Drinking wine, questions, etc.

[Dalecia]

For a long time since I was a kid I've always had a glass of Burgundy wine at least every day. My dad always said it was good for the heart so I always kept that in mind and have since did the regime. I never have sadly drank any other kinds of wines.

I've seen quite a few in the past but im skeptical of wasting money for a good bottle that I don't know if I'll even like. If you've ever drank Burgundy before, a good glass of it is very strong and aromatic. The kind of wine I'm interested in trying out now is something thin, light, sweet (almost), and similar to the qualities of Champaign. I'm guessing maybe a golden/white wine?

And yes, all of those things I'm looking for are almost a feminine sounding wine. But I'm starting to want to explore lighter wines since I've never really did anything other than beers and liquor.

Thanks

[Tristam]

For a long time since I was a kid I've always had a glass of Burgundy wine at least every day. My dad always said it was good for the heart so I always kept that in mind and have since did the regime. I never have sadly drank any other kinds of wines.

Just an FYI, the heart benefit is completely irrelevant before middle age, like around your mid-40s.

For light white wines, try a Riesling, they sound close to what you're looking for, they are a little to sweet for my taste but my brother likes em.

[Dolmen]

Rieslings work well for something sweet, but different ones have different levels of sweetness to them. You could also try a Gewürztraminer which is similar to a Riesling, but has a bit spicier flavor to it.

A good Riesling is Moselland ArsVitis. It is sweet, but a bit medium/light compared to most others. I'm also a fan of Kris Pinot Grigio if you're into having a Pinot.

[Azkarin2]

Yeah, I was also going to suggesta Riesling. Its kind of like bubbly apple juice with alcohol in it.

[eunhye]

The French paradox. People in France drink a lot of wine, and tons and tons of fatty foods. Look at their breads, syrups, butter, fillets, etc. One of the keys to their lifestyle though is that they eat smaller portions than us. No super size, no thanks. I also think most of their wines, the red ones for example, are considered "old world" styles. If you look at the Yellow Tails, most wines from Australia, anything from Gallo, Sutter Home, just to name a few; these are sugar ladened. I live in Frederick, Maryland and the local wine here, Linganore Wine Cellars sling-a-whore is just god aweful. These wines are considered "new world".

Any cote-du-rhone from France, malbecs from Argentina, or some tempranillo from Spain are some reds I would consider. Rieslings from Alsace, although some can be more expensive, are the better kinds of riesling. I would even consider boxed wines not named Franzia/Almaden. Certain stores can carry really nice french boxed wines. You gotta search a little to find out. Also, beware the wine snobs. They like to say stuff like smells like dirty socks, tons of rhubarb. You taste what you want to taste. Stay away from the sweets, drink dry.

http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=534918

Can find this anywhere. Hope that helps.

[Tyche]

And yes, all of those things I'm looking for are almost a feminine sounding wine.

Thanks

Is there a such thing as a masculine wine? Kidding! I have 2 bottles of wine in my fridge from my wedding that someone got me. It's from a local winery; I was going to ask Arch if he wanted them and I'd of mailed them to him. However, I got a little ambitious and took a drank from each. Didn't really like either one (and I knew I wouldn't, I'm not much of a wine drinker). I know this didn't answer anything, but was rather mindless palaver.

[Elesirdur]

Pinot Gris/Pinot Grigio wines can be quite sweet and smooth. Personally I prefer them to a chardonnay for white wines as I find whites (in my $8-15/bottle daily price range) to be bland and often too tart for my tastes. Most German wines will be sweeter whites (Riesling is the most well-known example), as are whites from the East of France, particulairly the Alscace region.

If you are looking to branch out into further territory with reds, may I suggest a Shiraz from Australia or Chile? They are a bit fruitier and smoother than many other reds, but still have enough of that tannic quality to be enjoyable. If you really want to splurge on some very heady and tannic red go for a barolo - drinking a glass of a barolo just begs to be enjoyed with a very fine steak.

