WINE - Red, White, or Other - Discussed Here!

[SonicMan46]

Well has been over a month since the last post to this thread although I've been enjoying wine on a just about a nightly basis! 

But just received two wine books that might interest some:

Washington Wines & Wineries by Paul Gregutt (CLICK on both images for Amazon comments) - this book was highly recommended also in one of my wine periodicals (Conn. Guide to CA Wines).

The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson & Jancis Robinson - now 6th edition!  I've owned every one from the start (1971) - if you just want one book on wine from around the world w/ plenty of pics & maps, this would be my recommendation - not detailed nor tasting notes, but just a wonderful vinous tome to peruse! 

   

[Mozart]

Elias just drank a bottle of 2 buck chuck BTW how do you take the damn cork off without a corkscrew? I pushed it downwards and it exploded all over my face.. haha

[SonicMan46]

Elias just drank a bottle of 2 buck chuck BTW how do you take the damn cork off without a corkscrew? I pushed it downwards and it exploded all over my face.. haha

Elias - LOL!    At least the wine was only $2 Chuck rather than a 20 year-old Grand Cru Bordeaux! 

Well, to answer your first question buy a corkscrew!  I would suggest a 'waiter's type' (although there are dozens of various options), like the one below (left pic) - important features:  1) cutter for the foil; 2) long helical screw (don't buy any w/ a solid metal core); and 3) hinged attachment that provides counter-pressure; the metal ones are cheap (usually $5 or less), but expensive options are available - I've owned a Laguiole one (similar to the pic in the middle below but w/ a bone handle).

Also own a 'cork extractor' (like the one shown in the right image) - just insert into the bottle, grab the cork, and remove - I've only had to use this a couple of times (usually w/ aged bottle & older corks) - if you have a funnel (esp. one w/ a metal mesh filter) & a decanter, you can always just decant the wine - have done that before!  The emergence of screw tops will be interesting - corkscrews may become 'museum pieces'! 

[Mozart]

Awesome, those tools seems pretty complicated though. They should get ride of the corkscrew altogether! Screw tops sound terrific. 

[Lilas Pastia]

I've made my wine shopping for the Christmas supper: Asti spumante with no nothing, then Big House Red (California) with the patés. SüdTirol Gewurztraminer for the crab pie appetizers. With the stuffed turkey I chose a 2003 Bandol. There follows a Champagne and a 2001 (sweet) red Banyuls for dessert and cheese. Santa Pizza! Methink I may be too eclectic, but we'll see what gets the biggest plaudits!

[uffeviking]

André, were on earth did you get the Südtiroler? In a local store, I suppose, wouldn't be so lucky and find it at an internet store. Do I ever envy you, but then it couldn't happen to a nicer person than you. Enjoy it! 

[Lilas Pastia]

Liebling, this Südtiroler gewurztraminer is a newish (late 2006) addition to our benevolent state monopoly for wine, alcohol and liquors supply. It's the 2006 vintage. My local wine guide gave it a very high rating, citing its classical and almost aristocratic bearing, much in contrast to the prevalent free for all that plagues this vintage ("almost clownish in its unbridled exuberance" - a statement that I totally agree with). I love gewurztraminer, an unbelievably wild and spicy vintage. But the acknowledged alsatian stars fetch a very high price and are more or less a curiosity one can only taste when visiting. What's exported is for the tourists . So, when this was recommended to me I checked out its credentials and immediately snatched the prize! The euro price is about 8-10, but here what with additional taxes it's almost 20$. Still, a very reasonable price considering.

[Mozart]

Turns out we did have a corkscrew after all. Just curious, how many drinks are they in a bottle of wine? I know it has like 750 ml...but how much is that in booze terms? Like 6 beers is 6... 

I did my own math somehow and I got that a bottle of wine is equal to 6 beers. Is this so? Terrific so i can drink a bottle and I wont get alcohol poisoning right?

[Lilas Pastia]

I don't know what you mean by alcohol poisoning, but a bottle of wine is quite enough to intoxicate seriously. Half a bottle within 60 minutes and you're busting the balloon  . The equivalent of a 5% beer is a 125ml glass of 13% wine (that's roughly half a cup, or 4 ounces).

[Mozart]

I don't know what you mean by alcohol poisoning, but a bottle of wine is quite enough to intoxicate seriously. Half a bottle within 60 minutes and you're busting the balloon  . The equivalent of a 5% beer is a 125ml glass of 13% wine (that's roughly half a cup, or 4 ounces).

Yes I have discovered this tonight

I dunno about wine, it's not the same intoxication as other alcohols. Ok another question How long can you leave a bottle of wine open for? Is there a certain pace you should drink at or is ok just to gulp it down?

