Need some red wine help

[don4l]

Interesting topic, and I also would like to know what the OP settles on.

Thirty five years ago you had to spend good money to get a decent bottle of wine. It would invariably be either French or Italian.

Nowadays, most of my wine is from Spain. A Rioja Joven is about £4.00 in Lidl, and is a bit similar to the Malbecs that I have tried. The Rioja Reserva costs about 50p more and is superb.

Similar French wines would cost four times more.

[NDA]

I regularly drink 'new world' wines as well as Spanish and Italian ones - but I still think the big reds from Bordeaux are very hard to beat. I'm thinking Pomerol, Margaux, St Estephe, St Julien etc. Langoa Barton being my personal favourite.

[Davey S2]

Bordeaux -

http://www.bbr.com/products-8029-2010-les-tourelle...

http://www.bbr.com/products-942703-2007-ch-grand-p...

Barolo - http://www.bbr.com/products-32271-2011-barolo-serr...

Brunello - http://www.bbr.com/products-34321-2011-brunello-di...

Nice to splash out but if I were you I'd spend £40 on membership of the Wine Society (you get a credit of £20 on your first order so really it's only £20 for life) and buy a few nice bottles from there. Their own posh range is called Exhibition and includes some really nice stuff, Barolo, Nappa Valley Cab Sav, Paulliac, etc. Generally in the £15 - £40 range.

Your social life isn't going to be wild with a new baby so cracking open a nice bottle after it's finally gone to sleep will be very welcome. Best to stock up on a few nice ones.

[prand]

Interestingly my wife went completely off red wine and steak when pregnant. Took her a while to get it back too, so it might be a bit early to splash out on the wine.

In my opinion, you don't need to spend £80 either to have some excellent wines.


My recommendation for a good Malbec is Catena Alta, you can get one between £23-30, though I would try and find one older than 2014 to do it some justice.

[C70R]

Davey S2 said:

Nice to splash out but if I were you I'd spend £40 on membership of the Wine Society (you get a credit of £20 on your first order so really it's only £20 for life) and buy a few nice bottles from there. Their own posh range is called Exhibition and includes some really nice stuff, Barolo, Nappa Valley Cab Sav, Paulliac, etc. Generally in the £15 - £40 range.

Ditto this, except I've just joined Naked. Not only do they ask you a mini-survey about the types of wine that you like/dislike, there's also an Amazon-style rating/review system on everything they offer, meaning that you get the benefit of thousands of 'test drives'.
While it might not be good for the 'big bottle' £40+ purchases, you can put together an excellent case of individual bottles (including ports and fizz) for £150-180, which is perfect for my needs.

Edited by C70R on Wednesday 26th October 17:23

[Hosenbugler]

Davey S2 said:

Bordeaux -

http://www.bbr.com/products-8029-2010-les-tourelle...

http://www.bbr.com/products-942703-2007-ch-grand-p...

Barolo - http://www.bbr.com/products-32271-2011-barolo-serr...

Brunello - http://www.bbr.com/products-34321-2011-brunello-di...

Nice to splash out but if I were you I'd spend £40 on membership of the Wine Society (you get a credit of £20 on your first order so really it's only £20 for life) and buy a few nice bottles from there. Their own posh range is called Exhibition and includes some really nice stuff, Barolo, Nappa Valley Cab Sav, Paulliac, etc. Generally in the £15 - £40 range.
Your social life isn't going to be wild with a new baby so cracking open a nice bottle after it's finally gone to sleep will be very welcome. Best to stock up on a few nice ones.

Entirely agree, the Wine Society is a superb move . Brilliant range, brilliant service.

OP, when it comes to wine price, the law of diminishing returns seems to kick in severely past the £35/40 price point. To me personally the sweet point appears to be in the £15/30 range. I've had bottles at £15 , which have punched their weight beyond wines at twice the price. Of course, its finding them, and of course getting more before they are gone

Overall though , the best £40 you will spend is to join the Wine Society. My relkationship with them is no more than being a VERY satified customer.

[battered]

Don't go mad. I've had wines that were allegedly £100 a bottle and thought "meh" when tasting them alongside something at £15. I took the £15 bottle home. As others have said, more cost does not always mean better, and certainly not necessarily to your taste. By all means go a few quid more than you usually do and stick to the styles you like, but don't assume that a £50 bottle will be any better than your £10-15-20 standard fare.

[eltax91]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I've found a local wine shop, so will try and get down there later today (MyHermes dependant!!) and choose one or two bottles

[C0ffin D0dger]

eltax91 said:

I'm thinking I might by her a really nice bottle of red to have the first time we get some proper sleep from the nipper.

About 2-3 years time then if you're lucky

Good luck!

[eltax91]

Hi all

I've been to the wine shop, had a lovely 20 minutes talking about grapes.

I returned with 3 bottles, 2 x £20 bottle and a £30 bottle. They are:-

2012 Gigondas
2013 Amarone
2014 Terrunyo Carmenere

I told you I have no idea about wine, the above is what i'm getting by reading the fancy labels on the bottle