Red Wine - Talk to me

[EnthusiastOwned]

Hello All,

I'm still learning about wine but I do know I've always been a fan of an aged Gran Reserva Rioja. I've recently started branching out trying different styles and adore a good Malbec for example but also partial to a nice Primitivo or Chianti - Although these are a little on the lighter side of my pallet, I can still appreciate a good wine when I taste one. I've just had my first decent French, a nice Chateauneuf Du Pape; fruity and not as full on as i'd like but very tasty nonetheless.

I usually spend between £10-£15 a bottle (sometimes less if it's on offer, but i'm finding offer wines are on offer for a reason and very rarely worth their rrp).

Can anyone recommend a good red to try please, style, grape or region!

What's peoples thoughts on the wine cases / clubs from the like of Naked or Virgin? £50+ off the first orders. I'm sceptical or are these worth a try?

Also, anyone on Vivino?

[ChrisnChris]

Of course, everyone has different tastes & opinions, you don't have any Oz wines in your list. Try anything from Ben Glaetzer for some really powerful red. In fact anything decent from Barossa, Mclaren Vale, Clare Valley is worth a go, I stick mainly to Shiraz, because that's what I like.

https://www.glaetzer.com/

http://www.darenberg.com.au/family-history

https://www.timadamswines.com.au/

https://www.penfolds.com/wine-advice/about-tasting...

I've just cracked open an Amon-ra to have with Ox cheek....because I like it

[cahami]

I highly recommend you try Syrah / carmenere illusion 14
http://www.appellationnation.co.uk/illusion-syrah-...
A very palatable wine at a good price this is normally priced at about £30 in restaurants

Edited by cahami on Sunday 20th November 00:29

[21TonyK]

Best advice...

http://www.thewinesociety.com/

£40 for life and you'll save £20 on your first order.

Never had a bad wine from them.

And for a couple of quid a used copy of this...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/World-Atlas-Wine-6th/dp/1...

Edited by 21TonyK on Sunday 20th November 09:44

[Chris Stott]

Wine clubs are ok when you're starting your education as they give you opportunity to try different wines and find out what styles you like. But once you do, you're better off using somewhere like Majestic.

Recommendations are a matter of personal taste - I wouldn't touch Australian Shiraz for example. Easy to drink, but has no depth or complexity - its just alcoholic ribeana IMO.

Personally, bordeaux is king for me, but the stuff I really enjoy is just too expensive for daily drinking. My favourite at the moment is chateau musar (Lebanese, in the style of a good Bordeaux, but at a more accessible price), but I'm also drinking a lot of Italian - Amarone, Brunello & vino noble de montepulciano.

Avoid stuff like Hardys at a fiver in the supermarkets, on 'half price' promotions - it's only a £5 wine to start with. Though some of the cheaper Riojas are fine for everyday.

[whoami]

21TonyK said:

Best advice...

http://www.thewinesociety.com/

£40 for life and you'll save £20 on your first order.

Never had a bad wine from them.

Edited by 21TonyK on Sunday 20th November 09:44

Great customer service too.

[Cheib]

whoami said:

21TonyK said:

Best advice...

http://www.thewinesociety.com/

£40 for life and you'll save £20 on your first order.

Never had a bad wine from them.

Edited by 21TonyK on Sunday 20th November 09:44

Great customer service too.

Yup they cover every price point although much less comprehensive at the silly price points! If they store wine for you they will also deliver you a mixed case of your own wine. i.e. if you haev four cases in storage you can have 12 bottles delivered with three bottles being from each case. To my knowledge nobody else does that and buying wine by the case is generally the cheapest way to do it but most people can't store four cases.

[Don]

Chris Stott said:

Wine clubs are ok when you're starting your education as they give you opportunity to try different wines and find out what styles you like. But once you do, you're better off using somewhere like Majestic.

Best of both worlds: Join Naked Wines. Now all part of the same business as Majestic.

Majestic if you want "name" wines.
Naked Wines if you want to try new winemakers.

£15 a bottle is a good budget. You can get decent stuff for that. You can also get overpriced rubbish. (Same is also true at almost any budget!) Navigating the difference calls for a wine merchant you trust. A few round my way are Caviste and Berry Bros & Rudd.

Wine is such an adventure. We all have different palates - so nirvana for one person might be meh for another. Don't let anyone tell you what you like and don't like.

Sadly good wine does tend to cost more because more money is put into it's creation.

[Hosenbugler]

whoami said:

21TonyK said:

Best advice...

http://www.thewinesociety.com/

£40 for life and you'll save £20 on your first order.

Never had a bad wine from them.

Edited by 21TonyK on Sunday 20th November 09:44

:yes
Great customer service too.