[SonicMan46]

Turns out we did have a corkscrew after all. Just curious, how many drinks are they in a bottle of wine? I know it has like 750 ml...but how much is that in booze terms? Like 6 beers is 6... 

Well, make sure that the corkscrew is a good one!  A bottle of wine has the above amount you quote which translates into about 24 oz - in restaurants in the USA, a 'pour', i.e. glass of wine is usually 4 - 6 oz; the typical 'medical' definition of a 'glass of wine' is 5 oz - thus, a 'bottle' of wine will provide 4 to 6 glasses depending on the amount poured; BTW - a 5 oz glass of wine is equivalent (alcohol content) to 12 oz of beer (of course, this will vary considerably depending on the beer) or 1.5 oz of 80-proof liquor.

The metabolism of alcohol (i.e. ethanol) is primarily done in the liver at a fixed rate, regardless of 'how much' or 'how fast' you consume the chosen liquid (of course, this will also vary w/ sex & genetic factors) - if interested, take a look HERE; the graph is quite instructive - e.g. a glass of wine in a restaurant will be metabolized completely in 2 hrs.

Concerning your question on an 'open' bottle of wine, there is no single response - depends on a lot of factors; for 'better' red wines, decanting & aeration will often improve the wine, so leaving the bottle open for a number of hours will not be a problem; I have a lot of empty 'half' bottles of wine, so I'll pour wine into the half bottles & put on a stopper - this will keep the oxygen out, and red wines will not be harmed for a number of days; these can also be placed in the frig for further protection, but I'll usually try to consume these half bottles w/i a couple of days - 

[MishaK]

Drinking right now one of my recent favorites: Lagrein Gries 2004 from Cantina/Kellerei Terlan. Lovely rich, smoky, plummy red from Alto Adige/Südtirol.

[SonicMan46]

Well has been over a month since the last post to this thread although I've been enjoying wine on a just about a nightly basis! 

But just received two wine books that might interest some:

Washington Wines & Wineries by Paul Gregutt (CLICK on both images for Amazon comments) - this book was highly recommended also in one of my wine periodicals (Conn. Guide to CA Wines).

The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson & Jancis Robinson - now 6th edition!  I've owned every one from the start (1971) - if you just want one book on wine from around the world w/ plenty of pics & maps, this would be my recommendation - not detailed nor tasting notes, but just a wonderful vinous tome to peruse! 

   

Well, quoting myself in this thread again, but 'what the hey'!  The book on Washington State Wineries was excellent! Of all of the states in the USA, I see this one making the most substantial advances in the near future (CA will of course always be a challenge!) - and w/ the possibility of 'global warming' (if you believe in that issue?), southern CA will likely become a dessert, and wine growing/making will shift to the north - in the Northwest, WA State, Oregon, & British Columbia in Canada will become major wine growing areas by the mid-century (of course, if you accept 'global warming'?). 

Just started reading the newest edition of the World Atlas of Wine by Johnson & Robinson - I've owned every edition and each keeps improving!  This one is better than the others - again, I could easily recommend a dozen 'beginning' books on wine, but this would be in a 'short list' of my first 2-3 choices!

[toledobass]

While in NYC I picked up some 2005 Gnarly Head Old Vine Zin from Bacchus.  Also shared a nice bottle of Ravenswood Lodi Zin over an enjoyable, liesurely lunch with Mr. Hodges.

Allan

[Mozart]

How do you enjoy wine? Are you one of those persons that tries to guess whats in the wine? I bought more 2 buck chuck today and it says Valdiguie, and it's rather tasty, specially when you mix it with mentos. But I don't really see a huge difference from the cabaret 2 buck chuck except this one tastes a little better. What is it exactly that you enjoy, or how do you do it?

[toledobass]

How do you enjoy wine? Are you one of those persons that tries to guess whats in the wine? I bought more 2 buck chuck today and it says Valdiguie, and it's rather tasty, specially when you mix it with mentos. But I don't really see a huge difference from the cabaret 2 buck chuck except this one tastes a little better. What is it exactly that you enjoy, or how do you do it?

What I find enjoyable out of a glass of wine is how it makes me slow down.  If I can sit down to concentrate on how the wine interacts in the mouth it can be a really interesting and engaging process.  This includes how it feels in the mouth,  how the flavor develops, how many stages there are to the flavor,  what happens to the wine when it's been in the glass for 10 minutes..........and the nuances all of that entails.  While I don't have a great palette or any sort of wine vocabulary, just paying attention to what happens with the wine leads me to find what it's character is and perhaps what is unique to that wine.

That kind of effort doesn't happen with every glass of wine I drink though.  Sometimes I just simply enjoy a glass of wine that I've had before and would like it with what ever I'm eating, because it enhances the meal.  Or it might be the way a bottle of wine brings together a few friends for some conversation.


