Million Post Quest - Had a good wine lately?

gatorev12

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Scout's Honor is a really good Napa blend that's in the $35 range but is consistently excellent and a great value given that neighboring estates sell for 4x that much.

If you're looking for an under the radar wine to try for cheap ($10 or less), go with a feteasca negra from Romania. They have them at Total Wine (Recas is the brand name) and bottles go from $6-10 (one is blue, the other red--both are excellent tasting and can't beat the value). I've brought them to various wine tastings with friends and it's been consistently voted as one of the favorites, despite being the cheapest bottles there.
 

Gator By Marriage

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1) This thread needed a bump
2) Had a great wine tonight I wanted share.

Mrs. G flew down to the TB area last week to spend some time with the folks with me and the rest of the crew driving down Thursday. She forgot to tell me Easter dinner was lamb, so instead of bringing a Cal cab or Bordeaux from the cellar, I had to run out and find something. For those of you in the Tampa area, I can recommend no better wine store than B-21 in Tarpon Springs. The selection and prices are as competitive as any wine store I’ve been to. (Great selection of whiskeys too, Scotch, Irish, and American.). In any event, I needed a red wine that I knew would fit everyone’s taste and ended up buying a Frescobaldi Chianti Rufina Reserva. It was outstanding. Nothing like the “dago reds” we’ve all had in cheap Italian restaurants. Was extremely enjoyable with a very non-Italian Easter dinner. If anyone’s interested here’s a picture of the label. At B-21, it was around $18. And yes we had a couple of bottles of the Domaine Chandon first!

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gatorev12

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B21 will deliver anywhere in FL btw. And they even give the option of delivering the wine chilled.

That's where I get Scout's Honor since they don't have it at Total Wine; and also grab a few other off the wall ones you can't find elsewhere.

Always find that Greek wines pair really well with lamb dishes--there's a Merlot and Greek grape blend that I've used before and goes really well. Will find the name and post here.

Presently opened the Game of Thrones red blend for the show (it was a Christmas gift and watching it with the guy who gave it to me); but it's actually a good Paso Robles red blend.
 

T REX

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B21...wow. Been there a few times but it's a hike from Ballast Pt. It is a cool spot though.
 

gatorev12

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I checked the cellar and must have drank it already; but it was a merlot and Agiorgitiko blend from Nemea. Got it at the Intl Food Market in Orlando (good place for foreign stuff btw).
 

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Had a couple of Pinots this week I thought I’d share. Both were in the $15-20 range and are available at Total Wine in Georgia (Alpharetta), so hopefully you can find them in their other stores. The first one is one I’ve enjoyed numerous times after first having it in a great little Italian place in Savannah with a pork-belly risotto. It is an Oregon PN called Elouan. Darker than most PNs, but very smooth. Went very well with some stuffed bell peppers Mrs. G prepared. The second one was a wine I was totally unfamiliar with that a salesperson convinced me to try. It’s also an Oregon PN, and it is a Samuel Robert Winery Family Reserve. It was outstanding and I will be buying more. Here’s pictures of the labels for those of you who are better with visuals. Non apetit!

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Theologator

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Had a couple of Pinots this week I thought I’d share. Both were in the $15-20 range and are available at Total Wine in Georgia (Alpharetta), so hopefully you can find them in their other stores. The first one is one I’ve enjoyed numerous times after first having it in a great little Italian place in Savannah with a pork-belly risotto. It is an Oregon PN called Elouan. Darker than most PNs, but very smooth. Went very well with some stuffed bell peppers Mrs. G prepared. The second one was a wine I was totally unfamiliar with that a salesperson convinced me to try. It’s also an Oregon PN, and it is a Samuel Robert Winery Family Reserve. It was outstanding and I will be buying more. Here’s pictures of the labels for those of you who are better with visuals. Non apetit!

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Total Wine carries Olema. Their Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are exceptional in that $15-$20. The PN is very smooth and has a nice berry finish. I generally choose a Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc over Chardonnay, but Olema’s has a very crisp finish. Both compare favorably with wines double their price or more.

Olema’s Cabernet Sauvignon is also really good but edges up toward $25. My go-to CabSav is Mettler, which is more in the $20 range. Full bodied and the tannins balanced nicely, also a clean finish.
 

T REX

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We tried Orin Swift Abstract over the weekend. Not bad and around the $30-35 price point in the store. Fantastic blend.
 

