Oenephiles...UNITE!

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Spacemtn

a bottle of boones farm costs less than a gallon of gas

I love wine. Red first, Sparkling second and white a distance third. Anyone care to share their faves? I rarely buy anything over $30 and tend to stay in the $15-$20 range. However, a good champagne I will spend up to $50 on. Here are my some of my loves:

RED WINE

La Crema Pinot Noir:


Garnacha del Fuego (My new fave, and its only $12!):

WHITE WINE (not really a fan, but the few I like tend to be dry [Sauvignon Blanc]. Viognier is akin to chardonnay but without that awful buttery aftertaste)

Chateau Ste Michelle Sauvignon Blanc


Turnbull Viognier

SPARKLING WINE

(Amazing! This wine is dry like Sauvignon Blanc, but sparkling like champagne! And only $13! yay!)

Veuve Cliquot (any label is of this champagne is wonderful!)



So what about all of you? I'd love to hear about your faves. Unless, of course you drink white zinfandel. In that case, I don't want to hear about it. Or wine that comes in a box or gallon jug.

Originally Posted by KaraLynnKelley

I know that taste is largely a matter of taste, and people like what they like. That's right, the usual profundity you have come to expect from moi. But sometimes it can be true that people like what they have been conditioned to like, such as a cum shot across a woman's face. Or Veuve Clicquot.

Granted, Clicquot used to be one of the special treats. This is back in the 1980s, though. At some point, probably coinciding with the huge ad campaign featuring back-cover ads in slick mags like Met Home, Arch Digest, and others that appeal to luxury consumers, quality declined in a shocking manner. Ramping up production to meet expanded demand has meant buying grapes from all over, quality and source be damned.

According to the book The Wine Trials, Clicquot is now a brand within the luxury portfolio of Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton. This company also owns Krug, d'Yquem, Fendi, Givenchy, TAG Heuer and other prestige labels.

In my view, one of the biggest stories in the world of wine is the precipitous decine in quality at many of the well-known Champagne houses. Taittinger, Bollinger, Piper Heidseick, Mumm, Roederer, Clicquot . . . on down the list. What used to be special in the 1980s became, somewhere around the late 1990s, mundane.

I have a pal who works at one of the country's biggest and best-known retailers of wine, especially fine wines. This is the place the wealthy send their assistant to go pick up the mixed case of DRC wines for $11,000. Extremely knowledgable staff; they all sample numerous wines every day. The store has several buyers each specializing in various wine regions around the world. They have a person whose entire job is to go to Champagne and buy for the store.

This store's staff did a Champagne tasting (he told me the story two years ago). A blind tasting. They were told that one wine was a ringer (ie, not true Champagne). The entire staff picked the same wine as the ringer, declaring is well below the quality of the others, and guessing it was a low-cost Cava from Spain, like a $7.00 - 9.00 wine.

You guessed it--Veuve Clicquot.

Now, it is entirely possible that Clicquot has gotten it together in the last few years. I've had a few bottles of PJ recently that were not far from the quality of 20 years ago. (I know, I know, I sound like a "good old days" guy here!) But I can tell you with confidence that knowledable sales people at my friend's shop, and wine stores around the country, lament that people are coming in with Clicquot on their minds, uninterested in any recommendations for other Champagnes, and leaving with an inferior product that has a great image.

If you want to branch out, ask for a sales person who knows Champagne and say you specifically want a "grower Champagne". (Assuming you don't think I'm totally full of shit here!) These are wines from smaller houses, where the winemaker grows the grapes and makes the wine. Little operations, at least relative to the giants like Clicquot and others.

If they don't have a knowledgable person, or don't know what "grower Champagne" means, go elsewhere. At the Spec's on Airport Blvd, I got a bottle of Andre Clouet Brut which was what Champagne can be. The person I spoke with knew exactly what I was talking about when I lamented the huge decline in quality at the big houses.

Like I said, maybe Clicquot and all the others have returned to form. I'm not going to spend $55 to find out, and the wine distributors here no longer hold annual Champagne tastings in the Fall, or at least have not recently. Meantime, it's Roederer Anderson Valley or Mumm's Napa Valley, among a few others. And the occasional Clouet or other grower Champagnes I learn about.

Sorry for the lengthy post here. As you may guess, Champagne, both NV and vintage, had been a part of what brought joy, pleasure, and celebration to my life. I have regretted losing that.

And as an aside, if I ever spend $11,000 on twelve nights of pleasure, it's not going to be ME doing the swallowing! I'm just sayin'!!

Wow, you have given me some great suggestions! I've never heard of that Rubiatt and the Moscato idea... brilliant!

Have you tried Gascon, an Argentinian (BTW, when is it proper to use Argentine vs Argentinian?) Malbec? I love this one.

Originally Posted by KaraLynnKelley

Gascon is a very nice Malbec; I would recommend it also!


Headsnapper Malbec is another great Malbec at a really great price (average 10.00 a bottle)

I have only found this at Randalls and it is exclusive to them only. A really great Malbec to try!

For other great Malbecs try the Norton and the Norton Reserve Malbec; again great pricing on very good Argentinian Malbecs. The Norton will retail for about 9.00 and the Reserve will be about 11.00.

I tend to find a classification of wine and taste my way through it.Last year I was really into the Pinot Noirs and found I liked just about anything from Oregon State.

Erath Pinot Noir is a very light style fruity noir. Easy to drink and great with Salmon.

a bottle of boones farm costs less than a gallon of gas Originally Posted by petiteassman

That's because it's made from gasoline and kool-aid . . .