Allan

[bhodges]

While in NYC I picked up some 2005 Gnarly Head Old Vine Zin from Bacchus.  Also shared a nice bottle of Ravenswood Lodi Zin over an enjoyable, liesurely lunch with Mr. Hodges.

Allan

  Sorry, missed this post.  I enjoyed that Ravenswood Zin, too (always reliable, IMHO).  And thanks for the reminder about Bacchus, which is just a little north of where I usually hang out, so I don't often think of stopping in there. 

--Bruce

[bhodges]

What I find enjoyable out of a glass of wine is how it makes me slow down.  If I can sit down to concentrate on how the wine interacts in the mouth it can be a really interesting and engaging process.  This includes how it feels in the mouth,  how the flavor develops, how many stages there are to the flavor,  what happens to the wine when it's been in the glass for 10 minutes..........and the nuances all of that entails.  While I don't have a great palette or any sort of wine vocabulary, just paying attention to what happens with the wine leads me to find what it's character is and perhaps what is unique to that wine.

That kind of effort doesn't happen with every glass of wine I drink though.  Sometimes I just simply enjoy a glass of wine that I've had before and would like it with what ever I'm eating, because it enhances the meal.  Or it might be the way a bottle of wine brings together a few friends for some conversation.


Allan

My experience with wine is similar.  I'm not a connoisseur by any means, but I greatly enjoy exploring wines from all parts of the world.  I've also had some great experiences at restaurants, trusting the sommelier to make suggestions.  Inevitably, if I'm honest with him or her about price range, I get great recommendations.

But as for "how" to enjoy it, I'd say just slow down...really slow down, and enjoy it.  One of life's great pleasures is a good meal, with good wine and good friends that lasts say, three or four hours.  Most of us may not have that much time to devote to a meal but it is really worth doing say, once or twice a month.  (And keep those Mentos away from the bottle... )

--Bruce

[SonicMan46]

How do you enjoy wine? Are you one of those persons that tries to guess whats in the wine? I bought more 2 buck chuck today and it says Valdiguie, and it's rather tasty, specially when you mix it with mentos. But I don't really see a huge difference from the cabaret 2 buck chuck except this one tastes a little better. What is it exactly that you enjoy, or how do you do it?

E.L.I.A.S. - you've already received some good suggestions - drinking & savoring wine before, with, and after a meal is the best way to enjoy the beverage.  Sharing wine w/ friends, attending wine tastings, and reading about wines are certainly other options - I can (and I'm sure others) recommend some 'basic' books to get you started, just reply here! 

One of the best ways to start understanding the 'world' of wine is an appreciation & knowledge of the more famous grape varietals, i.e. their origins (many in France) and their spread to other parts of the globe, e.g. the two most important blending grapes for red Bordeaux are Cabernet Sauvignon & Merlot, thus tasting wines from other parts of the world (like California & Chile) made from these same grapes will provide some interesting comparisons; the two important grapes in Burgundy are Chardonnay & Pinot Noir, so sampling these types of wines will provide a similar experience - I could go on w/ other examples, but I feel this is one of the best ways to learn about wines.

Regarding tasting, just a starter course - think ABCs, i.e. A=appearance (look at the wine & appreciate its colors & clarity); B=breathing (smell the wine, esp. after the liquid has been swirled in an appropriate wine glass); C=consume (sip the wine, let the liquid roll around in your mouth - different types of taste buds are located on various parts of your tongue, e.g. sweetness @ the tip & bitter in the back); and s=swallow (swallow the wine and evaluate the aftertaste).  Of course, there are whole chapters (and even books) on this topic - and nothing is better than personal experience!

Finally, if you really want to learn about the numerous aspects of wine, continuing to drink $2 Chuck will not provide the experience needed -  .  If you can afford a few more bucks, check out wines w/ varietal labels, i.e. named after the grape - plenty of inexpensive ones around that should get you started.  Good luck in your vinous quest - 

[bhodges]

Finally, if you really want to learn about the numerous aspects of wine, continuing to drink $2 Chuck will not provide the experience needed -  .  If you can afford a few more bucks, check out wines w/ varietal labels, i.e. named after the grape - plenty of inexpensive ones around that should get you started.  Good luck in your vinous quest - 

To me one of the great myths about wine is that quality wines are very expensive.  There are tons of bottles around in the $10 range (hey, the price of a movie) that will give you much more pleasure than the $2 one(s).  Just one example: one of my favorites is Wyndham Estates Bin 555, a deep-flavored Australian Shiraz, and at least here in NYC you can find it for around $10 or even less.

--Bruce