Personally I am partial to reds from Sicily and Spain, as well as numerous wines from around BC - mostly due to the price. However, there are lots of great bottles of wine in the sub-$20 category. Vintners know that this is a big market and over the last ten years have worked hard to cultivate it.

I will also agree with Tristam that daily wine intake does not have much cardiovascular benefit until middle age, and only really in men; daily wine intake has shown to have little to no impact on women.

Edit: Montalto Sicilian IGT wines are pretty much my standby red. They run less than $10/bottle here in BC and have an enjoyable, but not amazingly remarkable, flavour. Obviously not the highest quality of Italian wines, they're better than the vin de tableau varieties. Reviews: http://www.cellartracker.com/list.as...earch=Montalto

[rezn0r]

i am no expert and have nothing to offer except that i've learned to love any type of pinot straight from the bottle, people get mad about it but to hell with them

[Meph]

Ill chime in with ele on a chilean wine. Im addicted to the Casillero del diablo - cabernet sauvignon (http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=397397)
I recently had the pleasure to try out aa extremely delicious Lebanese wine from bekaa valley called Massaya which might dethrone casillero as my favourite. (http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=393129) but then again I didnt start exploring wines until earlier this year (been a whiskey-buff for a few years)

[Elesirdur]

Yes, the wines from Casillero del Diablo are awesome. Such a good bottle for the price.

[shihei]

Box of Wine, ftw.

[Mabubeezareel]

I'm far from a connoisseur of wine myself, but I've been drinking mead lately, and it sounds as if it might be to your liking. It's made from honey, and most brands are very sweet and smooth. My favorite brand is Oliver Camelot, which comes from an Indiana winery named (aptly enough) Oliver Winery. Pretty inexpensive too - the local spirit shoppe by me carries it for only $9/bottle.

[Tristam]

Yes, the wines from Casillero del Diablo are awesome. Such a good bottle for the price.

Yes! My Dad works in Chile frequently and fell in love with their wines. It's even acceptable to bring three bottles of wine back as a carryon for flights and I've since had a couple bottles of their Cab, it's great!

[Atreides]

Rieslings are good like it's been said, but they can be a bit on the fruity/sweet side depending on what you get. I'm pretty partial to Virginia rieslings but they aren't exactly easy to find outside of Virginia.

If you're looking for supersweet, you could always try Lillet. Personally I think it's fucking disgusting (it's a dessert wine), and plum wine is wayyyy too thick for my taste, but some people like it.

Also something to consider (no, im not joking) in terms of sweet/light would be Manaschewitz-brand kosher wine. It's made from black grapes so it has a really strong grape juice taste, and is quite popular outside of Jewish festivities so it should be available at virtually any place that sells wine/liquor.

[Vuitton]

I have a glass of Chardonnay every night! It can be either sweet, oaky, buttery, floral, fruity, and dry. Its a wine that has a lot of variables. Used in many champagnes.

If you want a more mild and light then I recommend a Sauvignon blanc. It will either have tropical fruit undertones or melon undertones, but you'd have to have a discerning pallete to tell. It would just taste slightly fruity.

If you want something similar to champagne then get a Viognier. This is a grape that is also used in a lot of champagnes. It can be very floral, but taste very "green". ("green" is what I use to describe something that tastes like a grape plucked fresh from the vine.)

Rieslings I cannot stand. They are too sweet for me.

Edit:

Oh, I also recommend trying a Vihno Verde. Its a portugese wine. They are usually very light, fresh, slightly sweet and fruity. They are semi-sparkling naturally. (No where near compared to champagne. Only slightly effervescent.) A bottle off hand that I know is cheap (under $10) and good is called Famega Vihno Verde.

http://www.carlorussowine.com/r/prod...tm_medium=base

Refreshing, crisp with a tingly sparkle taste of apple tartness from the cool and luscious Vinho Verde DOC region. It has a delicate citrus flavor like the fragrance of a summer garden. Pleasant and mellow, this young white will be the perfect accompaniment to seafood, salads, and mild cheeses, as an apertif or by itself.

