Here in Norway it is not possible to buy wine at the grocery stores...we have to go to what is know as "Vinmonopolet"...the state controlled stores that sells wine, spirits and strong beer. There is a constant debate here if selling wine in regular stores should be allowed. But I think the Vinmonpolet is pretty good as they offer an amazing selection of wines...I think they have about 4100 different French red wines and about 3000 Italian wines..and the people that work there seems to know thir stuff. The only problem is that the wine is a bit more expensive that I would like to see...many of the bottles is typically from 85 kroner to 150 kroner (about 14 dollars to 24 dollars).
At the moment I'm hooked on Italian and Spanish red wines. I have tried a some French wines but in general I think that the Italian and Spanish wines are better. And due to my South African wife I also have to test out the selction from that country I ordered a few bottles on the internet today and most of them were South African red wines.
What is the selction like where you buy your wine? Where does the wine you buy normally come from and how much do you have to cough up for it?
The state of Colorado is structured the same way your Vinmonpolets are, Pennsylvania too: state controlled stores are the only place you can buy beer/wine/spirits. It has its pros and cons. Pro: the selections at the stores are better cause that's all the store sells. Con: makes for an extra trip just to have a bottle of wine with dinner.
I'm a huge fan of zinfandels & cabernet savignon, so a good portion of my wine at home comes from California. These can be found for under $20/bottle (heck, sometimes under $10) and make for easy drinking.
Australian and Italian wines are my favorite imports. Haven't really branched out to the French wines yet... they intimidate me for some reason. I've never tried South African wines, but would be up for the adventure! Any suggestions for my first bottle?
Lately it occurs to me what a long, strange trip its been
I would love to hear your recommendations for S. African wine as well.
I live in California and you can buy wine in grocery stores, drug stores, and wine shops small or large. Price and quality varies greatly but you can purchase good wines in the $15-$20 range easily and some "best buys" for even less.( It's not difficult to spend quite a bit more.)
WOW! your wine selection is fantastic. I presume not all are in stock and you order ahead? In New Jersey stores that sells wine are privately owned and operated ("liquor stores"). Therefore depending upon the owner you can get a wide selection or something less than satisfactory. Some stores specialize in wines (as opposed to other spirits) and are very good and willing to work with the customer for special requests. I prefer Italian wines for two reasons - price and quality. If it costs more than US$20 I probably will not buy it (with some exceptions and for special occasions) but I prefer US$10. Therefore my favorites (Italian and otherwise) are: RED Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Torgiano (Umbria) Sangiovese (Tuscona e Umbria)- exceeds my $20 limit Aglianico (Basilicata, Campania e Calabria) - sometimes exceeds my $20 limit but worth it Merlot (California) Bull's Blood or Bikavár (Hungary) Cabernet Sauvignon (Chile) WHITE Gavi (Piemonte) Tocai Friuliano (Friuli Venezia Giulia) Muscadet (France) Pouilly-Fuissé (France) Sauvignon Blanc (California or Washington)
Cin cin!
Posts: 657 | Location: Palmyra, NJ, USA | Registered: 29 July 2003
Pennsylvania resident, here, so it's Vinmonpolets for us too. We are FAR from connisseurs. We just like what we like, basically. We both also happen to like the same wines - guess it really was a marriage made in heaven !
We used to buy mainly Zinfandels, usually from California, but ever since our trip to France this past April, we've been buying French rosees only. We never had a bad rosee no matter where we ate or drank in Paris and Provence.
Like I said, we're not sophisticated. But we know what we like.
Over time, I've become more familiar and accustomed to Italian wines from trips to Italy and numerous tastings, yes, we had fun. I've also done a freelance trip to Italy to taste wines for an importer. I really enjoy Italian wines because they use certain primary grapes that I like, along with others, to produce a great variety of wines. I can find a wine to enjoy from either Sangiovese or Nebbiolo grapes with different characteristics, vintages and prices.
