I need a few wine recommendations, please.?!
I need a few wine recommendations, please.?
I am allergic to wine so I have never been able to develop a sense of what is 'good' or 'bad'. I've never tasted it, frankly. I would like to bring a bottle of wine to a host as a gift. I would like a couple of your recommendations of $100-$200 red wines that are known to be enjoyed by a broad audience. Thank you.
Answers:
A word of warning about wines in that price range. Many wines that are in that range are not quite ready to drink upon release and may need to either be cellared for a few years or decanted for a couple of hours before serving.
You may wish to bring a $100-200 wine as a gift for the host to be enjoyed later, and a much more affordable and approachable wine for the rest of the people at the event to enjoy right away.
Here are a few suggestions:
Wines that are drinking really well now:
-Dona Paula Malbec 2005: Great value and wide appeal in this medium bodied red from Argentina, cost should be under $20.
-Columbia Crest Grand Estates Merlot 2003 from Washington. Under $20 and another great value.
-Domaine Serene Yamhill Cuvee Pinot Noir 2002 through 2004 are all excellent, and at the $50-60 price range is affordable. Should be very nice straight out of bottle.
For laying down in the cellar:
-Penfolds RWT Shiraz 2003 from Australia. Cost $130. Needs a couple of years, but has very wide appeal.
-Solaia 2001 or 2003 (they did not make a 2002) from Tuscany. I tasted both last night and both are amazing. They do need some time in the cellar, but if you really wanted to serve the 2001 now, it's actually drinking well. Cost is around $150 a bottle and both 2001 and 2003 should be available.
-Chateau Cos d'Estournel 2003 from Bordeaux. This was one of the star wines from the 2003 vintage. Will cost roughly $300 but will impress the host. For a cheaper alternative, the Chateau Calon Segur from the same commune in Bordeaux is about half the cost, and also one of the top wines from the vintage.
Just a few suggestions. All should have wide appeal.
Cheers!
I personally love Blackberry Merlot. It's sweeter than most red wines. But if they like dry red wines, Australian Shiraz is the way to go.
Also, red wine is best served with dark chocolate! Maybe you could buy some truffles or something to go with them?
My mom says that you do not need to pay that much for wine. I asked her if she wanted to answer but seeing as she does not like red wine, she can't answer for you.
If you have them, go to a weel known wine store and ask what they recommend.
Lockwood Red is wonderful!
Hmmm. Not meaning to sound antagonistic but if you have never tasted it how the hell do you know you are allergic???
Anyway, there are no $ 100 - $ 200 (you are referring to US dollars or Canadian or Hong Kong or Australian?) wines "...that are known to be enjoyed by a broad audience."
95% of wine drinkers have never and will never buy anything in that price range. If you do pay that for your gift the host is likely to think you are pandering or just trying to impress.
Best suggestion: Buy a good bottle of Oporto $ 25-$30 or maybe a Madeira ($ 15-$20).
It seems strange to me that someone who's never even tasted wine would bring a $100 or $200 bottle of wine as a gift to the host of a party.
Unless of course you meant to say $10-$20. If that was the case, I could give you a ton of recommendations.
But... if you really need to spend that much on one bottle, go to the best wine shop in your area and talk to their salespeople. They'll be more than happy to point you to a really good $100 bottle. And they'll make sure you get a good one, because they want people who buy $100 bottles to come back.
Now, if it were me, I'd buy a less expensive bottle ($30 to $50) and use the rest of the money for something else (a really expensive treat of some kind, maybe -- something you yourself actually like, enjoy, and would recommend to others).