[Veloce]

yeah, chalk wine up there with those other effeminate, gay, non-masculine hobbies like Scotch, Cognac, or cigar smoking

[UnderTheVolcano]

I started drinking more wine due to wanting a substitute for all the carb-heavy beers I was drinking. For a while I'd just pick things at random then ask things like "I like this but want to try something different, what do you recommend". I've found that just knowing a few types that are not super common but really good will give you a slight edge:

Gingondas (mid-price Rhone)
Prioriat (mid to higher priced Spanish/Catalan)
Blaufrankish (Austrian)
something from Valle d'Aosta (way north Italy, hell or even a Nebbiolo really)

This not only narrows down the choices but you'll get props from the wine person at the restaurant which is most important in impressing a girl about wine. Otherwise, they'll just want a Shiraz or some shit.

Another drink I've found that is satisfying and impressive is to ask for an amaro on the rocks like Averna or Montenegro (or even Campari). Amaros are good in that they has the complexity of a well-made cocktail but w/ way less alcohol so you can pace better.

[Veloce]

(03-24-2013 11:28 AM)UnderTheVolcano Wrote:  

I started drinking more wine due to wanting a substitute for all the carb-heavy beers I was drinking. For a while I'd just pick things at random then ask things like "I like this but want to try something different, what do you recommend". I've found that just knowing a few types that are not super common but really good will give you a slight edge:

Gingondas (mid-price Rhone)
Prioriat (mid to higher priced Spanish/Catalan)
Blaufrankish (Austrian)
something from Valle d'Aosta (way north Italy, hell or even a Nebbiolo really)

This not only narrows down the choices but you'll get props from the wine person at the restaurant which is most important in impressing a girl about wine. Otherwise, they'll just want a Shiraz or some shit.

Another drink I've found that is satisfying and impressive is to ask for an amaro on the rocks like Averna or Montenegro (or even Campari). Amaros are good in that they has the complexity of a well-made cocktail but w/ way less alcohol so you can pace better.

This is what you call a developed palate, fellas.

[Aer]

Another tip here:

Learn to open wine well and fast. If you sit there looking like an idiot, you'll lose precious time and value.

And pouring like a well-trained waiter never hurt.

[Cincinnatus]

Seeking thedude's advice again...

My go-to pinot grigio, Gilia Garganega, has become quite difficult to come across. What are some good pinot grigios in the $10-$15 range?

[thegmanifesto]

thedude -

What are your thoughts on Pinot Meunier?

[Cincinnatus]

New Zealand wine industry hails this year's grape bounty

http://www.wine-searcher.com/m/2013/03/b...-100-years

Quote:

"... it probably is the best vintage we can look forward to for the last 100 years."

[Veloce]

(03-24-2013 08:50 PM)MSW2007 Wrote:  

Seeking thedude's advice again...

My go-to pinot grigio, Gilia Garganega, has become quite difficult to come across. What are some good pinot grigios in the $10-$15 range?

I'd skip Pinot Grigio and look into other Italian whites. Pinot Grigio, while certainly not bad, has been the poster child for international marketing of fairly average, but highly drinkable wine. There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, I would just make the point that there's much better in the same price point.

For interesting (and affordable) Italian whites, I'd suggest
-Gavi di Gavi.
-Malvasia (this is a grape, but some producers are now doing 100% malvasia wines. They're fucking awesome)
-Vermentino
-Frascati
-Gewurtztraminer and Riesling. Yes these typically German/Alsatian wines are produced in Italy, usually in Friuli-Venezie
-Arneis
-Insolia as another poster mentioned, Insolia is a very interesting wine coming out of Sicily right now. Hard to find but worth it.

If you have to stick with Pinot Grigio, the best ones I've had are from Friuli-Venezie (the most northeastern region, bordering slovenia and austria)

[Veloce]

(03-24-2013 08:57 PM)thegmanifesto Wrote:  

thedude -

What are your thoughts on Pinot Meunier?

You know, I've got a buddy that's a sommelier in L.A. at a pretty hot restaurant that just opened. He turns me on to a lot of weird shit that I never knew existed. He's poured me a couple Pinot Meuniers that were really interesting but not the kind of thing I rush out to buy a case of. I don't even know where he gets this stuff sometimes, I've never seen 100% pinot meunier in wine stores, but he's got some mad hookups.

Sometimes I think certain grapes are blended for a reason, as Pinot Meunier is for Champagne; on their own they can be too imbalanced. However, a lot of these 100% varietal wines are amazing with food pairing.

[Cincinnatus]

Thanks again for the rec's, thedude. I searched through my favored liquor store's website and came up with these, gonna pick up a few bottles next time I roll in there.

BATASIOLO GAVI DI GAVI GRANEE 2008 ... $15.49
PALA CRABILIS VERMENTINO DI SARDEGNA 2007 ... $13.99
ARGIOLAS COSTAMOLINO VERMENTINO DI SARDEGNA 2011 ... $11.99
PIETRA PORZIA FRASCATI 2008 ... $7.99
FONTANA CANDIDA FRASCATI ... $6.49
CANTINA ANDRIANO ALTO ADIGE GEWURTZTRAMINER 2008 ... $19.99 (made in Trentino, Italy)
ANTICO CONTADO RENESIO ROERO ARNEIS 2010 ... $16.99

[thegmanifesto]

(03-25-2013 03:32 PM)thedude3737 Wrote:  

(03-24-2013 08:57 PM)thegmanifesto Wrote:  

thedude -

What are your thoughts on Pinot Meunier?

