Wine Questions

[NightrainSrt4]

The fiance and I have started getting some wines to go with dinner and such, but out of the various ones we have tried we both prefer the more fruity, and generally, red wines.

Are there any affordable wines that are more fruity (rather than just straight up grape flavors), a bit heavier, and a bit carbonated (she seems to really like the ones that have a little bit of carbonation over the flatter ones)?

We've had two bottles of House Jam (HJ) red, and so far it tops the ones we've had. This is probably blasphemy to you guys who are really into wine, but us just getting into it, this is what we both seem to prefer.

Any ideas? <$20 please.

[Zephik]

This is going a bit off topic, but if you haven't yet checked out these shows on Hulu, I recommend them. Especially the one with John Cleese as it's basically an intro to Wine and has some fairly useful information.

http://www.hulu.com/wine-for-the-confused

http://www.hulu.com/the-thunder-show

My aunt has this great Blackberry/Huckleberry wine. It's sweet and not too wine-ish tasting and not bitter at all. I'll have to ask her who its made by and where it can be found sometime.

[Drum Thumper]

Personally, I'm fond of Little Penguin Cab-Sauv (http://www.thelittlepenguin.com/wines/cabernetsauvignon). It's a great meaty red that goes great with, well, red meats. And Venison. And Pork. And...well, you get the idea, I like the wine.

As for the bubblies, I'll leave that to the others. If I want something carbonated, I'll have a beer.

[Oneslowz28]

When it comes to wine I mainly drink white wines. Most often Kendal Jackson Chardonnay . It runs around $13-15 a bottle depending on where you buy it. It has a wonderful taste and goes well with almost any meal. Its also good in a mimosa.

As for red wines I like Seven Oaks Cab Sauv. Its very rich and has a nice fruity taste. Around here I can only get it at one store and they are usually short on stock with it. It runs about $13 a bottle.

Barefoot Merlot is another red I enjoy. It is cheap enough to get tipsy on with a few friends and has a nice flavor. It usually runs me about $6 a bottle. Barefoot's Piniot Noir is pretty good too.

I always have a bottle or 3 of Kendal Jackson Chardonnay in the rack and there is usually a bottle of Seven Oaks in there too as I buy it when the store has it.

[msmrx57]

For a nice fruity white with a little natural carbonation my wife and I like Umberto Fiore Muscato d'Asti. We've tried a couple of different brands, but Umberto Fiore just seems to be a little... for lack of better way to describe it cleaner tasting. Keep in mind neither of us are big wine drinkers. Just my 2 cents.

[simon275]

Wine depends on what you are eating. Get a wine wheel so you can match a wine to your food. Then go to you local wine store and ask for a reccomendation around your price point. Then develop a taste for what you like.

http://www.winewheel.co.uk

[OvRiDe]

I have been enjoying YellowTail Merlot and the Merlot-Chardonnay mix. A friend of mine just recently suggested I try their Shiraz. Its not too bad priced. 9 bucks a bottle or so, and 11-12 for their reserve vintages.

[Luke122]

I get plenty of whine from my 2 year old.

[NightrainSrt4]

Thanks guys! Seems like I've got lots of different recommendations. I don't really care for the carbonation. She does. But, the wines that had it didn't have that really dry/light feeling/taste in your mouth, which is the biggest reason she's been going for them I think.

I'll definitely have to pick up a bottle of the Little Penguin, if only because she is a penguin freak and will love the bottle either way. =).

Bit of a tangent, but similar enough that another thread might be looked down upon:

What are some good, inexpensive (if they even exist) sipping brandy/cognacs? My cousin's Hennessy Black smelled delicious (empty bottle). The guy at the liquor store, who seemed pretty knowledgeable about my other questions, said any of the cheaper brandy's are horrible for sipping (like E&J, etc) and would be like paint thinner in your mouth and were much better for cooking than sipping.

Any opinions/recommendations?

[artoodeeto]

My girlfriend and I are also big red wine fans, and we've found that (for cheapie bottles) we really like Pepperwood. It's made by Sebastiani, and here in CA the bottles of merlot, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon are all under $10. No carbonation, I've never tried a red that had any, but they're not too complex and in my opinion are great for those new to wine. The merlot especially tends to be fairly fruity.
For more complex, expensive wines, I highly recommend Chateau St. Jean. It's a Napa Valley winery, I've been there a few times (my parents are members :D) and their estate bottled wines are excellent. The last time I was there we got to taste a reserve wine that was almost $100 a bottle...I bought one. Couldn't help it, it was amazing. Normally their wines start around $25 a bottle. They also have much cheaper "California" wines. The grapes for these come from all over California, as opposed to the estate bottled, which are grown, juiced, and aged on their Napa Valley estate.
A couple other cheap ones we like are Woodbridge (made by Mondavi) and Smoking Loon. Not paying attention to cost, we also like Andretti, Adobe Road, Field Stone (same price range as Chateau St. Jean), Clos Pegase, and Murphy Goode....there's a lot out there :) best thing to do is have fun, and if you don't like one as much...use it for spaghetti or lasagne sauce :P

[Oneslowz28]

+1 on the Woodbridge brand. Anything that Mondavi makes is gold IMO. Used to drink a lot of their stuff with one of my Ex's. (her father was part of the Mondavi wine cub or something and would get cases in the mail every few months.