Every grocery store I've been to has had it.

Edit 2:

I would avoid dessert wines. They are usually "fortified" (concentrated and mixed with brandy) or concentrated and loaded with sugar. I think they are also gross. (I haven't developed a taste for it yet.)

[Atreides]

i totally forgot about sauvignon blanc, great recommendation ;o

[archibaldcrane]

Here goes:

I'm surprised of all the wines to be your "daily drinker" you picked Burgundy. Not that they aren't good, they are, but from a cost/benefit analysis they are generally (IMO) overpriced. If you like Pinot Noir (as it appears you must) try Oregonian Pinots, very similar terroir/weather there, generally a bit more fruit/less earthiness than you'd be used to on your Burgundies.

Tyche, feel free to send me free wine any time you like, PM for my address.

Chile, Argentina and Spain (mmm Tempranillo) are excellent places to find good everyday wines at highway robbery prices. The Protocolo is wonderful for only $7.

I don't often drink sweet wines - I like them fine, but they aren't often brought to my Young Winos wine club. Anyway, Riesling has such a rep for being "omg so sweet" but most of the ones I drink, and we drink them frequently, are at most off-dry. The french region of Alsace has tons of bone-dry Rieslings, so if you hate the sweetness and want to actually find out what the varietal tastes like, try that. But yes, for the OP: Rieslings, Gewurztraminer, Vinho Verde are all good things to try for what you're looking for.

Eunhye - I've had a number of Yellowtail bottles in my time, and while none have been great, I wouldn't call them "sugar-ladened". It can be very easy to mistake "fruity" for sweet though - sweetness is specifically tasted on the tip of your tongue, and is still tasteable if you pinch your nose while you drink (yes, you look like an idiot when you do this). And sometimes wine smells like dirty socks - rhubarb would be a new one for me.

Our wine tasting group was featured on an MSNBC.com video spotlight, where we look like complete douchebags. We also made our third appearance with Tom Leykis on his show "The Tasting Room" this past Sunday.

[Lurking Badger]

I find Rieslings too sweet as well mostly, and prefer a Weissburgunder or Grauburgunder any day. It can be a bit harder to find over Rieslings though.

Edit: wrote some lies about Gewürztraminer earlier, but it is in fact a specific grape.

[Denchi]

Viognier is a very good non-dry white grape.

[Daydreamer]

I work at a wine store now, so maybe I can help a little. Disclaimer: Just started, still learning, don't flame.

I totally agree with the protocolo for cheap wine suggestion earlier. We sell tons of it and my boss really recommends it.

I would say skip the Reisling suggestion because they do tend to be too sweet, much more so than Burgandy. If you do go Reisling don't get the spätlase or auslese. These are the two sweetest. I can't remember the name of the other style of it, but if it says spätlese or auslese it will prob be a little bit sweet than you'd like.

I'd really give Pinot Noirs a try. Zevo is very very good, but also pricey at about 40$. Another great one is Foley, which is around 30$. I actually think I like the Foley better. Much deeper and more complex with a longer finish. I also agree with getting Pinots from Oregon, because they tend to be of higher quality, which isn't to say you can't get great ones from other places. Oh also Pinot Noir = Burgandy...it's the same grape if I remember right, so I guess when I say give them a try I just mean try a good one . If you do get a higher quality red then for the love of god open it, take one small sip so you can really see how much better it gets, and walk away for about 2-3 hours. It really does get sooooo much better.

If you wanna try whites I really like Voigniers. And a good chard for people that either a) are new to chards or b) don't like chards (me) is the Wishing Tree unoaked Chard. This stuff is only like 10$ and fantastic. I always have a bottle in my wine rack.

Hope this helps a little.