).

My sister in law used to work at a vineyard here in C'ville (Keswick), and then for a while she worked at a wine bar in the downtown mall.

You should go to some of the local vineyards, it's usually just <$5 for a tasting and you get ~12 different tastings! That'll be an easy way to try different styles for cheap, and have fun doing it. Oakencroft is just down the road from you.

Personally, I find most dessert wines are nasty, too sweet for me. But for the most part, I'm not picky or snobbish about it.

 

[J. Montgomery]

I like the German Rieslings as if find them more sweet and fruity than the U.S. ones.

Rieslings are good, my g/f especially likes them. She's also been on this "Kir Royale" kick after reading that Keira Knightley (sp?) likes those. It's champagne with a dash of black currant liquor (or in our case, black berry liquor).

 

[J. Montgomery]

any particular brand that you can find around VA?

Go to the wine shop thats by Kroger on Hydraulic Rd. Tell those guys what type of wine you want (like what you're going to serve it with) and a price range and they'll hook you up with some dank stuff. They're a great, knowledgable group in that store.