Wine Thread
 

Thought it might be fun to mention wines FTers are enjoying at restaurants lately, at all price levels.

Here's a start - 2002 Duckhorn Merlot ($$$) at a Chicago steakhouse. Took 45 mins to open and was delicious.

Just had Kaiken cab from Argentina past Friday. Our table ordered about 6-7 bottles at Dylan Prime NYC (group of 10). It pairs great with steak, and it's a great restaurant by the way. A little noisy but very good food.

A non-oaked Chardonnay...
 

Uncorked...or shall I say "unscrewed" a Plumpjack Chardonnay ($45 retail - so on the pricey side) which was very nice - not oaked like so many chard's...give this one a try, white lovers, as it is a great food wine.

Also had a 2002 Fournier Pouilly Fume, which can be bought for less than $20. A very solid Loire white, crisp and great with food, and should be under $45 at most restaurants.

Wines
 

2001 Hartford Zinfandel....oh, yeah...

Spent 120 Euros on a bottle of Puligny-Montrachet at Taillevent this past summer.... fantastic bottle!!

Not at a restaurant, but... Last night was Germany night at wine class (working on the WSET Advanced Certificate, am sure I won't pass).

One of the wines we tasted was the Heyl zu Herrnsheim "Baron Heyl" Niersteiner Riesling Spatlese (2004). Man, that was good, although not for those who dislike a little sugar (did have plenty of acidity to balance it out, though). If I took my notes right, it retails for about $26. And I love that many of the German Rieslings are lower alcohol, so you can drink more.... :D

Right you are on the alcohol - can 30-60% less than a CA Cab!

And as you know German and Alsatian wines are so food friendly - I often bring a gewurtz or riesling to a Chinese rest to have with the kung pao (in NYC especially instead of that awful all u can drink wine!).

Last night was a '99 Clos du Val Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon... mmmmmmmm... :)

Wine
 

What about box wine. Never tried it, but have heard a few good things,

Jay

Box wine is awful stuff, and not even close to anything in this thread.

I have heard of some good box wines. $8-$10 a box for 35-40 glasses. Sounds good, but am skeptical.

While not generally served in restaurants, I beg to differ.

Everything has its place. No direct offense, but that statement is indicative of an attitude that's prevailed and it's made wine inaccessible to more people. It has made them afraid to ask questions to learn more and to "move up" to other types, so to speak. You still get that attitude in many wine stores today.

For example, Target's Wine Cube... the Chard and the Cab-Shiraz blend, make fine sipping wines for large gatherings, such as Summer party BBQs. They have done a fine job on the packaging too. We have had many positive comments on them at summer patio parties.

Having one in the pantry also means that one has a ready supply to use in their favorite dish. ^

I think they were joking............................................ ................................

In the US most box wines are truly dreadful. In other countries there are some excellent box wines. The closest is in Canada, for example Ontario has some great red box wines. Try Peller Estates French Cross (it would go for 5x the price in the US and is a great example of the combination of vinification technique and new hybrid grape varieties).

For "regular" wine, my current favourite for price/performance is Ch. Potensac (owned by Leoville-las Cases). Drinkable young (ie. at 5 years) but great at 20 (if you can cellar it that long).

The Auslese is even better but requires 10 years of aging and probably won't peak for another 20 years. For drinking today the Spatlese is a much better choice despite being the lesser wine.