The Wine Thread

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I like big reds:)
Ok , this is gonna sound odd, but there one Cab/sav called "Cabzilla" it was around 2 years ago, and now I can't find it--I have 1 bottle left:(

My all time favorite if from a little winery in Cal. called Pretty Smith. I can't get it either...someone had a bottle, I got one glass an my wife drank the rest !!!:mad: Do either of these ring a bell to anyone?
 
While I like nearly everything, I'm primarily a red-wine kind of guy. Pressed to choose a favorite, I'd have to pick Cabernet Sauvignon, either a good Napa cab or something from Washington's Columbia Valley. Since I'm a poor student, no Chateau Margeux, Petrus or Screaming Eagle for me, I'm afraid. My "hobby", if you will, is to truffle-pig out good wines in the $10 or less range. Occasionally I'll splurge and pop for a $20 bottle, but that's as high as I go unless it's a very special occasion.

A few of my favorites (and as most are under $20 I'm not going to list vintages):

Cabernet Sauvignon: J. Lohr Seven Oaks Reserve, Hess Collection, Moon Mountain, 14 Hands, Root: 1 (Chile), Sterling (Vintner's Collection), Columbia Crest Two Vines, Avalon (Napa Valley), Chateau St. Michelle, Liberty School, Red Diamond, Cellar No 8. Cab-on-the-cheap: Fish Eye, Hardy's (yeah, in the box...).
Merlot: Columbia Crest, Pine & Post, Red Diamond, Chateau St. Michelle, Sterling, Black Opal, Rosemount, Bogle, Clos Du Bois. Merlot-on-the-cheap: Fish Eye, Linemans, Barefoot.
Pinot Noir: Cono Sur, Mark West, Mirassou. Pinot-on-the-cheap: French-made Pinot Evil.
Zinfandale: Bogle Old Vine Zin, Ravenwood.
Shiraz/Sirah: Yellowtail Reserve, Rosemount, Black Opal. Shiraz-on-the-cheap: Yellowtail in the magnum.
Malbec: I've only had a few, all from Chile or Argentina. The Norton Malbec is probably the best I've had, but I'm still experimenting.
Sauvignon Blanc: Bogle, Root:1, Snoqualmie, Columbia Crest
Chardonnay: 14 Hands, Columbia Crest (Grand Estates & Two Vines), Kendal Jackson (although a bit overrated). My list isn't long here; I'm not a big Chard' fan, except with food- I generally prefer Sauv Blanc to Chardonnay.
Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris: Columbia Crest Grand Estates, Cavit, Linemans. Pinot G-on-the-cheap: Pinot Evil, Yellowtail (the latter is really a bit too sweet & fruity, but not hideous).
Riesling: I avoid them except when paired with spicy foods; then I'll take a Chateau St. Michelle, Shmidt Sohne, Relax or Mirassou.
Gewurtziminer: Haven't developed a taste- it's just too syrup sweet for me. I'll cook with it if it's around, in which case it's okay in chicken or seafood dishes. For that I'll just use Columbia Crest.

This is by no means an exhaustive lists and excludes blends like Bordeux, but it's a good cross section of what I've been drinking. Here are a few I've got in my "cellar" that I haven't tried yet:

House Wine: A Washinton blend that's basically a Bordeux Clone.
Campo Veijo Rioja Crianza: A Spanish red in the Old Style.
Black Box Cabernet Sauvignon: A "high end" California box wine; this one has received pretty good reviews, so I'm optimistic.
Avalon Cabernet (2005, "California", not "Napa Valley"): Bought this to see if any of the "magic" of the Napa trickles down to this one.

Eventually I'd like to try the Columbia Crest Reserves and spendier J. Lohr's, both around $35-40. And I'd like to branch out into a few more French wines and "Super Tuscans." And don't forget, in a few weeks we should have a new season's Beaujolais Nouveau!
 
Rob, Malbec from Argentina is likely to be your best qpr value wine these days, especially if you like big reds.

A pretty good value, although the majority of wine critics consider Southern Hemisphere Malbec a 2nd tier wine. I would have to tentatively agree right now; the Cabs of Chile & Argentina strike me as much better than the Malbecs. Still, there are several more I'd like to try. And yeah, I definately like big reds!:w00t2:

Ozz has some really good values, too. World Market is currently selling Little Boomey for $4/bottle. I think the Cabernet Merlot is really hard to beat at that price.
 
The only wine critic I pay attention to is my mouth. :LOL:

Yeah, that's not a bad idea!:ROFLMAO: You can really tell sometimes that Wine Advocate and Wine Spectator have the price tag in one hand and a pen in the other as they write their reviews. According to Robin Goldstein (in his book The Wine Trials) about 4 hundredths of a percent of wines under $20 get a 91 or higher, if I remember the quote. I've had somewhat-expensive wines that failed to impress me and some pretty cheap ones that I liked pretty well.

Still, I've yet to be blown away by a Southern Hemisphere Malbec. There may be some really good ones, and if so I'll eventually find one.

Among cheaper wines, I see that World Market has the 2005 Avalon California Cabernet Sauvignon on sale for $6.97 per bottle til early December! I have to say I can't think of any wine regardless of style so good for that little money. I'm tempted to buy a case or two while it's on sale. I advise any wine lover on a budget that has a World Market store in their neighborhood to try a bottle.
 
my favorite value wines are still from the South of France. some are made from the local grapes like Cotes du Rhone, Languedoc, Roussillon, Corbieres, Gigondas (not too inexpensive any more but great value all the same) -- and some are made from Cab/Merlot blends, but almost all are affordable and very drinkable.

I'm not very high on the so-called inexpensive Cali wines.
 
Wouldn’t it be interesting to hear the opinions, of those who have expressed red wine preferences on this thread, as to their thoughts on the ideal temperature of a glass of dry red wine?
 
2001 Cabernet Sauvignon

question: based on that, is there a wine that someone would recomend thats similar?

2001 Cabernets are going to be very pricy, IF (and that's a huuuge "if") you can find them. That said, there are many excellent California Cabernets out there from more recent vintages that you would probably enjoy.

Because I am not at all familiar with this brand, I have no idea of its style, so I can't suggest specific substitutes. A wine merchant might be able to suggest similar Monterey Cabs.
 
I'm guessing that means 2001 was an exceptional year?

lol...and not to get my hopes up, unless I want to spend an arm and a leg?
 
Wouldn’t it be interesting to hear the opinions, of those who have expressed red wine preferences on this thread, as to their thoughts on the ideal temperature of a glass of dry red wine?

Depends on my mood and what I spent on the wine. Sometimes room temp other times I'll drop a cube in there.
 

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