• Hi Guest - Come check out all of the new CP Merch Shop! Now you can support CigarPass buy purchasing hats, apparel, and more...
    Click here to visit! here...

What Wine

Nate1977

UNIMPEACH CHAD
Joined
Sep 12, 2016
Messages
2,492
So a newair 121 12 bottle wine fridge found its way home,we are looking for recommendations on a few bottles to lay down for a spell, We only really started drink wines about 6 months ago, she prefers sweeter wines ,she loves red cat, arbor mist and alpine spice , we were on wine.com so many wines made us so lost.lol
so are reds or whites better for laying down for 5+ years?
certain varieties better then another?
Thanks for any input nate
 
I like Becker Vineyard's Iconoclast wines, especially the "Celebration," which is a cab/merlot blend. It's a Texas vineyard, so it may be a bit harder to find in PA than here. o_O

If you're just starting in wines, as with cigars, try lots of different things and keep a list of what you liked and what you liked about them. If you can find a local wine shop or wine tasting room, all the better. One of my friends is a serious collector, and his wine shop's sommelier keeps a list of his purchases and CALLS him when something hits its peak aging potential!

I'm not super knowledgeable myself, but when I first started with wine, Kendall-Jackson was my benchmark for comparison---they're big, classic California style wines, instantly drinkable and really hard not to like.

~Boar
 
I can't say I've laid any wine down for more than 6 months....I just drink it too much...well, we do. Having said that, when you drink the amount of wine like we do, you can't spend $50 per bottle. So we've become pretty good at finding the $10-$15 bottles.

Mark Jackson make good Pinot Noir for about $10-$12.

Cigar Box makes some good big reds for cheap too.

When we want something nice, we go towards a Meiomi which keeps it around $18-$22.

When we want to having something that's incredible.....Belle Glos winery....so damn good it's ridiculous. The Clark and Telephone Pinot Noir is amazing.

We recently bottled our own first batch of Pinot Noir as well, got 30 bottles out of that batch for a cost of around $3 a bottle and tastes/drinks like a $12 bottle.

I am working on some high end kits and aging them right now, that I expect to drink like $20 bottles.
 
Brickhouse thats awesome you made your own and are making your own
 
WTSO has some good deals. 5 years I would look at some California cabs and some Chardonnay. Check out some of the vintage charts like Robert Parker for some guidance.
 
WTSO has some good deals. 5 years I would look at some California cabs and some Chardonnay. Check out some of the vintage charts like Robert Parker for some guidance.
Ty gar had to google WTSO lol
 
Wine newb here too. If you have any good bottle shops or Bevmo/Total Wine's around you check and see if they have wine tastings. A great shop near me does wine tastings nearly every night. It's a great way to explore styles and labels on the cheap. I haven't gone in a whole since I have so many bottles and I found it very easy to walk away each time with 2 or 3 new bottles which gets expensive.

I'm most experienced with cabs. For my tastes it's hard to go wrong with any CA cab, anything Spanish, and even Argentinian. YMMV.

I'm blanking on names but I know Clos du Val is a good one and a great chardonnay I've had is called "Migration". Granted I think both those are on the pricier end (say $30-ish a bottle). Ralphs/Kroger carries a label called "Magistrate" which seems to be a solid affordable pick (around $12 a bottle IIRC).
 
Stuck in a state store , sometimes they will have 2 or 3 bottles out for tasting most of them have bottles sitting upright. There are a couple local vinyerards around is that do tasting went to a couple there were some that we liked but nothing that was outstanding.
 
I use google, a lot, for pairings. Then I go to the liquor store and pick the one with the highest ETOH content and appropriate vintage. This method has served me well. Wine is complicated, and I'm simply not interested in another expensive hobby. An Italian would never, ever spend more that $20 on a bottle, and he'd rather drink the homemade house wine if given the choice.

Doc
 
I use google, a lot, for pairings. Then I go to the liquor store and pick the one with the highest ETOH content and appropriate vintage. This method has served me well. Wine is complicated, and I'm simply not interested in another expensive hobby. An Italian would never, ever spend more that $20 on a bottle, and he'd rather drink the homemade house wine if given the choice.

Doc

Yep! I like a higher alcohol content for cooking. I think it brings out more flavors. Typically un-oaked whites in my Tomato Sauces or Bolognese.

Regarding the 20 bucks a bottle stuff, and homemade, My Grandfather made the best wine I've ever had. Was almost like drinking grape juice. He mixed different color grapes is my childhood memory. He would send one of us little kids to siphon the wine from the barrel into a pitcher. I never learned how to siphon without swallowing some....:D;)

That said, there was typically a gallon or two of Chianti, Barberone (sp? (my Mom's favorite red)), and always Frascati.
 
It's actually "Balletto" and Pinot Noir. I was relying on my Swiss cheese memory I guess. :confused:

Russian River Valley is one of the appellations within the Sonoma wine region. Although they're known more for their Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, I had a Cab from a vineyard there (that I can't remember the name of!) by the glass with my bone-in buffalo ribeye at Reata in Fort Worth that was just spectacular.

A friend of mine in Houston brings back Balletto wines by the case whenever she visits, though. Wonderful wines.

Santa Barbara has a wine growing region just north of town, Los Olivos area I think? It's been a long time since I was in Santa Barbara but I remember the local wines as being quite good.

~Boar
 
If your just learning, it can be fun to sart with one varietal, then grow from there. Pinot Noir is a good starter as it is a medium bodied red that is generally enjoyed by many. I love this varietal because the grape is very distinct to my palette- I could point out a pinot just from taste, sometimes from smell. But you can really gain an understanding of the wine's terroir with pinot - every pinot is different and Oregon Pinot, French Pinot, Sonoma Pinot, Monterey Pinot, and New Zealand Pinot all have distinct characteristics and styles.

Russian River Pinot Noir is very good but expensive - fruit forward and often bold. My favorite appellation right now is Fort Ross Seaview AVA. Check out Monterey Pinot, Anderson Valley (Mendocino), and even regions around Russian River. I find New Zealand Pinots to be delicious, earthy, and light like their french counterparts. (Look for Central Otago appellation, or the standard Marlborough). Then you can explore more Old world- not everything out of Burgundy is outrageously priced.

For your love of sweet wines, look into desert wines like French Sauternes and late harvests. Port is great - I recently had a white port (a first) that was sweet, but not sickly. Some German wine can be a bit sweeter as well. Any other 'sweet' wine will give you a hangover, like the cheap stuff.

Check out my profile, I usually put what I'm currently drinking in the info section.

Edit: sp
 
Thanks all we are going threw these putting on paper and see whats available at the state store and/or online
 
It's actually "Balletto" and Pinot Noir. I was relying on my Swiss cheese memory I guess. :confused:

Russian River Valley is one of the appellations within the Sonoma wine region. Although they're known more for their Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs, I had a Cab from a vineyard there (that I can't remember the name of!) by the glass with my bone-in buffalo ribeye at Reata in Fort Worth that was just spectacular.

A friend of mine in Houston brings back Balletto wines by the case whenever she visits, though. Wonderful wines.

Santa Barbara has a wine growing region just north of town, Los Olivos area I think? It's been a long time since I was in Santa Barbara but I remember the local wines as being quite good.

~Boar
Yup, looks like Los Olivos is right next to Santa Ynez and Solvang, all of which are due NW of Santa Barbara and all are well known for their wines (though of course not as well known outside of CA as Napa). I must admit I've never been to those places except for Santa Barbara, but really just passing through. I really need to explore more.
 
Top