Posts: 341 | Location: Philadelphia | Registered: 04 November 2004
We can buy wine and beer in supermarkets and wine stores. We only have restrictions on hard liquor. Hard liquor can only be purchased from state liquor stores.
We have many good wine stores and supermarkets. I've found several who have buyers who's tastes are similar to mine. Typically, I drink whites. I find whites more food friendly especially with seafood and vegetarian which is what we typically eat. And in summer, I drink a lot of Roses; mainly from southern France or Europe although I recently had a great Rose from Walla Walla made from Lemberger grape.
For whites, I'm of the ABC (anything but Chardonnay) camp. Although, there are some chardonnays that I like. These typically are non-oaked or some from France such as Chablis. One of the owners of a wine store I got to typically, will say "You like weird whites....".
I like to stay below $15. Most of the wine stores and even grocery stores in Seattle now have a 10% discount on purchases of 6 bottles or more. This helps.
My favorite white is Sauvignon Blancs from New Zealand. I love the crisp taste. I will search out SB from other regions which are done in a similar style. Next is Pinot gris/Pinot grigio. Oregon makes some great Pinot Gris. Viognier is also another favorite but it tends to be higher priced. I like Riesling if they are dry. Lugana is another favorite. From Spain, I like Albarino. I am also trying a few Gruner Veltliner from Austria.
Visiting South Africa, I've come to know a few SA wines. They are not available much here in the US. If you want to try, I would recommend anything from Fairview or Goats do Roam. This wine maker's low end line is the Goats do Roam series. The two reds, Goats do Roam red and Goats do Roam in Villages are both very good buys. They typically get ratings in the upper 80's or 90 in Wine Spectator. The reds are a blend in the Rhones style so primarily Syrah. The white is fine also. He also makes a Fairview and Spice Route labels which are higher end. Other good labels that I've seen are Warwick, Brampton, Glen Carlou and Ken Forrester. I've also seen but do not recommend KWV, Clos Malverne, and Fleur du Cap.
I will let you know how the SOuth African wines that I have ordered taste :-) One that we have had in the past that was good is a wine called Allesverloren Tinta Barocca.
Yes, the wine selection is pretty good but as you say it is not all in stock. The list of wines are split into two sections: one that every shop should have...and the other is wines that has to be ordered. The wines I bought online yesterday is on the second list so I have to wait a couple of days...they just call me when it is ready to be picked up :-)
It is always strange to see how different taste people have. Last weekend I had my family over and I used a bottle of wine from Georgia in Russia when making lasagne. I tried a glass of it for the meal but that didn't work for me at all. But my sister loved it....so as they say "different strokes for different folks" :-)
We also had some friends over along time ago and we served a South African wine called Juicy Red. The all agreed that it was the best wine that they had ever tasted. Well, it is a bottle that is sold at Woolworths(?) in SOuth Africa for about 3 US dollars. On the back of the bottle there was a bit of info and normally they give you some indication on how long you can store it before you have to drink it. On the Juicy red it said "Drink at once and then run to Woolies and buy another one"
Here are the top 20 wines being sold in the first 6 months of 2006.
1. J.P. Chenet Cabernet-Syrah Red wine France 2. Lindemans Shiraz Cabernet Red wine Australia 3. La Boiselière red wine France 4. Gato Negro Cabernet Sauvignon Red wine Chile 5. Mezzomondo Negroamaro Red wine Italy 6. Soñador Red wine Argentina 7. Viña Maipo Cabernet Sauvignon Red wine Chile 8. Chapelle du Bois Red wine France 9. Tariquet White wine France 10. Marqués de Chivé Tempranillo Crianza Red wine Spain 11. Boheme Red wine Italy 12. Amigo Red wine Spain 13. Robertson Cabernet Sauvignon Red wine South Africa 14. Vidigal Reserva Red wine Portugal 15. Chapel Hill Rhine Riesling & Sauvignon Blanc White wine Hungary 16. El Copero Red wine Spain 17. Da Luca Primitivo Merlot Red wine Italy 18. Dunavár Chardonnay White wine Hungary 19. Arrow Ruby Cabernet Red wine USA 20. Dr. L Riesling White wine Germany
We buy from liquer stores here; nothing in the supermarkets.
