Ozzie's Wine of the Month - December

by ozziepost 15 Replies latest jw friends

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  ozziepost

  G'day All,

  We've missed posting our wine of choice for the past couple of months because.....well......we've stuck to our favoured labels of shiraz.

  Tonight, however, we've just returned from the Apostates Restaurant and old Ozzie decided to take something new for the meal.

  I selected an Italian wine this time. That makes a change, you say! It was an Italian Dry Red wine known as a Valpolicella. The label? La Francesca bottled by Cantina Francesco Miani & C. S.A.S. of Verolanuova, Italy.

  The label described it as a "robust wine of bright ruby colour, with strong aroma and characteristic taste".

  It's recommended for "robust and hearty dishes".

  Well, Ozzie certainly had that with a beautiful veal dish tonight in creamy sauce with cashews, eggplant, and broccoli.

  Did it complement the meal? Yes, it was more than passable, but as with Italian wines, too thin for my liking. I miss the tannin presence on the inside of the bottle that's found with a good shiraz or cabernet sauvignon.

  Nvertheless, it was an economical drop, being around $15 Australian.

  A disappointment I had was that it claimed to have 6.8 glasses to the bottle. Usually Australian wines contain more, and we got just 3 glasses out of it. Yeah, okay, I know we have big glasses at the Apostate Restaurant!

  Cheers, Ozzie
• 

  outbackaussie

  Hey Ozzie,

  You will have to look out for wine by Andrew Peace, they were originally an export label only, but now supply domestic as well. They are a Swan Hill Vic., maker. I used to work with the winemaker's wife. The wines I tasted from them were all quite scrummy *licks lips* so worth checking your local cellar for them.
• 

  ozziepost

  Will do, Tiff.

  What you doing still up? Don't you know what time it is!

  Cheers, Ozzie
• 

  pettygrudger

  Dearest Ozzie - would you be so kind to recommend a few good wines for me? My brother, quite adept at picking the right bottle is on holiday, and I will not be able to talk to him before the Christmas festivities.

  I need a GOOD wine (but cheap - $20.00 or so for a bottle). Merlot's & Caberet Sauvignoin are preferred - but us American hillbillies like a good old zinfadell as well (some of my family thinks Cold Duck rocks!). I also need a few good picks for christmas presents. Most of them like the "fruitier wine" although some prefer the dry as you have mentioned above. Good grief - this is impossible!

  Anyways, would you have any decent suggestions? Christoper Cross (?) I believe is one I served last year - and with rave reviews, but I can never remember what I've picked.

  Any help you could give us wine dummies would be most appreciated! Thanks!
• 

  Bendrr

  I'll have to find a bottle of that, Ozzie.

  Have you tried Luna di Luna Pinot Grigio? Awesome!

  A few years ago I came across a couple of bottles of South African dry red wine at the local liquor store, Kanonkop was the name. (of the wine not the store).

  Mike.
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  Big Tex

  I need a GOOD wine (but cheap - $20.00 or so for a bottle).

  I'm no wine expert, I only know what I like. So here's what I like that's under $15:

  Merlot - Meridian, Fetzer, Turning Leaf. All solid and dependable ($9-$10). If you want to splurge ($20-$25), get a bottle of 1996 Rutherford Hills. Outstanding. The 1999 vintage is okay, but the 1996 is superb. Or try Chateau St. Michelle ($20-$25).

  Cabernet Sauvignon - Fetzer, Forest Glen, Turning Leaf. I prefer Turning Leaf, but the other two are good for the price ($9-$11). Chateau Souvereign is an old-time favorite ($18-$20).

  Personally I don't believe in listening completely to the "experts" about wine. I think your own personal taste should tell you what to buy. If you find a label that you like, try others from that region. Cabernet Sauvignon from California has a different taste than Cabernets from Texas or Chile or France or wherever. Also, look and see if your newspaper gives out awards for different wines. Here in Dallas, the Morning News does one every year and I use it to try out new labels. It's not absolute, but it gives me some place to start. Hope this helps.
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  pettygrudger

  Thank you Big Tex - I appreciate the reply more than you can know (I'm a wine dummy).

  Could you tell me, are the wine's you've listed, would you describe these as "heavy", or on the "lighter" side as to flavor. I'm sure I'm not using the correct terminology, so I hope you understand what I'm asking.
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  Englishman

  Best value for money here are the Argentinian whites, particularly the Chardonnays selling at around 2.99 per bottle.

  Englishman.
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  pettygrudger

  Now that's some cheap wine Eman - it's even more reasonable than our "cold duck". Thanks for the input - would you be kind enough to also answer whether this wine is "heavy" or "light" in nature? I'm not sure of the white stuff though - don't seem to have alot of takers on the whites - are the Argentinian reds as good?
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  joannadandy

  Actually I just had this wine over thanksgving. It was great...(my sis and brother-in-law the big wine c onnoisseurs of the family) picked it out. I liked it a lot, especially because it was so "thin" as you stated ozzie. (I'm a wuss when it comes to full bodied and heavy oak reds.)

  Have you ever tried the Bolla label Valpolicella? I found it to be a lot stronger, thus my dislike of it, but you might like it Ozzie. Just my humble budding wine lover suggestion.