Damn, I was hoping oenephile was something dirty.

Port and riesling for me, please.


Yalumba Clocktower tawny port


Mosel Kabinett sweet riesling Originally Posted by Vyt

I have a feeling you are going to like my fave. And it's a Texas wine to boot - woohooo !!!

I've often wondered . . . Taste tests with beer drinkers have shown that after 2 or 3 beers, the drinkers could not distinguish one beer from another. Is it the same for the palates of wine drinkers?

I've often wondered . . . Taste tests with beer drinkers have shown that after 2 or 3 beers, the drinkers could not distinguish one beer from another. Is it the same for the palates of wine drinkers? Originally Posted by SpeedRacerXXX

This is basically a true statement of either beer, wine or hard spirits.

A old adage is if you drink a glass of 26 year old Scotch Whisky, drink it, enjoy it, and if you are going to continue drinking, move on to a cheap brand, your palate is overwhelmed.

In wine tastings, the same holds true. After a flight ( a sampling of different wines) the taste buds are numbed and you wil not be able to distinguish certain flavor profiles for the next wine. A flight should not really exceed 5 or 6 samplings.

If you are drinking a heavy full body cabernet, if you suddenly decide to switch to a Pinot Noir or a Blend wine, you will not be able to enjoy all of the flavor profiles of that wine.

Favorite everyday wine is Evodia old vine red from Spain, best value I have ever run across at 8-9 bucks a bottle, especially the 2007 if you can find it. Also like Neal cabernet, a bit pricey at 50-60 but taste as good as any really high dollar cab and if your eating an expensive steak don't cheap out on the wine.

This is basically a true statement of either beer, wine or hard spirits.

A old adage is if you drink a glass of 26 year old Scotch Whisky, drink it, enjoy it, and if you are going to continue drinking, move on to a cheap brand, your palate is overwhelmed.

In wine tastings, the same holds true. After a flight ( a sampling of different wines) the taste buds are numbed and you wil not be able to distinguish certain flavor profiles for the next wine. A flight should not really exceed 5 or 6 samplings.

If you are drinking a heavy full body cabernet, if you suddenly decide to switch to a Pinot Noir or a Blend wine, you will not be able to enjoy all of the flavor profiles of that wine. Originally Posted by runswithscissors

While I agree with what's stated above if you are just drinking to be drinking or power drinking, I have found that when something is used to "cleanse" the palate, the ability to discern the difference is maintained. For example, I was recently in NY city and went to a wine tasting with a friend who is in the retail liquor business. We had cheese, or fruit, or bread , or crackers, etc after each 2-3 tastings . This allowed our taste buds to still "taste" each vintage sampled.

The same is true when you attend dinners at wineries. they serve food (and what fabulous food!!!) between varieties to help cleanse the palate and allow you to taste the difference. I like wine, but I love it when it is with food!!

Spacemtn

I love wine. Red first, Sparkling second and white a distance third. Anyone care to share their faves? I rarely buy anything over $30 and tend to stay in the $15-$20 range. However, a good champagne I will spend up to $50 on. Here are my some of my loves:

RED WINE
[CENTER][SIZE=2][B]La Crema Pinot Noir:



Veuve Cliquot (any label is of this champagne is wonderful!)



So what about all of you? I'd love to hear about your faves. Unless, of course you drink white zinfandel. In that case, I don't want to hear about it. Or wine that comes in a box or gallon jug.
Originally Posted by KaraLynnKelley

Well, those are definitely two of my favorites and I have that exact Pinot Noir stocked up right now. The Vueve is an excellent champagne that I occasionally buy by the case to keep on hand!

And, I know everyone says over-priced, but I absolutely adore Silver Oak Cabernet. Good thread!

I agree with Scissors on Oregon Pinot Noir. I'm not that enamored of California Pinots, but Oregon's Willamette Valley seems to have got it right. More Burgundian in style, without the Burgundy price tag. In addition to Erath, there are many others, like Argyle and Amity, that are great and usually readily available at my favorite wine merchant - Costco! Or, when I want to spend a little more, Domaine Drouhin is really good.

After 20 years of living in California and drinking mostly California wines, I've been trending more toward Italy and Spain for reds - more finesse, reasonable prices, and generally lower alcohol. I've found alcohol has a greater dampening affect on performance as I get older, if you know what I mean. As mentioned in another thread, Brunello di Montalcino is a favorite, but the quality of other Italian and Spanish wines has really improved in the last ten years - and they tend to be very food friendly. Same is true for southern France.

I've yet to find a Texas red that hasn't been relegated to "cooking wine" status after the first sip, but I've had a few whites that aren't bad.

Oh, and for bubbly - Pol Roger, when I can find it. If it was good enough for Churchill, its good enough for me! Still family owned. Otherwise, the California outposts of the French Champagne houses (Taittinger, Mumm) are producing some good ones.

@Meldrick:
Awesome, AWESOME post. I see your point about Veuve... for many, it is more about the label than the actual champagne itself. However, compared to Pommery or Taittinger, I love it. Taittinger has a carmel-corn aftertaste to me. LOL excuse my non-industry descriptions. I'm no sommelier, lol.

I'm also a fan of prosecco. This one is my fave:


And I have a question for everyone who participated in this thread:

When were yall going to tell me I spelled "Oenophile" wrong? Were you just being polite or do you suck at spelling too?

You expect us to drink and spell at the same time? we just all politely suck....