Absolutely superb. . Wine society is excellent. They cost me a fortune :-)

[Davey S2]

Hosenbugler said:

whoami said:

21TonyK said:

Best advice...

http://www.thewinesociety.com/

£40 for life and you'll save £20 on your first order.

Never had a bad wine from them.

Edited by 21TonyK on Sunday 20th November 09:44

:yes
Great customer service too.

Absolutely superb. . Wine society is excellent. They cost me a fortune :-)

This.

Buy a case of their own label reds which cover every major country / grape / variety so you can see what you like.

£85 will get you this lot:

1 Bottle(s) of The Society’s Argentine Malbec 2015
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's Australian Shiraz 2015
1 Bottle(s) of The Society’s Beaujolais-Villages 2014
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's Red Burgundy 2015
1 Bottle(s) of The Society’s Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon, Maipo 2013
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's Côtes de Bordeaux 2012
1 Bottle(s) of The Society’s French Full Red, Côtes Catalanes
1 Bottle(s) of The Society’s Montepulciano d’Abruzzo 2015
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's Côtes-du-Rhône 2015
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's Pinotage, Eilandia 2014
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's Southern Spanish Red, Jumilla 2015
1 Bottle(s) of The Society's California Old-Vine Zinfandel 2013

Once you know which ones you prefer try their 'posher' range called Exhibition. These are generally around £10 - £25 and are very hard to beat for quality and value.

[matrignano]

If you like big reds try Nebbiolo/Barolo. Same grape & region, Barolo is aged 1 extra year (3 year total) of which usually 2 are spent in oak barrels. Ages very well.

Amarone is another big italian red from the Veneto region.

[RizzoTheRat]

See if there's a local wine merchant that does tasting nights. We go to ones by Taurus wines, you pay a few quid to get in, but they have about 60 wines to try, and a supply of bread and cheese to go with it, then you order what you want for delivery. Great system.

[Zod]

ChrisnChris said:

Of course, everyone has different tastes & opinions, you don't have any Oz wines in your list. Try anything from Ben Glaetzer for some really powerful red. In fact anything decent from Barossa, Mclaren Vale, Clare Valley is worth a go, I stick mainly to Shiraz, because that's what I like.

https://www.glaetzer.com/

http://www.darenberg.com.au/family-history

https://www.timadamswines.com.au/

https://www.penfolds.com/wine-advice/about-tasting...

I've just cracked open an Amon-ra to have with Ox cheek....because I like it

He said £10-15!

Which Amon-Ra vintage? I haven't opened any yet and I have some of the early ones.

[Don]

If you like the Barossa then this is the ultimate expression of it.

https://www.winedirect.co.uk/henschke-hill-of-grac...

Not exactly £10 to £15, though...

[Zod]

Don said:

If you like the Barossa then this is the ultimate expression of it.

https://www.winedirect.co.uk/henschke-hill-of-grac...

Not exactly £10 to £15, though...

Mount Edelstone is nearly as good, but a lot cheaper (still way over that range though).

[Davey S2]

matrignano said:

If you like big reds try Nebbiolo/Barolo. Same grape & region, Barolo is aged 1 extra year (3 year total) of which usually 2 are spent in oak barrels. Ages very well.

Amarone is another big italian red from the Veneto region.

Barbaresco is worth a good look as well. Same grape and very similar style to Barolo but tends to be better younger than Barolo.

For really good Barolo you either need to buy it young and keep it or spend a lot on one already aged.

Sainsbury's Taste the Difference Barbaresco is very good and is around a tenner.

[Chris Stott]

Don said:

£15 a bottle is a good budget. You can get decent stuff for that. You can also get overpriced rubbish. (Same is also true at almost any budget!) Navigating the difference calls for a wine merchant you trust. A few round my way are Caviste and Berry Bros & Rudd.

Wine is such an adventure. We all have different palates - so nirvana for one person might be meh for another. Don't let anyone tell you what you like and don't like.

Sadly good wine does tend to cost more because more money is put into it's creation.

Spot on.

[Don]

Zod said:

Mount Edelstone is nearly as good, but a lot cheaper (still way over that range though).

The Mount Edelstone Keynton Shiraz is a favourite of mine. I used to buy a case every year. Sadly the price has shot through the roof so I am more likely to buy a bottle for Christmas, these days...

[BoRED S2upid]

Virgin Wine is worth a try if you don't like a wine they will send you another free of charge I've done it several times over the years. They also have wine bank set up a DD say £50 a month and they add 10% it soon adds up. Better wine than you will find in a supermarket.

[Fastchas]

I do like a bottle of Chateauneuf Du Pape (£14-20) but I've just come across Cairanne which I bought from Aldi for £8 but also saw in Waitrose last week but didn't notice the price. On Winelovers.com they said it was very 'Chateauneuf-like' which would explain why I enjoyed it!