Wine, anyone?

by **Neoteny** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 11:40 am

Alright, kids. I'll take a break from the uninteresting threads to throw this one out. I'm thinking about buying a good wine for my girlfriend this Christmas. Anyone out there have any suggestions? She doesn't like white wines so much, but I believe she enjoys most other types. Any ideas? Or if you don't and just want to contribute your favorite, that's cool too.

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 11:54 am

Depends what kind of price range we're looking at, but for Christmas, and to complement the old goose or turkey, I'd say a nice Pauillac (Lynch-Bages a personal favourite http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2teau_Lynch-Bages

) or a Montrachet if you're into that. I'd say St. Emillion is a decent bet as well, you can get some of those for good value these days, but bear in mind St. Emillion may be a little hard on your gf's palet. I'd recomment New World wines, but

1/ I'm French
2/They look(and are) cheap
3/ they're vinegar. :roll:

Really, let's face it : Bordeaux and Côte de Beaune are class

by **CrazyAnglican** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 2:50 pm

Australian wines are good nowadays as well. I personally do not like Shiraz, Merlot has a nice mellow taste more so than Cab.

If she likes dry wines:

Chianti & Cab

More fruity or sweet (but not overbearling):

Merlot & Beaujolais

Are you looking for a bottle to share with her with dinner, or something more expensive to collect?

P.S. anyone who actually knows anything about wine will know that I'm an utter troglodyte. I'm not knowledgeable, but I know what tastes good to me. I've been given a glass from a $200 a bottle burgundy that I could barely choke down. I've also had $10 - $15 bottles of wine that were excellent. My suggestion is to take a couple of bottles home and samel them from that price reange and see what you like.

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 2:52 pm

CrazyAnglican wrote:Australian wines are good nowadays as well.

UNCLEAN! UNCLEAN!

by **CrazyAnglican** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 2:56 pm

Hence the utter troglodyte edit :lol:

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:00 pm

CrazyAnglican wrote::lol: Hence the utter troglodyte edit

nah nah just messing with you :wink:

Besides, frankly, wine isn't about the expensive bottles ; Its an entire civilization that is meant to be enjoyed and appreciated by the individual in the group. The $15 bottle of wine is capable of having all the charm to make up for lack of complexity.

Its like literature : You can really enjoy a delightful, short witty, epigrammatic book, and then there's Shakespeare. Different ball parks, as you americans would say.

by **Minister Masket** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:02 pm

Wine is for wimps and the French.
Now whisky, there's a drink!

Get Southern Comfort!

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:09 pm

Minister Masket wrote:Wine is for wimps and the French.
Now whisky, there's a drink!

Get Southern Comfort!

You make a distinction between wimps and the French, so I won't go into a dissection of you.

Now, I am as partial to Southern Comfort as the next man, indeed, I also like my Bourbon, but wine...wine is a Civilization. Wine is the only drink that has the power to capture that status. I don't mean to disparage other drinks, but within wine, the complexity of a Beethoven symphony, the depth of a Homeric ode is contained. Wine is unrivalled. It simply blows the mind, if only you let it do that...

"Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used; exclaim no more against it."
Bonus points to who can find where that's from. :wink:

by **jcalebmoore** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:21 pm

Napoleon Ier wrote:
Minister Masket wrote:Wine is for wimps and the French.
Now whisky, there's a drink!

Get Southern Comfort!

You make a distinction between wimps and the French, so I won't go into a dissection of you.

Now, I am as partial to Southern Comfort as the next man, indeed, I also like my Bourbon, but wine...wine is a Civilization. Wine is the only drink that has the power to capture that status. I don't mean to disparage other drinks, but within wine, the complexity of a Beethoven symphony, the depth of a Homeric ode is contained. Wine is unrivalled. It simply blows the mind, if only you let it do that...

"Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used; exclaim no more against it."
Bonus points to who can find where that's from.

It's Iago in Othello.

Southern Comfort is rookie booze.

by **Minister Masket** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:29 pm

Napoleon Ier wrote:
Minister Masket wrote:Wine is for wimps and the French.
Now whisky, there's a drink!

Get Southern Comfort!

You make a distinction between wimps and the French, so I won't go into a dissection of you.

Now, I am as partial to Southern Comfort as the next man, indeed, I also like my Bourbon, but wine...wine is a Civilization. Wine is the only drink that has the power to capture that status. I don't mean to disparage other drinks, but within wine, the complexity of a Beethoven symphony, the depth of a Homeric ode is contained. Wine is unrivalled. It simply blows the mind, if only you let it do that...

"Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used; exclaim no more against it."
Bonus points to who can find where that's from.

Now don't be modest, the French have a category all to themselves.
Much as I would hate to spoilt your utmost passion of wine, I'm afraid I cannot agree. I have never taken to wine that much and a possible good thing too.
Alcohol has been a weakness in my family.

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:31 pm

Minister Masket wrote:
Napoleon Ier wrote:
Minister Masket wrote:Wine is for wimps and the French.
Now whisky, there's a drink!

Get Southern Comfort!

You make a distinction between wimps and the French, so I won't go into a dissection of you.

