Is it worth bringing your own wine?

[mommykim]

VibeGuy,

 

I sometimes think this list was assembled just to say they have wine.All the choices are pretty pedestrian and I'm still not certain why people get excited about Opus One,especially at the price they are asking.There are SO many way more interesting wines at a quarter of the price.

 

Howdy,

How about sharing some names? Some of us don't get to drink all that often so we take others recomendations. Though I am not fond of Opus One's current offerings I will say the 88 is one of the best bottles of wine I've ever had, period. I am taking my lasy bottle with me on our Hawaii cruise to drink with a friend in Kona.

[sultan_sfo]

In October 2004, the wine list for our Dawn Princess Cruise had a selection of over 200 wines. They included the "popular" names one finds at Costco (all price range) and wines from New Zealand, Australia, Chile, France, etc. No -- they did not have Trader Joes Two Buck Shaw (btw, my daily wines are mostly from Trader Joes -- though not the Two Buck Shaw which is a terrific value). We are wine drinkers (not wine connoisseurs)-- and every two or three months go to Sonoma (next visit this Sunday). I am surprised at reading the experiences of some of the posters. IMO, Princess does a good job with their wine offerings -- except for the high mark-ups of the low end wines. On our SFO-FLL, we did take a case of our favorites. We also take our own corkscrew! /Sultan

[cruiserforlife]

Kim,

I'm sure there are plenty of others with a more keen eye on the current wines than I.My collecting period really ended in 1987 and I am currently enjoying (really,really enjoying) wines such as 1986 Heitz Martha's Vintage,both appellation '87 Silver Oaks,and a 1985 Stag's Leap Cask 23 out of double-magnum that was absolutely stunning.These of course are wines that would be worth a great deal of money now so fortunately,my lower investment costs allow me to drink these beauties now.I have no problem with Opus One,it's obviously a very well-made wine but for a third of the price,I'd rather drink 2001 Chimney Rock "Eleviage" (usually around $55-$60 in the discount stores or $59.95 at www.lawineco.com) or '01 Laurel Glen for around $40/bottle.Even the '01 Mondavi "Stags Leap District" Cabernet can be had for around $35-$40/bottle and that wine scored 92 in the Wine Advocate.

If you like big reds,try the '02 Rosenblum "Old Vine" Zinfandel which is rich,big & spicy.It is generally available in the discount stores for around $12-$14/bottle.They also currently offer a killer '03 "Rockpile Vineyard" Zin that scored 94 in the Wine Speculator for $20/bottle.

Anything red from Joel Gott is killer.Look for them in fine wineshops or on the web.Even in a finer restaurant setting,I can usually find their Zinfandel for around $25.

Hope this helps you,I'm sure there are many others who can chime in too.

That being said,I always like to find value wines.I like to drink Pinot Noir (try to find a value there:eek: ),rich,old-vine Zinfandels,crisp,steely Sauvignon Blancs and Muscadets,and cleanly made,fruit-style Chardonnays,devoid of all the heavy,toasted oak and malolactic flavors that are sooo popular in Monterey County wines.

[LARGIN]

cruiserforlife.. Kent a personal friend of mine so I am glad you enjoy his Zin's. Have you tried the "Old label" Concannon Petite's from Livermore? They had some some reds before the winery was sold..

[dawne577]

When we cruised the CP (out of Ft. Lauderdale) we bought a bottle one night at dinner, but brought the rest on board. In FLL, there is a Crown Liquor near the port as well as a Publix behind the Embassy Suite that has a surprisingly good selection.

 

The bottles we brought on board were magnums--but the selection for those were limited. If you do have a magnum at dinner, they will only charge you once for the corkage and store the wine for you until dinner the next night.

 

The markup from Princess is about the normal restaurant markup--so the price is pretty standard.

