At a reasonable price. Looking to try a little. I've never really been into to wine so I know next to nothing about it. Kind of prefer it on the dryer side.

I was going through some old wedding photos, and pictured was a toast with a Spanish sparkling wine that was just so good. Kind got me thinking.

What do you consider reasonable? Also, red or white?

Red? White? Any that you've tried that you like to narrow it down? Huge kettle of fish here.

For easily available and relatively inexpensive ($20ish) I'm a fan of the Coppola Claret, Saldo (a zinfandel blend), and Cavaliere d Oro Chianti. None of those are world class, but they are good and available at my local grocery. Layer Cake also has several good reds in that price range.

I like Malbecs, Chianti, some Cabernets (especially from Paso Robles for some reason), and Zins. I can take or leave Merlot and do not enjoy Pinot Noir. I like some Spanish Rojas that I've had, but I don't know enough about them to recommend anything. I lean towards drier and more tannic wines. I can't really help you with white wine. I'll drink them, but they aren't really my thing.

Go to Costco--they have good buyers. They have many wines at affordable prices. I suggest you buy 2-3 reds and 2-3 whites and see what you like.

I'll try red and white. As far as the dry to sweet scale I like them in the middle. Styles I haven't tried enough to make any choices. I remember a friend of mine always served wonderful German white wines. But, their taste in Brandy left much to be desired.

Drink what you like, don't get caught up on stereotypes and labels. Like beer and spirits, drinking wine takes some time to learn what's out there and develop a palette and preference.

Keep in mind most wines are sold as blends. 2-3 grape types are blended together to achieve the flavor profile the wine maker is striving for, the dominant grape type will be the one on the label. Single varietal wines do get sold, that wine maker is pretty confident that those grapes can achieve a drinkable vintage at some point in the aging process, these are the wines that garner the big headlines for how much they can sell for.

Costco does a very good job of assorting thier wines to include thier own house brand, Kirkland. Just keep in-mind not all Costco's are the same, some are stronger in their alcohol section, some have more food variety, others have a better home goods section. FYI- Costco is the largest importer of French wines into the US
Wines priced over $25-30 you should taste some complexity, doesn't mean you won't get that in lower-priced ones, just at that price-point some distinct character should be obvious.

Here's the most common wine types you'll find in most American stores.
White
Chardonnay- full bodied white, fruit-citrus notes that give impression of a buttery texture.
Savignon Blanc- light-medium bodied, crisp clean flavors, good all-purpose white
Pinot Gris- light bodied, very dry, crisp, very popular in hot weather areas.
Riesling- light white, not as dry as others, generally sweeter than most whites.

Red
Cabernet- big red, lots of tannins, higher alcohol levels usually paired with beef, lamb, smoked meats, generally strong flavored dishes. This is the variety that gets all the big dollar
Pinot Noir- light-med bodied red, good all-purpose red wine, drier than most, low tannins
Merlot- similar to Cabernet jus fruitier, high tannins with heavy oak flavors
Zinfandel- med-full bodied red, lower acidity than cabernet, certain varietals/blends have more spice notes

As I've gotten older, I've moved off of drinking Cabernet's and preferred Pinot's. Don't get scarred-off trying a Rose, the older generation of Rose was a sweeter wine that was viewed as a wine for a beginner's pallet. Today's Rose varieties are much closer to SavBlancs, drier and much more crisp, good for hot weather or, lighter drinking.

Go to someplace like Total Wine and More that posts the review cards on the shelves. Pick a “ninety something” rated wine in your price range that sounds like it might agree with what you know you like.

Get several similar and narrow it down to the one of the several you liked best.

Also know, it doesn’t have to be a big mystery. Even in Europe there are areas that drink primarily “table wines” except for special occasions. Some small towns still have “wine shops” where you take in your own container and they fill it up with either white or red. Inexpensive drinkable daily wine.

I'm a sucker for good red wine that isn't insane price wise.

Masi campofiorin
Alto Moncayo garnacha/grenache
Gascon special reserve Malbec
Less reasonable end price wise: Serego Alighieri

quote:

Originally posted by MelissaDallas:
Go to someplace like Total Wine and More that posts the review cards on the shelves. Pick a “ninety something” rated wine in your price range that sounds like it might agree with what you know you like.

