And where is the wine?

Berwick

There are about 100000000000000000000000000000000000000 threads about beer here.

But hardly a thread about wine.

Can we also talk about wine?

I would like to see a thread about wine in general, where one can talk about all kinds of wine. And for some length of time.

What I see here are all too often threads of this type:

"My uncle hast given me a bottle of wine: Can I drink it?"

Then is answer is either "Yes" or "No" or "Perhaps", and the case is closed.

And also the thread .....

---

Mr Magnolia

How very random.

It's a discussion forum posters will discuss what they want.

Wine_Guy

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

How very random.

Agreed,
Very random indeed.
You are kind of asking someone else to create a topic that you can then join into.
You could start your own thread...

Mr Magnolia

I would love to see more discussion of wine on the forum but it can't be forced, just encouraged.

What about a wine club similar to the Cooking Club in Cooking & Recipes?

Every week posters could take it in turns to suggest a particular bottle of wine to try and posters could give it a go and voice their opinions on each week's thread. It could be interesting. The wines chosen each week would need to be easily accessible and widely available though.

Berwick

Wine_Guy wrote: »

You are kind of asking someone else to create a topic that you can then join into

No, I don't.

You could start your own thread...

Which I did.

Berwick

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

I would love to see more discussion of wine on the forum but it can't be forced, just encouraged.

I know.

And I don't think of forcing, but of encouraging.

Would you encourage it, too?

You said: "I would love to see more discussion of wine".

So how about some encouraging?

grenache

i put up a thread of wines i sampled in the last few months a couple of weeks back, i'll be adding to this in the coming week once i get the tasting notes sorted

MattKane

Mr Magnolia wrote: »

Every week posters could take it in turns to suggest a particular bottle of wine to try and posters could give it a go and voice their opinions on each week's thread. It could be interesting.

Sounds like fun. I agree with Berwick too. And if anything there's more to argue and fight about over wine than there is over other drinks because of the diversity and the subjectivity. In true boards.ie fashion, there's nothing better than comparing notes and having a good old debate

enda1

Right, so here's my wine of the week.

House: Domain des Remezieres
Wine: Cuvee Particuliere
Appelation: Crozes-Hermitage
Vintage: ~2005 (from 2000 to 2007 should be good now)
Colour: Red
Grape(s): 100% Syrah
Serving Temperature: 16 degrees
Serving Time: Open about 1-2 hours
Serving Style: Decant
Serve With: Red or White Meat

Lovely wine if can be found in Ireland. We bought it in the village of Tain by the appelation, but I've see it in wine shops too in Dublin I think.

I meant to take tasting notes because I am ridicuously bad at remembering more than my enjoyment from a wine.

From my limited memory we drank this as described above, decanted for about and hour, then drank for an hour with food (I think steak).

Wine begins with deep fruit (blackcurrant) and ends more earthy with slight animal flavours.

Should be able to get for about €14 I'd say. Worth every penny!

http://www.domaineremizieres.com/wine/index.html

Berwick

Wine: Cuvee Particuliere

I am always interested in the grape varietes. Do you know what kind of grapes are in there?

---

Sorry, I just see: Its is 100% Syrah.

But why is it called a cuvée, then?

enda1

Berwick wrote: »

I am always interested in the grape varietes. Do you know what kind of grapes are in there?

As with all Crozes-Hermitage the main grape is Syrah, in this case 100% so.

I included it but in typical French fashion rather down the list!

enda1

Berwick wrote: »

I am always interested in the grape varietes. Do you know what kind of grapes are in there?

---

Sorry, I just see: Its is 100% Syrah.

But why is it called a cuvée, then?

Just their way of classifying their different wines from theis Crozes land.

In the Cotes du Rhone, there is not the Burgundy style Grand Cru, Premier Cru etc. so each maker can kinda call the wines from the appelation what they like.

Marketing.

enda1

I just popped off an email there to ask them about Irish importers/stockists, so hopefully can find out later and I'll add it up here if/when they respond.

the beer revolu

Tesco have a wine sale at the moment.

