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ordering the Cab in the Italian restaurant wasn't a good decision, can't disagree with your sentiment there Herold. Not sure about the pronunciation comment, but OK.
Thanks for watching until the end! Damn. I thought the sound was better but maybe I need to get it closer to my mouth. Let's see how the next one goes.
Had a bottle of Le Difese 2016 (so approx 8 years of age upon drinking) and there was a lot of expectation going into this tasting given the Sassicaia brand behind the winery. However it tasted light, diluted. On the other hand also had a Le Volte 2020 and it was wonderful, rich and incredibly aromatic and was cost roughly the same amount of $$$. Loaded up on a case of the Le Volte 2020 as a result
Thanks for watching and I would advise you to NOT try Lady Velvet. Good call out on Anisette not being the same as Amaretto, two totally different spirits.
Overall would you say you prefer older wines? I actually prefer "young" wines. When I say young, I don't mean straight out of the producer, I mean more like 6-8 years. I like to feel the ripe fruit coming out of the glass. I of course enjoy some terciary flavours, but not when they dominate the wine.
Thanks for the thoughts Nuno. I would say I lean more toward younger wines than older wines but that is mainly due to my experience and at times, lack of willpower to hold onto the older bottles.
I have my doubts on wine consumption going down. Normally when an industry is hurting, they start offering better prices on their product. Go on line and take a look at the pricing wineries are charging for their tastings and you will see that there is no lowering at all. I keep getting offers from a big winery in Napa (Peju) saying that shipping is free but when you look at the prices of their wines you will see they are very high. I call BS on the lowering of wine sales. Yes, wineries are expanding their markets to different types of drinkers and also putting wine in different packaging but that also goes into expansion of sales and not due to a lowering of them.
Thanks for all of the thoughts. Prices are definitely on the rise across the board and i am surprised that we are not seeing some go down given what is being talked about as an oversupply in the market. Maybe that is coming shortly.
I think its the so-called premiumisation situation. Where I live when people talk about wine they always mean the expensive ones, the benchmarks e.g, the Super-Tuscans etc. So they don't drink a lot, nor very regularly, but they buy very expensive bottles when they do.
Thanks for the note, that is an angle I have never experienced. If someone is drinking the expensive benchmark wines they are usually regualr wine drinkers.
I drink less wine because of the ticking clock once the bottle is open. Once the cork comes out you have mere day(s) to finish it. The next day, the bottle of red sits on the counter and I feel compelled to drink it - whether I feel like it or not. My wife has chosen to drink less wine at home during the week ("don't feel like it" is her rationale). So now I have to want to drink a bottle over the next few days before I will open one. This has cut down my consumption. I am sitting on 150 bottles in my wine cabinet so there are bigger gaps between wine shopping trips. Making cocktails one at a time very easy, so I probably am shifting to more spirit drinking.
Thanks for all of the thoughts, they all make sense and do parallel some of my habits at home right now as well. An open bottle of wine on the counter can be persuasive.
I like the idea of another way to review wines. The more input one has on an item, the more informed choice can be made. Number scores have a place, but really, a Cote Rotie , cru Barolo or classed Bordeaux should almost always have a score in the mid to upper 90s. What does that tell you?
Thanks for the feedback Rod. Good point on the wines from those regions in particular - you do expect high quality and the scores don't differentiate much at all. I am going to explore the ROI angle and try to come up with a scale that shows the value of a wine.
The high priced super Tuscans are SOOO over rated. They are far too similar to Cali cabs. Not alot of character. Sangiovese and Nebbiolo wines are infinitely more interesting, and have alot more personalities.
Thanks for watching and for the note. I tend to agree on the high priced examples and that is why I focus on those under $50 as they offer plenty of value. Sangiovese and Nebbiolo are two of my faves so I am aligned with your last statement.
Thanks so much for the note and for the feedback. It is something new that I have been trying since I felt like there was too much dead space at times. Appreciate the candor as I hadn't heard anything either way yet.
I'm a big fan of Syrah. While I love Syrah from Santa Barbara County, it seems to me that they are not as savory as the examples from Washington state or the Rhone Valley. I do appreciate that very good Syrah can be had without nearly the damage that Cab can so easily do to one's bank account. Also, I think you could use a better mic.
Thanks for the notes Mark. I feel like Syrah probably is where it is in the market so we should be able to keep getting our bottles for good value. Thanks also for the note on the mic as I simply use the iPhone to record. In this video the phone was a bit further away so I probably should start using the mic I bought a while ago :).