You know, I've got a buddy that's a sommelier in L.A. at a pretty hot restaurant that just opened. He turns me on to a lot of weird shit that I never knew existed. He's poured me a couple Pinot Meuniers that were really interesting but not the kind of thing I rush out to buy a case of. I don't even know where he gets this stuff sometimes, I've never seen 100% pinot meunier in wine stores, but he's got some mad hookups.

Sometimes I think certain grapes are blended for a reason, as Pinot Meunier is for Champagne; on their own they can be too imbalanced. However, a lot of these 100% varietal wines are amazing with food pairing.

Nice.

Yeah, I had one a few years ago that was amazing. Can't remember the vinter.

I have looked for it in a bunch of wine stores and no one seems to have it.

I have even had a few people look at me like I am crazy.

What do you have to do to get your hands on this stuff?

[GameTheory]

(01-27-2011 02:07 PM)Quasi Wrote:  

Arent you missing the point..girls arent impressed with expensive wine, they like it young, fruity and sweet
[...]

undie-dropping wines: Riesling, Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc. all taste "fruity" and "sweet" (to varying degrees), yet they measure in at a whopping 15% ABV (at least the ones from California). after one glass, her panties will be around her ankles !!!

[Veloce]

G, sommeliers and wine merchants buy wine from various vendors. Each vendor has various brands that they rep. The big 3 in California are Southern Wine & Spirits, Youngs, and Wine Warehouse. If you put together each of these catalogs end to end, you'd have something as thick as the L.A. County phone book. Each page with hundreds of bottles of wine for sale.

This doesn't include the smaller, more boutique-y vendors like Golden State, Kermit Lynch, Chambers & Chambers, Henry Wine Group. If you put all these together you'd have yourself another phone book (just with better, more obscure wines).

Between all of these vendors you can find damn near anything. Anyone with a business license and credit account with one of these wine companies can order anything you want, at cost. Yet another reason it's good to have a friend in management at a restaurant or bar.

I used to do wine purchasing for a bar in Silverlake and I would bring in new vendors every week. I'd tell them I'm looking to put a new white wine on the menu, something in the $20 range. They would bring in flights for me to taste, anywhere from 4 to 12 different wines. If I liked something I'd usually ask to keep the bottle and they'd give it to me. At various points in my career, i've literally been swimming in wine for free. But it's also a good lesson in the power of networking and finding hacks. The idea of buying wine at retail prices is laughable to me now (even though I do it when I'm feeling impatient and see something I like)

[Chewbacon]

I just bought the rex rooster cab sauv and the ravenwood zin. Cheap as fuck. I'm gonna try the zinfandel out on a few girls this weekend. Maybe I'll save the rex rooster for myself to sample.

[Fortitudinal]

(01-27-2011 11:00 AM)Aliblahba Wrote:  

(01-27-2011 04:29 AM)Jack Frost Wrote:  

Rex Goliath 47 Lbs Rooster is a great wine for the younger cats on a budget, the cab is the best of the bunch, its like 10 bucks a bottle another good one for the same price is Camino De Los 7 Lagos cab is pretty good as well. Both better than some wines ive had that cost quite a bit more.

I went to Walmart several weeks ago and saw a California brand that covered your normal wine varieties, both red and white. All were $1.97 per bottle. For shits and giggles I got the cab. Was it good? No. But most young girls in the U.S. don't know shit about the fine art of fermenting grapes. If it has a nice label and you tell them it cost $20 they'll swear it was the best shit they've ever drank. Go pick up the pinot or zinfandel, chill the hell out of it, and pair it with some fresh strawberries. The chicks will be impressed and will save you some dosh.

I think they call it 2-buck-chuck in the states. Its a classy looking label, I think the legal name is 'Charles Schwab Red'. Its not great but Ive had worse for more.

(03-24-2013 08:57 PM)thegmanifesto Wrote:  

thedude -

What are your thoughts on Pinot Meunier?

if I might jump in, its an interesting grape, rather hard to find. Vineland Estates here in Canada vinifies it on its own.

For something similar get Kermit Lynch to ship you some of the Pinot Blanc made by Ostertag he has from Alsace. Stellar stuff, biodynamic, very memorable and the price is very friendly.

[Fortitudinal]

(03-22-2013 11:51 PM)thedude3737 Wrote:  

nice bump from 2 yrs ago =D

we could totally geek out over wine here but it'd probably just be the two of us.

New world pinot might be over but I'll always have a soft spot for Burg. It always surprises me drinking Burg how subtle it is...fresh fragrant strawberries, very light floral notes, sometimes even raw mushroom notes, and then you get some new world shit and it's like drinking a glass full of potpourri.

Im all for geeking out. I might learn a thing or two.

I had the chance not long ago to try a taste of LT DRC... it was infanticide. Tighter than nun butthole, took an hour so show some pretty notes... I wonder what it would be like in 20 years.

Im not against the potpourri, but when they charge more or same as a high end burg, Im all like 'yo, homes, for real?'

[GameTheory]

2 Buck F*ck