I am visiting a Total Wine on Saturday.

My wife is the wine drinker in our family. Right now her favorite Merlot is Robert Mondavi. It's a decent wine and reasonably priced.

quote:

Originally posted by goose5:

quote:

Originally posted by MelissaDallas:
Go to someplace like Total Wine and More that posts the review cards on the shelves. Pick a “ninety something” rated wine in your price range that sounds like it might agree with what you know you like.

I am visiting a Total Wine on Saturday.

That's a dangerous place...

I've never been over in the wine section. I'm looking forward to these rating cards described by MelissaDallas.

Around here, most grocery and liquor stores have the wine rating "scores" posted and so does Costco. As Melissa posted, pick some that scores 90 or higher.

If you want to read a little, several years ago a Sigforum thread turned me onto the website Reverse Wine Snob. Their motto is "where wine doesn't have to be expensive to be good!" They give insight on the best inexpensive wine by store (e.g. Trader Joe's, Aldi, Costco, etc) and by variety (e.g. pinot noir).

Find a good wine store and give them your price range. And I don't just mean a liquor store. Total Wine could be good depending on who works there. The little rating cards will only go so far. I don't really remember seeing rating cards below 90... lol. But I suggest talking to the people amd describing what you're interested in.

I'm not really a wine guy but I can tell the difference in the cheap stuff and a $40 bottle. I prefer bordeaux, especially right bank. They ate typically merlot/cab franc based and fruitier and easier drinking vs the left bank which are more acidic due to the cab sauv base. I also like a good oaked, buttery chardonnay. I like buying good bottles for fancy dinners and if I find one I really like, I go ahead and buy a few bottles.

quote:

Originally posted by goose5:

quote:

Originally posted by MelissaDallas:
Go to someplace like Total Wine and More that posts the review cards on the shelves. Pick a “ninety something” rated wine in your price range that sounds like it might agree with what you know you like.

I am visiting a Total Wine on Saturday.

Prepare to be overwhelmed. The best seller tags are usually good choices per my wife.

I like moscato. But its on the sweeter side.

the spanish sparking was likely a Cava, try Freixenet,, it is the most popular,

however, there are much better, Cava's, as well as Prosecco's and of course, the real thing, Champagne,

hit up a good wine shop, and ask around

The only thing I remember about the Spanish sparkling is that it came in an dark black bottle that you couldn't see through. It couldn't have been expensive if I were buying it back in the day, but it made an impression.

Edit to add. Upon a google search the Freixenet has to be the wine in question. I remember that stuff being pretty good for my low brow tastes.

I know the name is corny but you might try a Julius Kayser Liebfraumilch Glockenspiel if you were enjoying a white German wine in the past. It is about in the middle of sweetness for a Reisling type and will give you a starting point to go from without being overly expensive if you don't like it for some reason. At least you can decide if sweeter or drier is your choice. It was very popular in the 1970's and many got their first taste of white German wines from that brand. Not as sweet as Blue Nun so there is that. My wife and her pals liked both of those but I personally found them jut a little too sweet for my palate. At least you will have a reference point that any decent store can guide you from. And it just might be what you prefer.

I am very big into wine, with 1,000 bottles in my "cellar", which means multiple wine coolers. I drink a glass or two with dinner almost every night.

The advice of going to Total Wine is good. If you can find a local independent wine shop, even better. Find someone knowledgable and ask questions and learn. The rating cards will only take you so far. The rating cards have almost become marketing material, as any winery can find a critic to give them a 90 rating.

The Costco recommendations are good. Kirkland brands makes some really, really good wine at really, really good prices. Some of their Kirkland brands start around $6.99 and usually don't come in above $19.99. The Brunello at $19.99 is amazing. Their Champagne at $19.99 is quite good. As a "wine snob", I regularly drink Kirkland wine.

But as you start this wine journey, the most important thing is to keep track of what you drink and whether or not you like it. Whether you do this in a small notepad, or take pics of labels with your phone and use the note feature on your phone, or use an app like CellarTracker. If you go somewhere and buy a half dozen bottles, drink them all, but then cannot recall which you liked best, then you are back to square one.

Good luck this weekend and enjoy.