Jump to content

Everything Wine


Recommended Posts

  • Replies 401
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

From my experience most people prefer dry whites over semi-dry or semi-sweet ones. As a general rule. But it's so much about the food that you can't really make rules.

 

I have decided on a River Road Pinot Noir from Russian River Valley for the turkey and a Domaine Pignard Beaujolais from France for the ham. I will also have a Petals Riesling from Germany for those that prefer a white.

 

I think those should be lovely, muggle! I'm not familiar with the Riesling, so do you think it's full enough? Depends on where it's from, I often find them too sharp and shallow for foods like turkey. But, that's my opinion, it's yor dinner! you're the one drinking it...

Edited by ii
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A large amount of people I have spoken to have asked for sweet wines when infact they are seeking fruit driven light whites - Chenin etc, ratehr than desert wines.

 

Its one of the great things about wine, everyones pallete is different.

Edited by O's
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On one hand, 'sweet' isn't exactly a well-defined term. There's some rather sweet wines, and then there's the very sweet dessert wines. So while I'm not personally a big fan of sweeter wines, there's a few fairly sweet ones I've enjoyed (Spanish, can't remember the name and can't be bothered to check my notes) and I'd classify them as sweet (as did the wine store, btw. Or maybe it was semi-sweet. Anyways, it was clearly sweet). Yet they were nowhere near as sweet as some of my favourite dessert wines. The problem with 'sweet' is that there's no limit to how sweet. 'Sweet', 'sweeter' and 'practically pure sugar' are all just 'sweet'.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've always seen "sweet" wines as having residual sugar - whereas most wines that taste sweet (i.e fruity) are in fact off-medium and do not contain any left over sugar.

 

I have a lovely bottle of sweet wine in th ecupboard at home, waiting for the years to roll so I can get on and drink it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah! but you cannot simply stare at the sugar figure! The acids, the flavours, it all plays a part.

 

You cannot turn wine into something measurable. It's not science, it's art!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

true, but thats not what I meant. Good point though.

 

Its a texture, like gloss paint but a litte more "fluid" - I find that the sugars coat the pallete and poduce a lingering finish. A nice robust sweet wine, plenty of pear and aprocot on th enose and a lengthy condensed flavour are the aspect I look for.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah... talking about wine. That's like dancing about architecture. (ten point to who gets the movie reference.)

 

I don't personally go for the pear or apricot flavours. I'm more flowery, exotic fruit or alternatively herbs, minerals, sort of earthy flavour. I like 'crisp' whites, not 'fluffy' and round.

Edited by ii
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...
  • 2 weeks later...

After reading all these posts about wine, it just makes me even more wish that I liked drinking it!! Honestly I think it's only because I've never had the proper wine along with the right meal. You know, like how coffee tastes a million times better if you have something sweet along with it?! Now when it comes to cooking with wine, I LOVE the taste of it then. I've only learned so far to use a white wine when cooking with chicken or seafood, and haven't tried red yet, but I hear it goes well with beef.

 

Vineyards are few and far between here in MN, but maybe I can find one and go to a wine tasting class or something, lol. Or somewhere else where they teach you what kind of wine to eat w/what food.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Or somewhere else where they teach you what kind of wine to eat w/what food.

 

If you can find a good wine store in your area, just go and ask for recommendations. These people know their stuff, and are more than happy to point you in the right direction. After all, if people dislike wine, they're out of business! So it's in their interest to give people good experiences with wine, and how to combine it with food.

 

So, if you have a plan for the meal, just go and ask. Good things they should ask is the main ingredients in your meal, main flavors, how the food is prepared. Also what kind of flavors you usually like (like for white, do you like round soft flavors or sharper more apple-like ones, fruity or herb-like etc.) It might also be worth it to think these through before hand on your drive over.

 

Of course, I, as I'm sure many others here, would be more than happy to give suggestions. But, in the end, it's up to your own taste and preference. I've once sat at a dinner where everyone was having the same food, yet half of the group loved the wine and half refused to drink it. So just experiment. And ask!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My fave red wine, when at Center Parcs and is usually their house red in some of the restaurants if you ask for it is Echo Falls. In fact the red, white and rose are all very quaffible!

 

OH and I opened a bottle of red last night and it was :P was a bit fizzy and had loads of gunk in the bottom:irked:. Needless to say it went down the sink.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OH and I opened a bottle of red last night and it was :) was a bit fizzy and had loads of gunk in the bottom:irked:. Needless to say it went down the sink.

 

That's a bit of a shame but I can see why you were put off. Sediment isn't normally found in the more widely available brand name wines as they filter it out but it is quite normal to get 'stuff' in the bottom of the bottle, especially a red and more commonly in French red.

 

I'm sure O's will correct me if I'm wrong but the fizz will be CO2 added at from after the bottling stage and if you leave the bottle to stand it does dissipate.

 

(I will take my work hat off now and go back to my books ;))

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm sure O's will correct me if I'm wrong but the fizz will be CO2 added at the bottling stage and if you leave the bottle to stand it does dissipate.

 

I've never heard of them adding CO2 to wines! I could be mistaken, of course, so I'd be interested to hear more about that. Why would they add CO2?? *is confused*

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 10 months later...

I'm currently enjoying a Gaillac from SW France -'Les Gravels' produced by Domaine Rotier. It's interesting as its made with local grape varieties Duras and Baucol plus a small amount of Syrah. Blackcurrant, raspberries and a hint of red pepper on the nose. On the palate once again blackcurrant and raspberries and a general spiciness- nice smooth tannins :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


×
×
  • Create New...