Wine Suggestions for a Newbie

hahahaha wrote:

Sure, the wine experts will tell me I'm committing a cardinal sin if I have white zin with fish (or is it steak? who knows, or cares).

Incorrect. You're committing a cardinal sin for merely drinking white zinf!

(ALERT: Nothing screams cheap more than a bottle of white zinfandel!)

Oregon's Pinot Noirs are the way to go and it will really impress her parents. These are by far and away the best and tastiest wine selections. Just average ones are outstanding in that price range: Rex Hill, Cooper Mountain, Medici, almost any Oregon vineyard, there are dozens of vineyards. When the world starts to discover how good these bad boys really are, the prices will go way up.

Mollydooker is a pretty good recommendation made above. You can get tons of very good wines for 20 bucks or less- D'Arenberg has a series of topnotch Aussie wines such D'Arry's Original, Laughing Magpie and Footbolt; you can get a Kunde or Rosenblum cab for 12-14 bucks, a Seghesio Zin for under 20, and a great bottle of Ridge Zin for the same. Of course, you can also buy Ridge Monte Bello for $125, but most Ridge Zins are in the range of $20-32 and are great values. Someone else suggested La Crema, which I think is a great wine for the $15 it costs here. Great values can be found in Malbecs and riojas and Tempranillos- Mas Donis, Ercavio.

And seriously, pick up one of the 2007 wine guides- I happen to like Oz Clarke's. And consider subscribing to Robert Parker, either his pruint publication or eRobertParker.com.

And if you want to impress, go for Harlan Estate (I have 3 bottles coming), Joseph Phelps Insignia, Screaming Eagle, Grace Family, Araujo, or Yquem (a sauternes, but oh, what a sauterne). All except for Yquem are domestic. Once you get the domestic stuff down, time for Bordeaux....

Colt 45.

Nice that you mentioned the Ridge Zin lineup. Great stuff for the price. I agree, tons of great Aussie's for the value.If you bring Insignia or any of those "impress" wines listed, you're not on a budget.And if you subscribe to RP, you're not on a budget either. It's $100 per year. Just use the free message board on his website. You can get just as much information there, you just have to hunt and peck for it. Is the OP still around? I'm not sure we ever got an idea of what he meant when he said he was on a budget. If a budget is under $20, that makes a big difference than if it means under $50. Under $50, you can get some very impressive wines.

KnowItAll wrote:

The more I think about this story, the less likely it seems. Yellowtail winning a tasting of 35 wines? 3 years in a row? Now you've got me interested. I'm going to throw the Yellowtail Shiraz into every blind tasting I do for the next year and see if it ever wins. Or even comes in in the top 5. I'm hosting a party this Saturday. I can't wait to see the results.

The year I went it was 35. I don't know how many it was the other years but I do know it won 3 years in a row.

Bring the Mad Dog 20/20 and act serious....see if they can take a joke, and then pull out the good stuff.

Indeed, that was why I made the comment about trying to impress. :-) Most of the wines in my "impress" list are horribly expensive; hell, a new bottle of Screaming Eagle, which plebians like me will never even get a chance to buy, is $600, so even if I could get a bottle I can't really afford it (says the guy with 3 bottle of Harlan coming...). But for a bit over $100, Insignia is a great wine... and I get the print Parker, which is less than the electronic form, but worthy every penny if you really love wine. Still, this is really for wine geeks; I just got bottles of Chateau Langoa Barton 03 and Chateau Guy-Puy-Lacoste 03, both for around $40 each, not too bad.

But there really are good ones for under $15, such as the Mas Donis I mentioned, which Parker rated 92.

i'm gonna have to recommend the 4 liter jug of carlo rossi. a much better choice than that cheap boxed franzia shit. tell the rents to put on their drinking shoes, and come prepared with a few good drinking game ideas. oh i would suggest the blush over the red or white, you'll be glad you did a couple liters later.

I was just in Neal Rosenthal's basement last week picking out some of his new vintage stuff.. Great small produce list.Not just for winegeeks but it could be.

http://www.madrose.com/htmlIndex.html

Another NYC based importer Panebianco has a great list of Italian small producers, you should check them both out greenliner.

I've been drinking some late 90's Ridge Zins and I just love the late pick,late harvest stuff at 7-8 years old.... Can not wait to retaste at 10 years..

1st impressions wrote:

Meeting my girlfriend's parents for the first time. Invited over for dinner and I would like to bring some wine. I am young and sort of on a budget. Any suggestions?

Hey Screw-top and Cork-face shut the huck up the kid wants to get laid here!

Play nice or wejo will have us drinking from a box.

On another thread wineturtle said something about the best wine is when you drink with friends no matter what label is on the bottle.You both like wine so play nice and your wine will taste better.

English Major wrote:

Sure, it is good and in my fridge,

First of all, Charles Shaw is one grade below fox piss. I won't use it for sauce.

Second of all, who the hell keeps red wine in their fridge???

He asked for wine suggestions FOR a newbie, not FROM a newbie.

just put some water into a olive jar and pray to jesus.

hypnotoad wrote:

First of all, Charles Shaw is one grade below fox piss. I won't use it for sauce.

Second of all, who the hell keeps red wine in their fridge???

He asked for wine suggestions FOR a newbie, not FROM a newbie.

No ditz, the Miller Lite is in my fridge.

LOL...

English Major wrote:

It would be like bringing over a six of Miller Lite. Sure, it is good and in my fridge, but it isn't gift material.

For Context...

Charles Shaw is really not THAT bad. dollar-for-dollar, one of the best. We can't all drink Opus One every night. But I would think we all want to drink every night.

Night Train Express

http://www.bumwine.com/nighttrain.html

Opus One is very disappointing. But at least it tastes like real wine.

I'm no label queen when it comes to wine (for cars, yes, but not wine) and Trader Joe's has quite a few $6-8 bottles that I find enjoyable. But Charles Shaw really truly is undrinkable. It's the wine that goes with spam and mac-and-cheese.

Check out klwines.com for one of the best mail order places around.