Home › Forums › Archives › Community Center › The BigBlueBall Lounge › Food, Books & Other Essentials › May I See the Wine List?
- This topic has 5 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 17 years, 8 months ago by Tea Granny.
-
AuthorPosts
-
July 28, 2006 at 11:04 pm #24233TigerbladeParticipant
I recently finished reading Sideways by Rex Pickett (the inspiration for the movie of the same name). The book is about two friends who go on a wine tasting trip and end up discovering things they never thought they would about each other and themselves. After I finished reading it, I had a sudden desire to go drink some wine.
Trouble is, I’ve never had wine. I don’t have any idea what’s good, what’s bad, what’s anything. So I turn to the good people of the BigBlueBall for suggestions.
I’m looking for just a simple wine selection. Something simple, something that tastes good and is good for social drinking – I’m not looking to get sideways. Just something you could sit around with some friends and drink casually. Also, I’m not exactly a millionaire, so something relatively cheap. I’m not looking for a boxed-wine cheap, but I’d like to stay within a $30 range since this would be my first wine — if I don’t like it, I don’t want to have blown a handful of Franklins.
Any ideas for a first-time potential wine drinker? and yes, i’m of legal drinking age.
July 29, 2006 at 10:18 am #149254Tea GrannyMemberSince I hang around BBB putting my two cents worth in here and there, I will make another little contribution here.;)
I personaly love Canadian Ice Wine. It is very rich and sweet and you don’t get a lot in a bottle. It is in the price range you mentioned. It comes both red and white; I prefer the white. If you like sweet, give it a try. If you don’t like sweet, stay away!
You may want to try some wines before you share with friends. That way at least one person in the room will like the wine! Ask your friends if they have any preferences for brands, color, or sparkling.
Oh, and don’t forget the cheese and crackers!:)
July 29, 2006 at 2:07 pm #149250Jeff HesterKeymasterGenerally, if you’re new to wine, you’ll tend to prefer lighter over heavier wine; white over red.
I’d suggest a California Chardonnay, served chilled. There are PLENTY of good ones available under $20. Costco has good values, and usually segregates their everyday wine from the better wine (which usually includes it’s rating, where available). By the way, I read recently that liquor laws in most states prevent Costco from requiring members for sale of alcohol. Cost Plus World Market also has a great selection, usually with ratings and mini-reviews.
As for price, I usually buy bottles in the $6-16 range. Anything more expensive is reserved for special occasions.
I tend to have fun with it and try a lot of different wine. You might get several Chardonnays, maybe from different countries and see what you like best.
I’ll give you a couple other references. I started a group on Flickr where people post photos of the wine they had, with tags to review the wine (price, varietal, place of origin, etc.). http://www.flickr.com/groups/wine/
I posted a review of an Argentinian wine (Casa Lapostolle) and actually got a comment back from the husband of the vintner!There’s also a pretty decent podcast about wine called Grape Radio. Look through their episodes and you’ll find a couple that might catch your interest.
Finally, there is a pretty new user-to-user wine review website called Cork’d that might give you some pointers. I’m a member there… feel free to add me as a “drinking buddy.”
EDIT: One last note! One fun way to explore wine is to have a wine tasting party. Invite some friends!
Have fun!
July 29, 2006 at 2:12 pm #149252OreoMemberAnd one thing to add to Jeff’s suggestion of a party…don’t forget the great cheese (being in Wisconsin you should have no problem getting your paws on some good cheese.) Also, when I was at Marquette…there were two Discout Liqours….one in Milwaukee and one in Waukesha. The one in Wauskesha had a GREAT set of people with a great knowledge of wine…I don’t know how far you are from there…but that would be a good place to start 🙂
July 29, 2006 at 2:18 pm #149251Jeff HesterKeymasterOne other thing… if you have a Trader Joe’s nearby, you can get Charles Shaw wine for $1.99/bottle. It’s affectionately called “Two-buck Chuck,” and it’s not half bad!
July 30, 2006 at 5:36 am #149253RabidKittenParticipantOh, Tom, I’ll just drop by your place with some of my mother’s home made White Zin or Strawberry or maybe her Gwertztrameaner. It’s good stuff. *chuckles*
Then again, KP might get on your case again *pokes fun*
-
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.