Wine 411!!?!
Wine 411!!?
just started getting into wine... can anyone be so kind enough as to give me a low down or information as to what to look for??? what wine is considered ... I guess.. the "best" o most "popular" wine? I do pref. reds... and sweet. Thanks a bunch!
Answers:
Many ways to learn about wine. The idea is that the more you try, the better you will be:
* Wine tasting is a great way to have someone guide you, both in person and sometimes in writing, on what wine is like. You can find wine tasting classes at local grocery stores, restaurants, or even schools. This is the best way to learn pronounciation as well, since most of the wine educators are well versed in the language of wine.
* Wine Bars are great also. If you live in a large city, there are usually at least a few wine bars. These are stores that has tasting tables for you to sit there and drink wine. They usually have a good selection of wine by the glass, as well as tasting menu - they will give you small glasses of, say, 3-4 wines for $8-15. That is definitely the way to go. Another thing I love about wine bars is that most of the people there are wine lovers who do not mind sharing their experience and, sometimes, their wines. So, you can learn something from other customers and possibly forming new friendship.
* Grocery stores usually have a "wine expert" on site to help. They can range from wine stockboy to seasoned wine trader in the grocery business. I had found some wonderful advices from them, but then there are some very clueless ones. Ask anyway - you never know what you are going to get. Grocery stores wines tend to be cheaper. Just remember, the better wines are either on the eye level or on top shelf. The cheaper and "worse" wines are at the bottom shelves. Some larger grocers have big selection, but most of the chained stores have limited number of mostly everyday wines.
* Wine store can be very intimidating for beginners, but the salespeople working there are usually knowledgeable and have enthusiasm on what they are doing. They can get very good advices, as well as making good recommendation once they get to know you. I have wine merchants who like my taste that I feel totally comfortable buying wines that I never had tried from them, just because they recommended the wine. However, you tend to pay higher price for the better quality of wines. Selection is also greater at wine stores. Another wonderful thing about learning in wine store is that sometimes there is a wine rep selling new wines and giving out free tastings.
* Books are the best non-drinking way to learn about wine. Wine (or Red Wine or White Wine) for Dummies, Idiot Guide to Wines, Wine Bible are good reads. If you are interested after going through one or two of those books, then move on to Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate. Just be careful about the rating there - rating is subjective to personal taste and, sometimes, financial incentives (ie bigger advertisement -> better rating?) You can also sign up for online version of such site like winespectator.com or erobertparker.com.
* Restaurants varies in its helpfulness. Top of the line restaurants tend to want to sale their more pricey wines, but they are very knowledgeable. Cheaper restaurants usually give you crappy house wines (like Olive Garden). So, be careful at restaurants. Wine by the glass is the way to go, but they are usually fewer number and limited selection. However, I would not order an entire bottle of wine if I were a beginner, unless I knew what I was doing. There are plenty of wines in half bottles (375 ml), which will give you about 2-3 glasses. Also remember that most of the restaurant mark up the wine by at least 100% (so a bottle costing $30 at liquor store may end up costing $60 at a restaurant).
As for what wines to try, it is up to your taste. What I found is that many people start out with white wines, such as Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. After they are used to drinking alcoholic beverage, then some of them move onto red wines. There is no right or wrong - it depends on your preference, your experience, and your taste. You will find that, if you appreciate wine, you will go through phases of your life and changing your preference. I used to be a strict Cab/Merlot drinker, now I am more into Petit Syrah and Syrah and enjoy my Pinot Noir - which I once called "water down Merlot".
Don't be shy and feel embarrassed. Wine has a very steep learning curve. I have been drinking for years and still found a lot of stuff I don't know about - about drinking wine, making wine, tasting wine, and general wine history. If you don't know, find someone who loves wine and ask. Any one with enthusiasm and love for wine will be more than glad to share their experience, like the Yahoo Answers here.
Also, don't try to save money with cheap wines. Cheap wines don't do justice on representing what a truely good wine is like. Start with wine in $15-25 range and move on if you find it interesting. Life is too short to drink cheap wines.
As for wine to try, I usually recommend beginners to try White wine. My experience is that people usually move through the white wine stage initially. The white wines I like to recommend are the sweeter types - midly sweet wine such as Sauvignon Blanc (Chateau St. Michelle $15, Caymus Conundrum $25, Duckhorn $20) or Viognair; medium sweet white like Riesling (Bonny Doon's Pacific Rim Riesling $12, Gunderlock $20, Leitz $15); or very sweet white such as Gewertztraminer (Sutter Home $8).
If you want to try red, I would recommend Zinfandel first. Zinfandel is a bit sweet and fairly high in alcohol content, but it does not have the tannin bite like Cabernet. Try the mid priced Zinfandel such as Ridge (Three Valleys $18, York Creek $25), Rosenblum (Cuvee $10, various other vineyard $15-30), or Folie A Deux ($15). If you want something lighter but with as much fruit, try Pinot Noir such as Benton Lane ($15), Suduri ($20), or Robert Mondavi ($25). I would wait on Merlot or Cabernet until you are more used to the tannin in the red wine.
Good luck and have fun.