Off Topic The Wine Thread

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Bostonbob

Bostonbob

Well-Known Member
Nov 6, 2012
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www.squashedgrapewine.com
Stick et al who travel far and wide

If you drink wine from time to time and come across something you think is a bit of a stand out (not necessarily expensive) then I would be hugely appreciative if you could take a photo of the bottle (with the back label) and send it over to me.

I'm importing from all over the world all the time and finding good producers is near enough the hardest thing.

I specialise in small producers. Less than 10,000 bottles a year.

Many thanks.
 
Bostonbob said:
Stick et al who travel far and wide

If you drink wine from time to time and come across something you think is a bit of a stand out (not necessarily expensive) then I would be hugely appreciative if you could take a photo of the bottle (with the back label) and send it over to me.

I'm importing from all over the world all the time and finding good producers is near enough the hardest thing.

I specialise in small producers. Less than 10,000 bottles a year.

Many thanks.
Click to expand...

Do you stock anything from the KwaZuluNatal area of South Africa by chance?
 
Bostonbob said:
Stick et al who travel far and wide

If you drink wine from time to time and come across something you think is a bit of a stand out (not necessarily expensive) then I would be hugely appreciative if you could take a photo of the bottle (with the back label) and send it over to me.

I'm importing from all over the world all the time and finding good producers is near enough the hardest thing.

I specialise in small producers. Less than 10,000 bottles a year.

Many thanks.
Click to expand...

There is one I am mad about that I have in a restaurant in Ayamonte Bob, trouble is all I can ever remember is that it has a bull on the label. I just make a pair of horns with my fingers on my head and the waiter brings me the right one LOL. I will get a photo for you next time I am over.
I have become a huge Rioja fan since spending so much time over there.
 
NassauBoard said:
Do you stock anything from the KwaZuluNatal area of South Africa by chance?
Click to expand...

No, from SA i specialise in the other side of the country - Swartland, Helderburg Mountains etc - Blank Bottle Wine a massive favourite although Adi at AA Badenhorst is a lovely chap and prouduces great (reasonably priced for what they are) shiraz and cinsault.

A fav of yours Oddy?
 
stick said:
There is one I am mad about that I have in a restaurant in Ayamonte Bob, trouble is all I can ever remember is that it has a bull on the label. I just make a pair of horns with my fingers on my head and the waiter brings me the right one LOL. I will get a photo for you next time I am over.
I have become a huge Rioja fan since spending so much time over there.
Click to expand...

Brits Abroad!

Thanks. I await a photo.

If you like Rioja (and i do as well) then one to check out is Matsu. There's three types. The faces on the label get older as the wine spends longer in oak before bottling. Made by a guy called Raul Acha and his family - 200 yrs producing in Toro. All the same grapes, same terroir and same temperature as rioja but a third of the price. Excellent label as well. Raul teaches on the Masters oenology course at La Rioja University as well. Pretty much teaching wine makers how to make great Rioja.

Toro is not rioja though so its an absolute, stone wall bargain.

One of the only wines i always tell my restaurant clients to add to their lists because it is still excellent value at the usual 285% mark up they apply to pretty much all their wines.

Start with el picaro at around a tenner, double decant it (pour into a decanter, leave for a bit then pour back into the bottle). Excellent.
 
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Bostonbob said:
Stick et al who travel far and wide

If you drink wine from time to time and come across something you think is a bit of a stand out (not necessarily expensive) then I would be hugely appreciative if you could take a photo of the bottle (with the back label) and send it over to me.

I'm importing from all over the world all the time and finding good producers is near enough the hardest thing.

I specialise in small producers. Less than 10,000 bottles a year.

