BristolUK

My usual staples of Ozzie Chardonnay and Shiraz just don't "do it" for me anymore.

I don't know if it's a screwtop thing or something to do with not traveling as well to NA as the UK. There's probably nothing in those two particular possibilities but all I know is after years of drinking little else I can't drink them now.

I'm finding the only reliable wine tends to be 'White' Zinfandel (white...ha!) which goes wonderfully with Red Thai Curry and fairly well with my own chicken and/or prawn dish.

I have found a Pinot Noir from Chile that's a bit of a saving grace though. A screwtop, of course, but I find it more than decent.

Oink

Nothing wrong with a screw top, these days its not an indicator of quality it just means that the wine companies have less spoilage than with traditional corks.

caretaker

True that Jimmy, no reason to be a cork snob nowadays. I had a bottle of Farmer John from France a few years ago that was corked and even though it was only in the $10 range it was a real disappointment. That isn't happening with a screw top. The Mission Ridge Select Cask I bought is ok and has the cherry overtones promised on the back (goes well with pizza, burgers and Mexican food lol) but IMO lacks the character of the Copper Moon or Sonora Ranch available for $2 more in the family size bottle. I could review it for Delectables.
ps: Man in the liquor store told me I could have returned the corked wine even though it was from the sale rack but I'd already poured it out and recycled the bottle.

BristolUK

Yes, I've been hearing that for years so I've no reason to disbelieve it. It just seems to be coincidence. Almost every wine I am able to drink my share of is still a cork and I'm not normally someone influenced that way.

caretaker

Well, the night is young. I probably got over a preference for corks mmmm 7 or 8 years ago? I'd certainly been told it didn't matter before then, but it could of been a prejudice from the old days when only cheap wines were screw top. That certainly didn't stop me when I was 20 and a half gallon of Donini was $3.50! What's the diff if you're going to squirt it out of a goat hide wineskin anyway?


How do you get a red wine stain out of an orange cat?

Pizzawheel

I think it's a maturing palate.

After years of preferring the most violent Shiraz & Pinotage, I found myself sliding over to the whites when living in Nigeria, which I put down to wanting something cold. But it's more than that now my preference is for white- and not necessarily a chardonnay- and liking mellow merlots and even a wonderful slightly chillable local gamay noir I found at the Sobey's wine booth.

I'm now wondering when the rest of me will catch up and mature too.

caretaker

Tastes change as well as trends; the advertising can't be denied and when Blue Nun or Black Tower or Piat D'or were all the rage I drank them, ditto Mateus or Chianti in the hippie days. Cheap and decent were the criteria. I'd never tasted many of the wines I know about now, and some I liked then don't appeal now and vise versa. Would I have considered terroire when savoring a new find? Never heard the word, but you could buy a bottle of decent B&G for $4 back in the 70's and I did buy it for a picnic with a girlfriend or special meal so somewhere in there must of been a kernel of appreciation.

scrubbedexpat091

I am still amazed how much $50 goes in the US even at fairly high priced store in Pt. Roberts.

After the exchange it is 59 CAD$ roughly, but using the Save On food website, the same (or similar items as some of the brads not sold in Canada) would be just over 80 dollars CAD.

Pizzawheel

I'm as a likely as not to veer away from mass advertised products in favour of a total shot in the dark. Especially when it comes to subjective things like wine.

Mind you I also find wine boxes to be incredibly convenient.

BristolUK

I have a few issues with wine boxes.

• Not a great selection.
• In the UK it seemed cheaper than bottles and here it seems about the same per bottle cost.
• It's a lot to pay and find you don't like it.

caretaker

I still haven't purchased boxed wine but we've started selling it at the bar. When it doesn't come out easily the bartenders toss the boxes in the recycling. When I sort that stuff I find that each bag still has a glass of wine inside! I use it for cooking and recycle the cardboard. Waste not want not.

Shard

I ventured into boxed wine territory last summer, as I found I was discarding too many half bottles of opened wine. It's good enough plonk as far as I am concerned.

Teaandtoday5

Shard

Yes, a pretty deplorable state of affairs. This wouldn't have happened a decade ago.

bats

I've looked at them but they all seem to bePinot Grigio or Sauvignon blanc and I'm not keen on those acidy throat ripping ones. Which would you recommend?

I've got some wine on order at the wine making place but that won't be cooked for another 5 weeks.