* THE WINE THREAD *

Cliffy6745

mcgruff10 said:

Bentleyspop said:

Cliffy6745 said:

tempo_n_groove said:

mcgruff10 said:

I drank this one last weekend.  One of the best wines I ever had. No ice cubes.

Fantastic wine.

So dude just posted a pic of Opus One, but regarding wine like this.  I know they're so good, but I have such a tough time spending $50+ on a Napa Cab or something along those lines. I know they're great and have had plenty, but there are soooooo many good California Cabs that are $30 or so or even less. I feel like I am getting more bang for my buck going old world when I start spending a little more on wine. Like I'd prefer to buy a Brunello/Barolo as a $60+ wine and seek out the good $20-$30 cabs that are highly rated.

Am I crazy?

You are not crazy.
A good brunello or a great one $60 and up is always a good thing.

The Opus One belongs to a friend. He needed one for a special event and is saving the rest.
He did share some with me and I enjoyed it but would be just as happy with a good  California cab or a Brunello.

 I never really drank brunello, what would you compare it to? Cab?  Pinot noir?

So Brunello is Sangiovese.  It is just from around the town of Montalcino and are darker grapes than in other areas of Tuscany.  I think it is Italy's best wine.  Kinda a weak comparison since it's the same grape for the most part, but can probably compare it to a big Chianti Classico a bit.

Cliffy6745

Glad to hear everyone has a similar mindset and I'm not crazy.  Every Wine Spectator has half a dozen or more Cali Cabs with 90+ ratings in the $20 range.  I can always find at least a couple of them in my liquor store

I am not shy about buying a nice bottle at all, just feel like it makes most sense to go the old world route when doing so since there is so much good US wine that is reasonably had.

tempo_n_groove

Cliffy6745 said:

tempo_n_groove said:

mcgruff10 said:

I drank this one last weekend.  One of the best wines I ever had. No ice cubes.

Fantastic wine.

So dude just posted a pic of Opus One, but regarding wine like this.  I know they're so good, but I have such a tough time spending $50+ on a Napa Cab or something along those lines. I know they're great and have had plenty, but there are soooooo many good California Cabs that are $30 or so or even less. I feel like I am getting more bang for my buck going old world when I start spending a little more on wine. Like I'd prefer to buy a Brunello/Barolo as a $60+ wine and seek out the good $20-$30 cabs that are highly rated.

Am I crazy?

No you aren't!

I bought a bottle of Opus for my boss.  I have never tried it.

Drinking wine though that is expensive is an experience that should be tried every now and again.  Some of the expensive wines aren't as good as a $30 wine though, they just aren't.

My favorite wines are from Howell Mountain and Alexander Valley area in Cali.  Pick something from those areas that aren't expensive and you'll taste a difference.

A perfect example is Rodney Strong.  His cab from Sonoma is very good for the price point.  While out to eat at a fancy steak house I noticed RS so I ordered a bottle.  Was a little pricier from what I had remembered but I know it's a good wine.  Upon tasting that wine there was an absolute difference from what I remembered.  Look at the bottle and lo and behold the vintage was from Alexander Valley.  This has become one of my favorites from them.

So my go to wine that I have around the house?

Los Vascos Cab from Chile.  About $9 a bottle.

It's a great wine for $9.  Buy it by the case.

Then I always have Seghesio and RS too.  Those are for other occasions but if I am really wanting something different I will see what else is out there so I know.  Brands like Jordan, Heitz, Howell Mtn, Symmetry, Hess, Frog's Leap, Duck Horn, Caduces and the list goes on.

Drinking wine should always be fun no matter what the cost.

Cliffy6745

tempo_n_groove said:

Cliffy6745 said:

tempo_n_groove said:

mcgruff10 said:

I drank this one last weekend.  One of the best wines I ever had. No ice cubes.

Fantastic wine.

So dude just posted a pic of Opus One, but regarding wine like this.  I know they're so good, but I have such a tough time spending $50+ on a Napa Cab or something along those lines. I know they're great and have had plenty, but there are soooooo many good California Cabs that are $30 or so or even less. I feel like I am getting more bang for my buck going old world when I start spending a little more on wine. Like I'd prefer to buy a Brunello/Barolo as a $60+ wine and seek out the good $20-$30 cabs that are highly rated.

Am I crazy?

No you aren't!

I bought a bottle of Opus for my boss.  I have never tried it.

Drinking wine though that is expensive is an experience that should be tried every now and again.  Some of the expensive wines aren't as good as a $30 wine though, they just aren't.

My favorite wines are from Howell Mountain and Alexander Valley area in Cali.  Pick something from those areas that aren't expensive and you'll taste a difference.