T REX

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Trying to get back into wine...had a bottle of Justin Cab tonight. 20 bucks. Not bad at all. Fruity on the front. A little young. Coulda used another yr or two in the bottle but we enjoyed it. Has anyone tried Daou?
 

Gator By Marriage

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Trying to get back into wine...had a bottle of Justin Cab tonight. 20 bucks. Not bad at all. Fruity on the front. A little young. Coulda used another yr or two in the bottle but we enjoyed it. Has anyone tried Daou?
Is that a cab as well? I’m not familiar with it. For my taste, finding a cab that is both tasty and not in need of a little time is tricky. Mrs. G is even worse.
 

T REX

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Is that a cab as well? I’m not familiar with it. For my taste, finding a cab that is both tasty and not in need of a little time is tricky. Mrs. G is even worse.
Daou is a cab too. Haven't tried it but it keeps popping up on best wines under $30. I guess that's next.
 

gatorev12

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Is that a cab as well? I’m not familiar with it. For my taste, finding a cab that is both tasty and not in need of a little time is tricky. Mrs. G is even worse.

Do you guys chill it prior to opening? My lady hates it when I insist on it (she's usually more impatient), but loves the results when we do.
 

Gator By Marriage

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Do you guys chill it prior to opening? My lady hates it when I insist on it (she's usually more impatient), but loves the results when we do.
I may have mentioned this before, but I am a firm believer in trusting your own taste. (If you are familiar with who Robert Parker is, you may appreciate that this opinion of mine came out of a chance conversation the two of us once had.) Having said that, I have to point out that chilled red wine will mask much of the flavor. It’s the nature of how the wine is made. To each his (or her) own.
 

T REX

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Yes. Slightly chilled depending on varietal.
 

JDW

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Sweet Walter Red...it’s a New York sweet Red...although I’m a moscato fan (I drink Barefoot which is 10$ a bottle)I enjoy local blueberry and muscadine wines as well...Lake Ridge winery has a great sweet red that isn’t too dry
 

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Figured I’d give this a bump with football season coming to an end.
Last night Mrs. G made a de-boned leg of lamb with a Dijon mustard sauce. I’m not usually a big leg of lamb fan, but it was excellent. As she made a pretty involved dish, I figured I had better provide a good wine, so I went deep in the cellar for this:
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It was outstanding. Despite being 25 years old, it was no where near the end of its life span. For those not familiar with Bordeaux’s, the wines from St. Estephe tend to be fairly tannic (due to the higher proportion of Cab) and long-lived. And this one was no exception. 1995 was a great vintage across Bordeaux and one of the last where a case of a wine like this wasn’t crazy expensive. I seriously doubt I’ll ever buy much from there again, but last night was damn glad I bought this one. This particular producer is not one of the top tier, but nowadays a bottle of their wine from a good vintage is over $100. Crazy.
 

-THE DUDE-

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Stumbled upon this at a local grocery store and decided to give it a try and was instantly one of my favorite wines...and under $20 too. A great find
 

Gator By Marriage

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I’m tired of talking about Covid-19, etc so here’s some wine talk. I’ve had three different reds over the last few days. All good, but all very different. So, here goes:
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This is a nice Barbera available at Total Wine. Very fruity with low tannins and will go with most dishes from chicken to steak to pizza. Can’t remember specifically, but think it was around $15. Maybe less. Also good to just sit and sip.
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For those who have read my posts, you know I am a sucker for good Pinot Noir. The very best PNs are a mind blowing experience; sadly they are also a wallet busting experience. As a result, I am perpetually on the hunt for reasonably priced PNs. This one won’t make you forget top tier Burgundy’s, but for the price was a great find. Mrs G roasted some chicken thighs with fingerling potatoes and asparagus and this was a nice accompaniment. Also around $15 @ Total wine. For those not familiar with Argentine wines, trust me. They have some winners.
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And last but not least....we officially launched grilling season at Chez GBM tonight and had this with mixed grill (photo below; also added some angel hair with pesto) and so I went a little more pricy than usual. This is about $25-35, but can’t remember if I bought it at Total Wine or B-21 in Tarpon Springs. In any event it’s not hard to find and is a great Rhône Syrah. Comparable to a good Hermitage or Chateau nuf du Pape at a fraction of the price. Here’s what it accompanied:
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