radioguy

I love drinking wine as I'm sure many of you do. Currently, my favorite is a Penfolds Shiraz/Mourvedre blend. It's easy to drink and has a nice backend to it. I want to try some new wines. What is your favorite?

maleficent

Santa Margaretta Pinot Grigio -- it's a nice crisp white, that's wonderful with spicey foods -- especially in the summer.

For a lighter white, I also like Sauvignon Blanc - CLos du Bois is one of my faves.

Marques de Riscal a really nice Rioja out of Spain -great with Seafood, or when dining at some of my local Portugese/Spanish restaurants.

I'm not a fan of Cabernets at all, they're a little too heavy, I do like Shiraz's and Pinot Noirs when it comes to reds... I've gotten some great wines from Chili, Argentina, and Australia that are unbelievably good and unbelievably cheap.

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Jonsgirl

There's a really great dessert wine that I love. Well, there's several vairations, but they're all Musacto. Find a Marco Negri. That's one of the best, and easily found.

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Cicero

Home made cabernet sauvignon. Most other wines give me a hang over.

My father makes wine every year and has been for the last 30 years; he used to buy the cheapest grapes too, which at the time were muscatel and barbera. It’s a bit of an unspoken Italian custom, if someone offers you a glass of wine, you drink it and say that it is good. You better have a big set of balls to tell someone straight up their wine is bad.

Well the case with my dad is that he never fully realized how bad his wine was. He knew it could be better, but never conceptualized how bad it was. Worse yet, most other Italians made their wine even worse than his. So he starts putting a little more money into his efforts, adding chemicals to clarify the wine, cooking it to make it stronger and storing it in varying ways. But there never was any significant improvement.

Then 3 years ago he bought a grape crusher that separated the stems from the meat, skins and juice of the grapes. Before he used to allow the stems to mix with the meat, skins and juice of the grapes while being put through the wine press. This always led his wine to being EXTREEMLY dry and very strong. Now with his new grape crusher, the wine became sweeter and to my tastes, much more palatable. Thankfully last season he went to buy grapes and found that all the barbera was sold out, so he bought a dozen cases of cabernet sauvignon. It is delicious; my only disappointment is that he didn’t take these steps to improve his wine sooner. I’m very proud now that he’s able to make such a great wine without any chemicals or additives. It is pure, unadulterated wine.

Wine making season is coming up soon, in the next three to six weeks we’re going to be very busy with buying the grapes, crushing them, putting them through the wine press, the fermentation process and then bottling.

anleja

Torres' Sangre de Toro is the favorite of all I've tried. I've heard about it for a while, but could never find it, until I discovered that the new Cost Plus World Market in my area sold it. Some think it is too strong, but I disagree. Its a far cry from port wine, at least. The taste is kind of dry, which I enjoy more than sweetness. Kinda berry flavored. Good with chicken and pasta. Mmmm...

jordan_is_god

boones farm owns all that stuff is like 99 cents....it'll gety ya drunk... on a serious note has anybody tried that 2 buck chuck whine that was on 60 minutes?? this guy buys all the rejected grapes from the napa valley and makes his own whine and sells it dirt cheap.... hes gettin filthy rich from it cuz it tastes as good as the high dollar stuff.... the high dollar owners are pissed off and have tried taking him to court... anyway ive heard a cpl ppl say its a great whine but i cant find it around here... not available at the local liquor store

Rlyss

Penfolds Rawson's Retreat Merlot, heavenly, heavenly!

I'm not very knowledgeable about wine, for example I don't really know the real differences between a shiraz, and a merlot, and the blends, etc., but when I have a glass of merlot I can just sit back and relax. Feels great.

yakimushi

I'm not a huge wine fan but I like riesling with seafood and ice wine with dessert.

lurkette

I like a good sweet dessert wine like a gewurtzremeiner or riesling. I used to like merlot but for some reason they just don't do it for me any more.

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Strange Famous

I like red better than white - thats about all I can say. I drink wine from a pint mug, so I guess I'm not a coniseur (sic?) as such!

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radioguy

Dorito, I've had the Rawson's Retreat Merlot and I agree it's fabulous. I haven't found a wine by Penfold's I don't like.

Anleja, I'm going to pick up a bottle of the Torres this week and try it out. It better be good

Thanks

Mephisto2

Man oh man, I could post on this topic for hours...

Favourite wine? So very difficult to choose. Here, however, are some of my favourites. I don't think I could pick just one!

Pouilly Fuisse - A beautiful white Burgundy, which like all Burgundian whites is made from the Chardonnay grape. This tastes softer than your typical Chablis though!

Chablis - Another white Burgundy also made with Chardonnay, but from the northern region and much more "flinty" due to the soil

Pouilly Fume - Lovely Sauvigon Blanc from the banks of the Loire

D'arrenberg Ironwood from the McLaren Vale in South Australia. A quintessential gutsy full bodied Australian red.

Nuit St George - another Burgundy made (as would be expected) from the Pinot Noir grape.

Sancerre - Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire, but seemingly lighter than Pouilly Fume.

Lacryma Christi del Vesuvio - amazing Italian red made on the slopes of Mt Vesuvious. I bought two cases of this a few years ago at an Italian Wine Show and have been hoarding them ever since, opening one at special occasions only.

Orlanda St Hugo - One of Australia's best wines from Coonawarra. The 1998 is highly recommended.

Penfolds make some amazing wines. Of course not all of us can afford the sublime Grange at over $300 a bottle (and over $1000 for some of the best vintages), but their Bin 407 is well worth the price. Their Rawsons Retreat range is very cheap and are what as known as "quaffers" in Australia. Lovely, cheap and easy on the tongue.

And that's only off the topic of my head!