A perfect example is Rodney Strong.  His cab from Sonoma is very good for the price point.  While out to eat at a fancy steak house I noticed RS so I ordered a bottle.  Was a little pricier from what I had remembered but I know it's a good wine.  Upon tasting that wine there was an absolute difference from what I remembered.  Look at the bottle and lo and behold the vintage was from Alexander Valley.  This has become one of my favorites from them.

So my go to wine that I have around the house?

Los Vascos Cab from Chile.  About $9 a bottle.

It's a great wine for $9.  Buy it by the case.

Then I always have Seghesio and RS too.  Those are for other occasions but if I am really wanting something different I will see what else is out there so I know.  Brands like Jordan, Heitz, Howell Mtn, Symmetry, Hess, Frog's Leap, Duck Horn, Caduces and the list goes on.

Drinking wine should always be fun no matter what the cost.

This is good stuff and very much agreed.  I was looking at some ratings of Opus One vintages yesterday and there were a couple that had ratings in the 90 range. Now I get every rating and palate is different, but imagine drinking a $350 bottle of wine that you can get the same rating in a blind taste test for $20?

I have had expensive wine a couple times and it is an experience.  I love good wine and over the past 5 years or so have been drinking more and more and thinking about it and paying more attention to it. It is a whole lot of fun.

I am very familiar with Rodney Strong and am sure I have had both the Cab and Zin.  Interesting about Alexander Valley  Will look into.

Good stuff.

HesCalledDyer

Been wanting to try a couple of these for quite some time.  It's former Formula One driver Jarno Trulli's vineyard.

http://www.poderecastorani.it/en/poderecastoranimontepulciano.php

tempo_n_groove

HesCalledDyer said:

Been wanting to try a couple of these for quite some time.  It's former Formula One driver Jarno Trulli's vineyard.

http://www.poderecastorani.it/en/poderecastoranimontepulciano.php

I've had a few Bordeaux', cabs from other countries and even got to try one of Vedders Barolo, which was fantastic by the way, and I can honestly say I do not know enough about European wines...

mcgruff10

Nice little cab for walking around the neighborhood with the kids. 

tempo_n_groove

mcgruff10 said:

Nice little cab for walking around the neighborhood with the kids. 

I've actually avoided this.

Is it really decent?

mcgruff10

tempo_n_groove said:

mcgruff10 said:

Nice little cab for walking around the neighborhood with the kids. 

I've actually avoided this.

Is it really decent?

For $12.99 I thought it was good.  Good ratings according to my local store but not one I am dying to buy again. 

tbergs

Going cheap with canned wine while trick or treating with the kids.

tempo_n_groove

tbergs said:

Going cheap with canned wine while trick or treating with the kids.

WOW!  That is a few steps below box wine...

mcgruff10

Picked this up today.  One of my go to s.  

mcgruff10

@PJ_Soul went to a big liquor store today and no Canadian Pinot Gris. Closest was Washington state. 

PJ_Soul

mcgruff10 said:

@PJ_Soul went to a big liquor store today and no Canadian Pinot Gris. Closest was Washington state. 

I know! The US doesn't sell it! Meanwhile, BC grocery stores that sell wine (which is new for us) were only selling BC wines to help the local vintners, but just made a big deal about how they were now going to sell US wine as well ... but the US isn't reciprocating. Not fair, lol! SANCTIONS!

mcgruff10

PJ_Soul said:

mcgruff10 said:

@PJ_Soul went to a big liquor store today and no Canadian Pinot Gris. Closest was Washington state. 

I know! The US doesn't sell it! Meanwhile, BC grocery stores that sell wine (which is new for us) were only selling BC wines to help the local vintners, but just made a big deal about how they were now going to sell US wine as well ... but the US isn't reciprocating. Not fair, lol! SANCTIONS!

I will find it. It is my mission. 

Cliffy6745

5 year wedding anniversary. Figured we’d open a 2006 super Tuscan (the year we met) that we brought home from Italy, along with our baby girl, to go along with meats,  cheeses and olives. The real celebration is tomorrow too!

mcgruff10

 Is that’s my type of meal Cliffy6745!!! Happy anniversary. 

tempo_n_groove

Cliffy6745 said:

5 year wedding anniversary. Figured we’d open a 2006 super Tuscan (the year we met) that we brought home from Italy, along with our baby girl, to go along with meats,  cheeses and olives. The real celebration is tomorrow too!

TAPAS!!!

Congrats!!!

lastexitlondon

Cliffy6745 said:

5 year wedding anniversary. Figured we’d open a 2006 super Tuscan (the year we met) that we brought home from Italy, along with our baby girl, to go along with meats,  cheeses and olives. The real celebration is tomorrow too!

Beautiful.. congratulations.  Looks perfect

Cliffy6745

Thanks, all. Solid all the way around. Really liked the wine.