Hate hate hate that I have to work my way around an iPad wine list at Capitol … I’ve switched steak houses Found the iPad way too much work to compare choices .. Surprised they haven’t had complaints..
Thanks for the note! We are definitely aligned on the iPad - I do wonder if they have gotten complaints. It is also possible that most people just don't care about the wine list and stick to cocktails. There were lots of cocktails on tables the last time we went.
Col Solare at $290 That is a $200 markup at least... The wine list there is based on name recognition and not QPR. Somm there has their work cut out for them. Chateau Musar is a decent value and a different wine to try that will pair well with steak. My advice there is check corkage fee and show up with your own wine. Keep up good work. My other channel has videos like yours and I know how difficult this can be.
Thanks so much for the note kind sir. You know what is funny, I barely looked at wines >$150 as part of this video series so maybe it might be fun to do a video with a higher budget? Let me know your thoughts. I actually think the Col Solare is OK where it is because it is the Cabernet and not the Red Blend. Good eyes on the Musar.
God, this is exactly what I don't want in a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. I just want the tropical and green apple punch, no grass and no vegetal aspects. Do you know of any of those more recently? Many years ago now you used to be able to find that a lot. There was a brand called Monkey Bay that I loved, a cheapie that has largely disappeared. The last notable one I found was called Ponga, but also now largely gone. I guess this varietal doesn't sell as well in that regard as it did around 2005
Thanks for the note Jerry and this is one of the reasons I did this video. These wines are so popular but in my opinion shouldnt. I love the Greywacke SB and that should work for you. I haven't found a ton of others that would fit the profile you like though in New Zealand. Sounds like California Sauvignon Blanc may be a better choice as I find those less vegetal.
@@DrinkinItIn funny that you mentioned Greywacke, I think it was the 2022 that one of the top critic's resources like Wine Advocate or something named one of the wines of the year and right after that it was history everywhere on the shelves around me. Never got any! I have always avoided the California Sauvignon Blancs because I have found them to be more of the grassy ones, I never found one that had powerful tropical notes to rival Marlborough.
@@DrinkinItIn yes I've seen the following vintage, I just thought that was funny how everyone got the same info I did about that particular one and they bought it all before me. That's how much people do want a great one that's also affordable.
Both The Prisoner & Guado AT were my picks for the exact reasons you noted. Funny/sad story- a few years back when returning home from a weekend away with my wife I found that my daughter had emptied a 2000 Tignanello from my cellar. 😢 She was looking for a cheap bottle to open and assumed that since I had 14 of the same bottles that it must be a daily drinker. She was horrified and thought I’d be mad but I really just wanted to know if it’s held up as nicely as the ‘97 & ‘99.
Thanks for sharing that story, it is a scary one. I do not have a case of Tignanello or a daughter so can't really relate 🤣🤣 Are there any bottles left?
I feel like I see that one enough on store shelves and I would have tried it by now. Always seem to pass it up. Will give it a try based on your suggestion.
It was cool when iPads were new but now they are just heavy and unwieldy and at least in this case require too much scrolling and moving around to different pages. Perhaps if they had more wines on the screen at a given time it would work better.
Frei Brother make a great PN. I am a big fan of Josh cab sav’s even if Pinots aren’t. Mac Murray is my favorite on your list. Stay away from LaCrema Monterey.
Thanks for the thoughts Ronald. I've never purchased the Frei Brothers Pinot but see it on shelves a bit, maybe I'll give it a try. I definitely prefer La Crema's Chardonnay offerings to their Pinot, not sure if I have had the Monterey. We will have to agree to disagree on the Josh Cab.
Wow, our palates and interests seem to be very aligned, Chris. I buy as much Poggione and Ciacci as I can every year to lay down. Love Argiano, too, but I think their prices are going up, up, up…
I’ve had Sinor-Lavallee wines (San Luis Obispo) and pretty sure they make an entry level Pinot that’s about this price range, maybe a tick higher. Really earthy and good fruit.
Flavorful how though, just saying that doesn't help with wine. Is it more tropical flavored, or do you get more vegetal aspects which I definitely don't want or is that grassy flavor definitely coming through strong, don't want that either.
Thanks for the suggestion Donald, I have to agree. Just did a video on it and will be buying it again. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FiUwPcU0Q_E.html