Mr Mephisto

Blackthorn

My favorite wine is quite a simple selection: It's the one I open with good friends when we're sitting down to a nice home cooked meal.

It's always the best when you share it with friends....

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It depends on the occasion.

But - For a good wine at a good price, you can't go wrong with (Washington State's) Columbia Crest Grand Estates - whether it be their Cabernet, Merlot, or Chardonnay. All are under $10, and are rated in the high-80's/low 90's by Wine Spectator.

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eyeronic

Jordan Cabernet and that 1993 Barolo I had at Obelisk in DC. Anyone know the one I'm talking about?

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Rodney

Any good cabernet, room temperature, with prime rib.

Dengar

I just started drinking wine. but so far my favorite is the gallon jugs under $10

anleja

Wow Mephisto, are one of those people who gently sip wine and swish it around their mouth with ther tongue?

If you don't like it, then, well, you can just... ship me the remainder.

MageB420666

Any wine I can get a hold of... stupid voting at 18 and drinking at 21, I'd rather it was the other way around, but when I am legal I am staying away from chardonneys, they don't taste good to me.

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radioguy

Anleja, I'm drinking it all whether I like it or not Thanks for the suggestion though.

nottwood

Wine is fine, but quicker is liquor...
but Ben Franklin on day said 'wine is proof God loves us'.

Captain Canada

Wine is alright. I cant drink red wine, due to the fact that if gives me horrible heart burn. The only time I ever drank red wine, I spent the next 48 hours in the most unbearable chest pain ever.

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kulrblind

Yellowtail Shiraz (if you like reds) -- affordable and tasty.



They also put out a merlot that's decent

roachboy

if i can swing it, i'll go for a red burgundy--which one depends on the combination of my failing memory and what is in front of me when i want a bottle.

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bigoldalphamale

Cakebread - any

Tarara - Merlot & Cabernet Blanc

i know, i know...Charles Shaw (2 Buck Chuck) Pinot

Dessert wines be damned!

pedro padilla

any of the ribera dueros from the piñedes region of spain are purdy tasty. probably a bit pricey in the states.

the_marq

<img src="http://www.bevmax.com/labels/2478.JPG">

McGuigan Brothers Black Label Shiraz.

When drunk by itself is a deep flavourful almost chocolatey wine. Drink it with spicey foods and it takes on an almost sweet black currant flavour. My hands down favourite.

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hunnychile

Living in Napa has afforded me the opportunity to taste some great wines...my favorite chardonnay is from Clos Pegase Winery, it's called Mitsuko's Chardonnay - any vintage has been excellant, their reds are fantastic too. The Hommage is without compare. Do let it breathe & rest though. A bit pricey but well worth it for special occassions. I love them all and any red from Ponzi in Washington state are beyond compare. Any varietal from Silverado in Napa are incredible esp. if you can find a Cab from the mid 90's. 1995 are killler! Price isn't an issue for me when wine is being purchased. There are oustanding ones out there for under $20. Not fond of Two buck "Chuck" - Charles Shaw. Good one though if you are really tight for cash I hear. Those 'Yellow Tail' wines from Australia are tastey for the $7.00 range. Am Digging the Beringer Founders Reserves, too. Nice people, always good wines.

If you find some wines tend to give you a stuffy nose, then be sure to airate them first, it really helps volutize the esters.

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hunnychile

Oh and if you open one that's too tight, let it sit for a day. Sometimes they are 'bottle bound' and need an over-night rest.

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lukethebandgeek

I don't have a particular favorite, but a nice dry red wine always hits the spot. Most table wines in France seemed to do it for me.

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hunnychile

Those in the wine biz always laugh about the Wine Spectator's ratings...if they bottle the spit bucket 'schlock' and say it's an 85 or higher...it's sure to sell. It's sort of a quazi fake rating scale set up by large bottling companies mainly. The wise trust their own taste buds only.

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Macheath

Agree with all of the folks who've had good things to say about Penfolds. I only get to open the Grange when I've finished my degree but we did crack open a Henschke Hill of Grace for some special occasion a few years ago; that was pretty amazing.

Personally, I'm a fan of Penfolds bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz.

sailor

There's a great little bottle of Cab that I just love--Muirwood. Not too expensive, depending on where you get it, it goes from $14-$19.

Personally, Cabernets are by far my favorite wines. I really like the strong, earthy flavor. Merlots do nothing for me--Ive found its a rare bottle of Merlot that has any sort of flavor to it.

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Baldrick

I don't drink myself, but my wife loves the Stags Leap merlot. My boss turned her on to it, and that's her favorite now. A pain in the arse to find it in Ontario though!

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sexymama

St. Michealle Riesling.

I lived one year in Ukiah, CA (North of the Napa Valley.) Some very snobby people told me that in time I would grow to appreciate Chardonnay. Well, I don't particularly care for it and I don't care. I think wine should be enjoyed, not tolerated. And I agree with Kjroh, the best wine is the wine I share with my friends.

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shortynickel

i like the local stuff...hunters valley and cant think of other one from central pa...as long as it isnt super dry i like it

WillyPete

I love my red wine.

Just finished the last of some Beaujolais.
Louis Jadot 2003.

5 other types of red I'd recommend. (Maybe we should make a 'best 5' thread for this?)

1: Barolo
2: Hermitage
3: Fitou
4: Syrah
5: Merlot

Janey

DFJ VINHOS PEDRAS DO MONTE CASTELAO

I tell you, it has the heart of an Australian Cab, but at half the price. It's castelao grapes from Portugal. mmmmmmm.

http://torontolife.com/thismonth/lis...isting_id=4520

www.lcbo.com

WillyPete

I've enjoyed a few good Portuguese reds last month. They do like their robust grapes, don't they. Very full flavour and very smooth.