Had a wine last night that we liked (twas a present) and saw it in Tesco today discounted by €10.99! I bought 6!:D

Reserve Saint Clair 2007
Puissegun Saint Emillion.

now €9!

Wouldn't be worth €20 but is a steal at €9!

Pretty light and easy drinking for a Bordeaux and seems to be drinking well now - I suspect it won't age terribly well.

Maybe not a great example of a Bordeaux but a fine everyday wine for €9

Berwick

enda1 wrote: »

Just their way of classifying their different wines from theis Crozes land.

Well, a cuvée usually is a mixture of different grape varieties.

Then this one is a mixture of Syrah and Syrah.

enda1

Berwick wrote: »

Well, a cuvée usually is a mixture of different grape varieties.

Then this one is a mixture of Syrah and Syrah.

Well not really.
Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't.

When used in USA maybe yes, but not necessarily in France.
It just an old word relating to the fermentation tanks.

Anyways, I got a list of importers for the wine in Ireland:

Wines Direct
49 Lough Sheever
Corporate Park
Mullingar
Tel 00353.449340634
Fax 00353 449340015
E mail : [email protected]

McAlindon Wines
Direct Wine Shipments
5-7 Corporation Square
BELFAST BT1 3AJ
Tel (0)28 90508008
Fax : (0)28 90508002
E-mail : [email protected]


Mc Cambridge's
Wholesale LTD.
Brisbane House
Ballybane Ind.Est
Galway
Tel 091-750134
Fax 091-751100
E-mail [email protected]


I will contact them to find stockists next - the hunt continues.

Berwick

My favourites are these:

White wines: Riesling and Traminer. It need not be a Gewürztraminer.

Red wines: Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder in German), Merlot, Pinotage, and especially Carmenère.

Wine_Guy

Berwick wrote: »

Well, a cuvée usually is a mixture of different grape varieties.

Then this one is a mixture of Syrah and Syrah.

Cuvee is the french term for VAT or tank, this particular phrase states its from a paticular tank or batch. probably used on this wine to raise the quality status specifying tank rather than vineyard

Cuvee does not mean a blend but can be used to specify a blend

the beer revolu

MattKane wrote: »

Sounds like fun. I agree with Berwick too. And if anything there's more to argue and fight about over wine than there is over other drinks because of the diversity and the subjectivity. In true boards.ie fashion, there's nothing better than comparing notes and having a good old debate

I'm all for talking about wine but I strongly disagree with the above statement.

When most people talk about wine, they are referring to only two styles of wine, namely :

Still light red,
Still light white,

Or lets go mad, and count all light wine styles (as opposed to fortified wines):

Red
White
Rosé
Sparkling Red (pretty uncommon)
Sparkling White
Sparkling Rosé

That's only 6 distinct styles
If we are to include fortified wines, then we would be get into bigger numbers, but I suspect that this thread is primarily for light wines.

The point I'm making is that there is nowhere near the kind of diversity in wine as there is in beer. Beer is made from a much more diverse range of ingredients and is made in a huge range of styles and alcohol strengths.
There is simply much more to talk about.

But, as I said, I'm all for talking about wine:D

Also picked up a 2003 Priorat in Tesco for €9 !

Berwick

the beer revolu wrote: »

The point I'm making is that there is nowhere near the kind of diversity in wine as there is in beer. Beer is made from a much more diverse range of ingredients and is made in a huge range of styles and alcohol strengths.
There is simply much more to talk about.

Let us agree to disagree.

Wine is about 100.000.000.000.000. times more diverse than beer might ever be.

And that is a gross under-estimation.

BeerNut

Berwick wrote: »

Wine is about 100.000.000.000.000. times more diverse than beer might ever be.

But it's only made from one fruit. Bor-ring

pfm

the beer revolu wrote: »

That's only 6 distinct styles

Well there are only 3 styles of beer!

1. Lager
2. Ale
3. Stout

Two and a half styles really as Smithwicks is undrinkable

the beer revolu

Berwick wrote: »

Let us agree to disagree.