Many thanks.
Click to expand...

http://www.pardevalles.es/?lang=en

The wine from here is amazing. We have friends who live in Madrid and whenever we go over or they come over to us we make sure they get a few bottles of red and white in for us. I only drink red and the Red Carleon from this place is great.
 
stick said:
There is one I am mad about that I have in a restaurant in Ayamonte Bob, trouble is all I can ever remember is that it has a bull on the label. I just make a pair of horns with my fingers on my head and the waiter brings me the right one LOL. I will get a photo for you next time I am over.
I have become a huge Rioja fan since spending so much time over there.
Click to expand...
I'm a big Rioja fan too stick. One of my brothers-in-law owns a bar in Calella so when we go there (not a lot lately) we get treated to the Gran Reserva.
Did you know you can get very nice Rioja white wine as well? Only had it once and can't remember the label
 
Bob - craft beer in Yorkshire? Don't do it mate <ok>

An area I have spent quite a lot of time in on business is Piemont, some of the Barbera you get from there is lovely. One of my favourite grape varieties, you very rarely get a bad one and they are usually very reasonably priced. Of course if you want to splash out, then Barolo is the way to go. Having been in Germany for the last 23 years, we get lots of Italian reds here and they are very good. Not sure they are so popular in the UK?
 
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OddDog said:
Bob - craft beer in Yorkshire? Don't do it mate <ok>

An area I have spent quite a lot of time in on business is Piemont, some of the Barbera you get from there is lovely. One of my favourite grape varieties, you very rarely get a bad one and they are usually very reasonably priced. Of course if you want to splash out, then Barolo is the way to go. Having been in Germany for the last 23 years, we get lots of Italian reds here and they are very good. Not sure they are so popular in the UK?
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Barbera excellent in general. Known as a bit of a paupers grape in Italy but i really disagree. Sparkling barbera is a belter when you hit on a decent one. Italian reds do very well for me. Spanish wine does well because it's such a popular holiday destination i think. My favs are Chilean, South African and Argentine - you don't tend to pay over the top for them which i think is really important. I refuse to be ripped off just because i'm buying a famous name.
 
Bostonbob said:
No, from SA i specialise in the other side of the country - Swartland, Helderburg Mountains etc - Blank Bottle Wine a massive favourite although Adi at AA Badenhorst is a lovely chap and prouduces great (reasonably priced for what they are) shiraz and cinsault.

A fav of yours Oddy?
Click to expand...

Cheers. Had a quick look at your site, interesting to see you have Spice Route, we visited them a couple of years ago and their innovations on chocolate/ beer (CBC) really stood out against their bigger neighbours. I didn't rate their wine compared to neighbouring Fairview but may have to revisit.
 
NassauBoard said:
Cheers. Had a quick look at your site, interesting to see you have Spice Route, we visited them a couple of years ago and their innovations on chocolate/ beer (CBC) really stood out against their bigger neighbours. I didn't rate their wine compared to neighbouring Fairview but may have to revisit.
Click to expand...

Honestly there's better SA wines out there. I picked it up when i was a little more naive a year or so ago.
 
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I've no idea how big a producer they are Bob, but I've dabbled over the years with the Chilean Cabernet Sauvignons from Luis Felipe Edwards. My wine shop here in Berlin (Jacques Wein Depot) imports a fair bit of his including Merlots and Malbecs. Very palatable.

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My favourite Italian red, which I have bought for years, is a Barbera called Livio Pavese. Costs €6,70 here in Berlin and is a belter. I found this picture on the net and it is an older bottle, but year-on-year this wine is the best Italian red (for the price) I have tasted.

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Not much of a wine fancier, but having said that, quite a few South African reds are pretty good though, and the Merlot that the Maredo restaurant chain offer is OK too. There was an Austrian red I put up on the old wine thread which I found excellent. Apart from beer, Canadian rye whisky is what I enjoy most of all. Canadian Club for general use, and Seagrams Crown Royal for special occasions; the latter being nectar of the gods for me!
 
wine is a very subjective subject , but i'm sure most of us know a good drink when we have one , but it's the mediocre and average ones that are a minefield
i suppose it wetheryour happy with the value , personally i am , but it can be a lottery with some . Think we all know vinegar when we drink it , mind you there are lots of people who drink beer out of cans !cans are for beans , bottles are for beer !!
 
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