Our "house" wines are the Amano from Puglia (a primitivo) and a Meridian Chardonay (nothing special but drinkable on a warm summer night).
For a step up, we've been enjoying the Seghesio (CA not Italy) family of wines, mostly zinfandels but tried their Barbera a few weeks ago and loved it. Also Hitching Post Pinot Noir.
In the fall/winter I love a good Nobile and a Rosso di Montalcino though I think we've been drinking our Brunellos too young and am anxious to try a couple we have in the cellar next year that will be ten years old (but those are special occasions).
I'm anxious to get back to our liquer store to check out some of the French wines we learned about in Paris, especially the Chablis.
Oh and Prosecco has been real big here this summer.
I we are not speaking of the superwine that one can afford only occasionally, here are my best buys (in Italy) If you like Rosso di Montalcino, Sagrantino or Torgiano, you will go ape over €10 Carbio, a rosso Umbro. It reminds me of a very fine Pinot Noir. Negroamaro d'Abruzzo is a deep, chocolatey red that sings with red meats. €12 to 30. Amarone di Valpolicella is berries berries berries to me and I love it in July. Priced from 13 - 40 euro, never met one I hated.
A really good California Zinfandel that you can buy for under $10 is Rosenblum Cuvee. It tastes great for the price. I sometimes pick up a case when I find it at Cost Plus for $7-$8. Rosenblum is one of the top Zinfandel producers. . .their more premium Zins cost lots more, but the cuvee is a great buy. I'm not sure where all they market to, but their wine can be purchased online at beverages and more.
Before I moved to Louisville, I lived in one of the many "dry" counties in Kentucky, meaning I had to drive 50 miles to buy any kind of alcohol.
Now I can buy it anywhere - drug stores, liquor stores, wherever. I am very uneducated about wine, and don't spend much on it because it would be waster on me. My 35 euro bottle of Brunello sitting in my little wine cabinet is the most expensive bottle I've purchased.
I usually look for the bottles that have their point rating (like from Wine Spectator) stuck to the shelf, and get the best combo of low price and higher points.
For a step up, we've been enjoying the Seghesio (CA not Italy) family of wines, mostly zinfandels but tried their Barbera a few weeks ago and loved it. Also Hitching Post Pinot Noir.
Kim,
I'm with you! Meridian is a good reasonable priced wine from California's Central Coast. I drove by their winery a few days ago while visiting my Dad in Paso Robles, CA.
And Hitching Post pinot - very "Sideways" for those of you who saw the movie.
We have been drinking another wine from the Central Coast - Edna Valley chardonnay.
For any of you who go up to the Paso Robles area to go winetasting and don't have time to visit all of the wineries, the supermarkets there have a great supply of local wines. Email me if you want specific directions.
Posts: 1376 | Location: SoCal - Cherry Valley CA | Registered: 15 February 2004
OK, I NEVER thought I'd be participating in a wine chat, but I've just come home from dropping the youngest at work at Coles Chisholm, in beautiful downtown Tuggeranong.
The oldest is at work on the bobsled at Corin Forest up in the snow. So I can't ask either of them about it.
So, I know it's the middle of the afternoon, but yesterday I opened a bottle of the 200 ml size of Jacob's Creek (c'mon Aussie c'mon) Chardonnay Pinot Noir - Brut Cuvée of course - and some of it's missing! Yes, I know - it takes me two days to get through a 'baby cham' sized bottle.
This has never happened before - and it had jolly well better never happen again. I don't drink very much - but I really enjoy my Pinot Noir (with a chocolate drop cookie).
Topic Closed
I ordered a few bottles on the internet today and most of them were South African red wines.
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