Wine is about 100.000.000.000.000. times more diverse than beer might ever be.

And that is a gross under-estimation.

I suspect that I've drunk many more wines than you have beers.

Please explain how wine is more diverse than beer (bearing in mind previous post).
I have great love and respect for wine.
I also have a great love and respect for beer.
I think your statement above just displays your ignorance of beer.

the beer revolu

pfm wrote: »

Well there are only 3 styles of beer!

1. Lager
2. Ale
3. Stout

Two and a half styles really as Smithwicks is undrinkable

Do I even have to reply to that?

Berwick

You don't have to, of course.

But you may.

BeerNut

the beer revolu wrote: »

Do I even have to reply to that?

Posters interested in a response can refer to the BJCP style guidelines for a broad indication of what kind of beer styles there are in the real world. It gives 23 main categories, mostly sub-divided into several further sub-categories. Plus several catch-all categories like 23 Speciality Beer, and 22B Other Smoked Beer -- which themselves fit a vast array of beers.

pfm wrote: »

Two and a half styles really as Smithwicks is undrinkable

I've said it here before and I'll say it again: judging the world of beer based on what gets sold in most Irish pubs is like judging the world of food based on what is sold in most burger vans.

pfm wrote: »

Well there are only 3 styles of beer!

1. Lager
2. Ale
3. Stout

Perhaps, pfm, you can tell us which of those definitive categories you'd put California Common in, and where Kölsch fits best?

Anything used to make wine can be, and is, used to make beer. The reverse is not true.

Anywhere wine is made, beer is made. The reverse is not true.

Like the beer revolu, I love drinking wine, though I don't know much about it. However, I know I don't know much about it. It looks like some people on this thread do not realise how little they know about beer before they start making numerical assertions about it.

desk1

Just to add to the debate. Wine may be made from grapes only but there are 1000s of different grape varieties so you will have thousands of different styles depending on what grape you use,also depending on other factors like lees contact, oak ageing, climate, soil type,carbonic masceration, etc etc.
Chardonnay will make a very different wine in Chablis than it will be in Meursault for instance. Difference being the climate and oak ageing.

So both beer and wine are extremely excellent and complex with 1000s of different styles

pfm

BeerNut wrote: »

Perhaps, pfm, you can tell us which of those definitive categories you'd put California Common in, and where Kölsch fits best?

I had to Google California Common as I've never heard of it. Looks a bit darker than Lager but not as dark as Ale.

Just because Kolsch comes in a swing top bottle, it hardly merits calling it a different style of beer. It's still Lager!

BeerNut wrote: »

Anything used to make wine can be, and is, used to make beer. The reverse is not true.

Grape beer ? LOL! You mean wine with 4.3% alcohol!

DBCyc

BeerNut wrote: »

I've said it here before and I'll say it again: judging the world of beer based on what gets sold in most Irish pubs is like judging the world of food based on what is sold in most burger vans

Ha So true.

the beer revolu

pfm wrote: »

I had to Google California Common as I've never heard of it. Looks a bit darker than Lager but not as dark as Ale.

Just because Kolsch comes in a swing top bottle, it hardly merits calling it a different style of beer. It's still Lager!

I can't believe I'm arguing with someone so proudly and loudly ignorant of the subject they are arguing about.
But I can't help myself!!

Firstly, ale doesn't have a specific colour. You have pale ales, golden ales, amber ales, dark ales and anything in between.

Grolsch, is a brand of Dutch lager that comes in a swing top bottle.
Kolsch is a style of beer from Cologne. It is pale, fermented with a top fermenting yeast and usually served cask conditioned in small glasses, only in Cologne.

Please, pfm, don't continue your argument about beer, you know nothing about it and only come across as foolish.
However, I'll happily discuss wine with you, providing you have some degree of knowledge about it - maybe you can educate me a little!

BeerNut

pfm wrote: »

Grape beer ? LOL! You mean wine with 4.3% alcohol!

No, I mean beer: malt, hops, yeast, water, and grapes, both muscat and merlot/cabernet franc.