Red wine for 'new' red wine drinker?

stlmcgovern

My OH is usually a fan of whites but recently finds that white is playing havoc with her sinuses. She very rarely drinks red wine, but has noticed that she doesn't have the same problems when she does. It may be whites in general, or just the ones she is drinking, but either way she would like to move across to reds.

So - can anyone recommend a good red wine for a 'new' red wine drinker please? Preferably one that can be enjoyed on its own as well as with food, but all recommendations for either or both will be gladly received.

Hope this makes sense, and thanks in advance.

Sean

nc19

Blossom Hill Californa

imo

stlmcgovern

thank you for your recommendation, nc19

odyssey06

Possibly the reaction is due to sulphites in the wine. Wines carry warning labels that they contain sulphites as it can trigger allergic and asthma attacks.
Red wine has less sulphites than white wine. If the reaction happens to white and not red, that eliminates alcohol as the factor.

OBriens stock a wine marketed "with no added sulphites", have never tried it as it's a little heavier (14%) than I normally go for.
http://www.obrienswine.ie/naturae-corbieres.html

Another possible factor is that white wine is drunk chilled, whereas red wine typically is not. So consider if the temperature of the wine is a trigger. Try some white wine at room temperature, or alternatively, some chilled light red wine (Beaujolais, Italian Reds, Spanish reds that are approx 11%-12% in alcohol).

Also, does the same reaction occur with rose wine? Something else to try.

odyssey06

ps does your OH usually drink sweet or dry white wines? e.g. on the back of the bottle is its style 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5? Dry wines are supposed to have less sulphites than sweet, and red less than white.

odyssey06

If I was being systematic about trying out red wine, I'd sample a bottle from each of these categories, which would be the most common red wines styles around.
In general they get heavier in alcohol as you work down the list.

Take advantage of one of the buy 6 get 25% off supermarket offers, or the OBriens 20% back if you buy 6, or the spend 50e get 10e off ALDI coupons in Sunday papers, and start exploring...

Light Reds...
Light Italian Red (11-12% in alcohol)
Gamay \ Beaujolais \ Fluerie (France)
Pinot Noir \ Red Burgundy (France, USA, NZ)

Medium Reds..
Cotes Du Rhone (France)
Rioja \ Tempranillo (Spain)
Merlot (France, Chile, Australia, USA)

Full Reds (Probably best paired with food, and specifically red meat) ...
Claret\Bordeaux (France)
Cabernet Sauvignon (Chile, USA, Australia)
Shiraz \ Syrah (Australia)
Malbec (Argentina)

dockleaf

If I were giving someone a bottle of red and wanted to make a good impression, I'd tend to go for a gigondas or a chateauneuf du pape, maybe a good bordeaux, though they can be more hit and miss. Overall I think a gigondas would generally be a pretty nice wine.

stlmcgovern

Thank you odyssey06, this is very helpful information. She would tend towards the sweet ones and has less liking for dry whites, which tallies with what you have described here. I think the temperature might be part of it (wouldn't have thought of that, good point) but it does also occur when she drinks it at room temperature so I reckon the sulphites is definitely worth further investigation on this side. I will certainly try that red and will keep an eye out for other NSA ones. Many thanks for this info and recommendation, much appreciated.

stlmcgovern

sorry odyssey06, I didn't see that the list of further recommendations was from yourself also, I really appreciate this. Yes, I was thinking along the line of a light Italian red/pinot noir too, will start there (and with the Corbieres) and see how we get on. Many thanks again

S

stlmcgovern

Thank you dockleaf - I do like a chateauneuf du pape myself, haven't tried a gigondas yet though (that I know of), will do some further research on this. Thanks for your help.

odyssey06

stlmcgovern wrote: »

sorry odyssey06, I didn't see that the list of further recommendations was from yourself also, I really appreciate this. Yes, I was thinking along the line of a light Italian red/pinot noir too, will start there (and with the Corbieres) and see how we get on. Many thanks again
S

Cheers, glad to help.

If there's an ALDI near you then defo check out their French Pinot Noir for about 7e, or Italian Red Wine for 5e.
https://www.aldi.ie/en/product-range/drinks/wine-cellar/red-wine/

stlmcgovern

There is and I will - it would be fantastic to find a nice one for that kind of price too Thanks again.

mewe

Here's a few nice reds I'd recommend that you could pick up in the supermarket:

Mirassou Pinot Noir- Very tasty wine with a little bit of sweetness,slight strawberry flavour to it but not overpowering.
Monastier Cabernet Sauvignon is a nice easy drinker- like the Mirassou, a kick of sweetness but again not too much.
Lindemans (Winemakers Release) Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon is another nice one on the same line as the ones above.

Ya should find these in Dunnes anyways and are often on special offer.

squonk

When I read your post OP I immediately thought that a 'nice' red was probably one that hadn't much tanin and was rather light drinking. With that in mind I'd recommend one of the €4.99/45.99 Aldi reds which are light enough, don't have that tanin bitterness and are pretty easy drinking. It's not marvellous wine but not bad for a starter drinker I'd think.

stlmcgovern

Thank you squonk, that's the second recommendation for Aldi reds so I'm going to swing by before the weekend and pick up a few. The price tag looks nice too

S

stlmcgovern

Thank you mewe, I will give those a go (the Pinot Noir in particular sounds like a good one to try). Thank you for your suggestions.

S

mewe

You're very welcome. Here's to the weekend arriving quick and we can all partake in some wine tasting!

richardjack67

Thank you..really very happy