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Re: the wine thread
HomeDad #205415 04/25/08 12:15 AM
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 Originally Posted By: HomeDad
I'm going to try to get all my wines in over the weekend, I wish I had started this a couple years ago, there have been many good wines I've had that I can't remember the names of.
We actually received a wine lable diary type book a couple years back as a gift and never got around to using it, now I wish I had.

I have a friend who was given a similar 'book' at his first intro to wine course.
He's barely used it.
In the meantime, i've used an Excel spreadsheet. Entry was alot faster and could sort data and move it around nicely. I think my friend gave up trying to 'find' his favorite wines in book by leafing through pages.

The Excel file is now 10 years old having started it in '98.
Of course, not all tastings make it as entries into the file for so many obvious reasons.


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Re: the wine thread
chesseroo #205416 04/25/08 12:40 AM
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 Quote:
The Excel file is now 10 years old having started it in '98.

I'll bet you have some treasures on that list.

I really didn't start appreciating wine until my first Napa trip in 1997, started semi seriously collecting and drinking wine within the past 4 years along with my wife.


A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.
Re: the wine thread
HomeDad #205422 04/25/08 12:51 AM
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Wow, I just remembered the bottle that got me started drinking wine, I did a Napa and Sonoma trip in 96 or 97 (first visit) and purchased a Cherryblock 1992 Cabernet Sauvignon by Sebastiani in Sonoma for around $50.00, probably still one of the best wines I've ever tasted.


A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.
Re: the wine thread
HomeDad #205424 04/25/08 01:01 AM
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 Originally Posted By: HomeDad
Wow, I just remembered the bottle that got me started drinking wine, I did a Napa and Sonoma trip in 96 or 97 (first visit) and purchased a Cherryblock 1992 Cabernet Sauvignon by Sebastiani in Sonoma for around $50.00, probably still one of the best wines I've ever tasted.

The first one i really remember was a Mondavi, though i did buy a bottle of Dom for university graduation, long before i was really appreciating wine.
Don't think i'll buy any more champagne or champagne style wines.
If i wanted a carbonated soft drink...


"Those who preach the myths of audio are ignorant of truth."
Re: the wine thread
chesseroo #205440 04/25/08 02:04 AM
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My “Eureka” wine was the 99 Silverado Cab. I've only just started to really appreciate wine the last two to three years. Before that my favorites consisted of micro brews (which I still enjoy).

I have one more from Spain to add to the “buy” list…. @ $25.00

2001 Marques de Caceres Rioja Reserva. It’s blend of Tempranillo, Mazuelo and Graciano grapes. Aged in French oak. This is one dandy of a bottle. I’m enjoying the heck out it right now….. Very nice bottle of juice. It’s not too much of anything and just the right balance of acidity and sweetness. I can’t quite make out the nose though. Not real fruity or smoky but just nice, crisp, and quite pleasant. Nice finish too. I don’t feel the urge to keep my mouth full of it.


Re: the wine thread
michael_d #205462 04/25/08 04:47 AM
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We had a bottle of Santa Rita Medalla Real Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 tonight at our favorite Latin Cuisine restaurant in town, good stuff, another Chilean Cab I'll be adding to our list.
We paid $30.00 at dinner for the bottle, but wine.com has it for $16.99, I'm going to grab some bottles of the bottles mentioned from them by tomorrow to get the 1 cent shipping.


A computer once beat me at chess, but it was no match for me at kick boxing.
Re: the wine thread
HomeDad #205680 04/27/08 06:08 PM
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Chardonnay taste off:

Toasted Head
Rodney Strong Sonoma Valley
Fat Bastard
Gretzky 99

The Coles notes:
Rodney Strong was the overall best selected by 3 of 4 tasters.
Toasted Head was a close second, not quite as smooth a finish, but more bold flavours.
Neither the Fat bastard nor the Gretzky impressed any of our 4 tasters.

All tasting was done blind but scores and impressions were compiled together as a group rather than individual rankings summed at the end.
Prices on these wines ranged from $16-$24 Cdn though i do not know the price of the Gretzky.

I'm still working on digesting the 5 pounds of butter dill and anchovy paste crusted salmon that went with it all.


"Those who preach the myths of audio are ignorant of truth."
Re: the wine thread
chesseroo #205689 04/27/08 06:56 PM
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I find Chardonnay in general to be bland and tasteless. It takes secondary malolactic fermentation and oak aging to give it any taste, but that is usually over the top in the cheaper bottles from California and to a lesser degree in bottles from Southern Australia. Cheap bottles are typically aged with oak chips verses new barrels and they all taste like a stick of butter to me. About the only Chard I can tolerate is White Oak. They use oak barrels and a very mild malolactic fermentation.

I’ve had three of the chards you guys tasted (never had the Gretzky) and find you results mirror mine. If you ever see a White Oak, pick it up. I think you’ll like it.

Disclaimer: I haven’t quite figured out how to gauge any white wine yet…..I’m not a big fan of it.


I had a nice Shiraz / Viogner blend last night. It was a Zonte's Footstep from Southern Australia (Langhorne Creek). Very smooth and just a bit on the acidic side to give it a nice zing. Unique bouquet with raspberries and melon. $15 from wine.com.

Re: the wine thread
michael_d #205704 04/27/08 09:34 PM
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 Originally Posted By: mdrew
I find Chardonnay in general to be bland and tasteless. It takes secondary malolactic fermentation and oak aging to give it any taste, but that is usually over the top in the cheaper bottles from California and to a lesser degree in bottles from Southern Australia. Cheap bottles are typically aged with oak chips verses new barrels and they all taste like a stick of butter to me. About the only Chard I can tolerate is White Oak. They use oak barrels and a very mild malolactic fermentation.

The conversion of lactic to malic acid is a common process. Yes, many people are not fans of the 'fatness' this can construe upon a chardonnay and too much diacetyl (the buttery smelling compound) can make the wine bitter if not controlled but the malolactic fermentation IS also used in the production of red wines!
Some say the process bastardizes the wine from what is otherwise a good tasting grape. However, i am a fan of the smooth mouthful and texture that it provides and i like the heavy oak flavours. My least favorite chardonnays are French b/c as you say, they taste bland.

Unoaked chardonnays are far more like rieslings and gewurztraminers IMO, but if you are not a white wine fan, and find them all generally the 'same' without character, you may not see the point of discerning between these grapes.
Compared to red wines whites are indeed more subtle, but if you ever tasted a Germany riesling that smelled like cat urine and compared it to a BC region style riesling, there is NO way you would ever say that white wines are generally all bland and the same.

One of our wine tasters last evening stated he only has "white or red" at home, but mostly drinks reds. He's never done a wine tasting before. By the time we ran him through some things consider during the tasting (alot of the basics we've all heard before...first you look at the colour of the wine, then you swirl the wine, etc. etc.), he discovered differences all on his own just from the bouquet. He simply never paid attention to such details before and also lumped all red or white wines as tasting pretty much the same. Now he realizes what is meant by closed bouquet. He tried the oaked and unoaked chardonnays and understands what is meant by "smooth" texture. There was a marked interest in trying some more tastings again and i would not be surprised if he takes a slower glance at wine descriptions the next time he heads to the store.


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Re: the wine thread
chesseroo #205705 04/27/08 09:50 PM
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To all you oenophiles:

What are the best red wines under $15?

Are there any you care to recommend under $10?


House of the Rising Sone
Out in the mid or far field
Dedicated mid-woofers are over-rated
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