Red Wine - Talk to me

[anonymous-user]

Hosenbugler said:

Matt_N said:

Rather than start a new topic I thought I'd piggy back onto this one.
I've won a bottle of Hospices de Beaune 2008 Pommard Cuvee Billardet in a work raffle.
Is this a drinker or a keeper?
Details online are scant, found a few tasting notes, seems to be worth around £40 a bottle and that it's a Pinot Noir.

The 2012 vintage of this wine has a drink by date of Dec 2020 . So going by that, it seems prudent to drink now, rather than letting it stand and possibly spoil. Pinot Noir is not as robust as some grapes , so tends to have a fairly narrow cellar life compared to some.

There are plenty of long-lived red Burgundy wines - 100% Pinot Noir. 2008 wasn't the best vintage and should be ready to drink now. As you don't know how well the wine has been kept you may as well go for it.

Another vote for the Wine Society from me. They cover the spectrum and you can easily spend more that your head says you should! If you live near and can stand the glamour of Stevenage you can save 25p per bottle by collecting your order (every little helps).

OP: You've tried a Chateauneuf du Pape - I think the Rhone wines in general are a good place to start. Plenty of powerful stuff (e.g Gigondas - and not bad value) and a large price spectrum. Don't drink the decent wines before they are ready (as with any region obviously).

[anonymous-user]

Matt_N said:

Hosenbugler said:

The 2012 vintage of this wine has a drink by date of Dec 2020 . So going by that, it seems prudent to drink now, rather than letting it stand and possibly spoil. Pinot Noir is not as robust as some grapes , so tends to have a fairly narrow cellar life compared to some.

That's probably why it's been offered up as a prize then!

Will give it a go on Christmas day.

I've never really gone over the £10/12 a bottle and tend to stick to Rioja, Malbec, Barolo or Chianti so will be interesting to try.

You'll probably find it a bit lighter than those wines plus, as you don't know how it's been kept, make sure you have something you KNOW you like on standby!