Now, I am as partial to Southern Comfort as the next man, indeed, I also like my Bourbon, but wine...wine is a Civilization. Wine is the only drink that has the power to capture that status. I don't mean to disparage other drinks, but within wine, the complexity of a Beethoven symphony, the depth of a Homeric ode is contained. Wine is unrivalled. It simply blows the mind, if only you let it do that...

"Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature if it be well used; exclaim no more against it."
Bonus points to who can find where that's from.

Now don't be modest, the French have a category all to themselves.
Much as I would hate to spoilt your utmost passion of wine, I'm afraid I cannot agree. I have never taken to wine that much and a possible good thing too.
Alcohol has been a weakness in my family.

I guess to me thats the point of real drinking : it isnt about the alcohol, its about the experience

by **sangfroid** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:40 pm

Napoleon Ier wrote:I guess to me thats the point of real drinking : it isnt about the alcohol, its about the experience

Almost every alcohol has its subtleties and character, particularly bourbon, it's just that real quality spirit has to be hunted down and isn't stocked in many liquor stores (except scotch maybe).

by **Minister Masket** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:40 pm

Oh? The experience of what exactly?
The lifting of the cup? The sliding motion of the liquid slipping down your throat? The hangover afterwards?

by **graeme89** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:41 pm

Minister Masket wrote:Wine is for wimps and the French.
Now whisky, there's a drink!

Get Southern Comfort!

As a Scotsman I hate to say that I like Jamiesons ( Irish ). I dont like S.Comfort though. JD is a nice drop.

by **fireedud** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:55 pm

What about vodka? Vodka is good.

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 3:59 pm

sangfroid wrote:
Napoleon Ier wrote:I guess to me thats the point of real drinking : it isnt about the alcohol, its about the experience

Almost every alcohol has its subtleties and character, particularly bourbon, it's just that real quality spirit has to be hunted down and isn't stocked in many liquor stores (except scotch maybe).[/quote

Absolutly. Like I say, I love my Jack Daniels, and I'm partial to the old green chartreuse.

by **graeme89** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 4:02 pm

My fav wine is Wolf Blaas red, Aussie and cheap but I like the taste.

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 4:05 pm

graeme89 wrote:My fav wine is Wolf Blaas red, Aussie and cheap but I like the taste.

Its Cab Sauv right?

meh...

by **graeme89** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 4:13 pm

You're a phsycic detective aren't you. But theres not that much French wine on the supermarket shelves at the moment. It's mostly Oz, Chile, California etc. I've never bought a wine more than £20 but there a few good cheap ones on offer.

by **sangfroid** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 4:13 pm

There are very few 'high-brow' australian wines that can compare with excellent French wines, but they do exist. Penfold's Grange among others is one that sells for over $250-$1,000 per bottle and the entire stock is sold out every year on the day of issue and can be hard to come by.

However if you're looking at a vin de table or lower quality wines, then australians have definitely mastered the art of mass-producing reasonable quality wine (Shiraz and Chardonnay) at a reasonable price. Very little of it is in the 'vinegar' category.

New Zealand makes excellent whites as a rule and some are absolutely first class.

Having said all that, if I've money and the time to appreciate them, then I'd be drinking Gigondas, Pouilly Fume and Sauterne all night long!

by **heavycola** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 4:58 pm

Napoleon Ier wrote:
CrazyAnglican wrote::lol: Hence the utter troglodyte edit

nah nah just messing with you

Besides, frankly, wine isn't about the expensive bottles ; Its an entire civilization that is meant to be enjoyed and appreciated by the individual in the group. The $15 bottle of wine is capable of having all the charm to make up for lack of complexity.

Its like literature : You can really enjoy a delightful, short witty, epigrammatic book, and then there's Shakespeare. Different ball parks, as you americans would say.

We agree!

Oz wines are OK. A bit like being punched in the face by a fruitbowl sometimes. At the moment I am well into rioja though. Can't drink enough of it.

Honestly man best thing is to go to a decent wine shop and try a few. Like nappy said, price isn't always an indicator.

by **Napoleon Ier** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 6:05 pm

heavycola wrote:At the moment I am well into rioja though. Can't drink enough of it.

Yeah? I never really can get into it...just has a sorta plasticky, tacky rip-off feel somtimes. I've had some decent Rioja, but really I know so little about them, I can't differentiate plonk from a nice bottle. Any tips?

by **jcalebmoore** on Sun Dec 09, 2007 6:18 pm

Neoteny wrote:Alright, kids. I'll take a break from the uninteresting threads to throw this one out. I'm thinking about buying a good wine for my girlfriend this Christmas. Anyone out there have any suggestions? She doesn't like white wines so much, but I believe she enjoys most other types. Any ideas? Or if you don't and just want to contribute your favorite, that's cool too.

Oh, and back to the actual topic of this thread...

As has been mentioned multiple times, there are tons of good wines out there, and you showing off your amazing palate and extremely good taste by picking the trendiest, most highly thought of one in creation isn't really the point of a good gift, now is it? When gifting wine, I find that it's nice to give something more representative of something meaningful. Get a wine that's vintage is the year you started dating, or her birthday. Did you have a wonderful trip together to Oregon? A regional bottle to drink while reminiscing about that experience might be the ticket. Does she dream of going to Northern Italy? You get the point. You're best to narrow your search in that manner rather than just on the tastes of some clowns (no offense clowns) in a forum.