[VibeGuy]

An example of something both unusual and exceedingly food-friendly that I would crawl over broken Riedel for is Domaine Drouhin's OR Chardonnay...it's unoaked, it's loaded with green apple/ pear/ citrus, and it's absolutely unlike anything else in the Domestic Chardonnay genre, with the possible exception of the fine unoaked Chardonnay of Navarro (Anderson Valley). Granted, it's insanely expensive for a domestic Chardonnay, so I never expect to see it on mass-market lines, but its something I frequently bring with me. It's also fun because a fair number of people say they don't like Chardonnay....but, as stated in _Sideways_, they probably love the varietal, they just hate the way it's always tampered with in California....

 

I'd love to see a mid-priced OR Pinot or two on the list...while the CA selections on their list weren't awful, they were pretty pedestrian, and I honestly believe that CA is not the best pinot region in the world.

 

I'd love to see the Rosenblum Zins on the list. . . they are spectacular wines for the money - big, chewy, serious Zin that will undo that onboard tooth-whitening so fast your pearls will spin. I happen to think that a decent Rose or two would really perk up the list - many of their items, including the spa and vegetarian selections would be best served by a nice Tavel. Heck, I'd pay good money for Bonny Doon's Vin Gris de Cigare, which sells for around $8 on special, just because it's so darned appealing on a warm evening, or with roasted fowl.

 

I'm no wine snob; right now in my fridge, there's an excellent cask-system Pinot Grigio from the most unlikely of sources (Target, $16 for 3L (honestly, if you haven't tried the new "box" wines, this is a total wake-up call - while it's hard to screw up pinot gris, this will blow your mind for $4/bottle-equivalent)), the tag end of a bottle of Barolo (something cheap from Costco), and a bottle of some Australian sparkler that was on sale at Easter that I found quite servicable. At the same time, I have a couple of cases of 95 and 96 Washington reserve/cult Merlots that are getting ready to drink, the tail end of a case of a tasty Alsatian Riesling (2002), and a few other more-typically-luxe holdings. (and for the record, I'm not a Riedel snob - I have a very decent knockoff that shows off what I drink pretty well).

 

As for shipping wine, I get two and three bottle styro inserts with some of the wine clubs I'm a member of - they happen to be *precisely* the right thickness to fit in to my pullman with the addition of a bit of bracing. If I needed to take, say, a half-case, I'd slide two of them in an appropriate box. I have used these to ship wines extensively both domestic and internationaly, and never had a problem. My only experience with failed protection came when British Airways destroyed a case of exceptionally tasty Vinho Verde by apparently dropping it off a Tug and running over it.

 

If you're travelling with wine, I highly suggest investing in the Screwpull S1100 pocket model. It"s more capable than the usual wine keys and will extract even those fiddly new synthetic corks with total ease. One finger operation, so you'll be able to open things in your cabin with less effort than beckoning your dearest spouse towards the bottle and suggesting they open it. $20 at better cookware stores or online sites.

 

Eric, Thirsty

[Tania]

brady,

 

You can bring your wine to the dining room or give it to the room steward during the day so it can be chilled for dinner. We simply put it in our fridge.

 

We went to Sabatinis on New Year's Eve and brought along a chilled bottle of Veuve Cliquot that we had purchased in FLL. The maitreD offered to switch our bottle for one of his because it would be colder. Too funny, I guess he thought it had been a gift from our TA.

 

Actuallly, champagne should chilled for only about three hours...if it's too cold the flavours aren't all released.

[laurieb]

we have always brought our own wine. Celebrity has a pretty bad wine list and very high prices, and thaqt is who we have mostly cruised with. on our last TP cruise, we brought a case with us and ended up bringing most of it back with us. Princess has a great selection and the prices are very reasonable, even for the premium Calif. cabs. We won't bring as much wine with us on any more Princess cruises. We were blessed to meet some new friends from the east coast that own a wonderful winery, and he turned us on to some great wines that are offered onboard.

[sunprincess]

Many times I will bring some special wines or a bottle of Dom from home. Usually I just enjoy this in my cabin. I also will purchase wine while on board or ashore. Have never been charged a corkage fee.

[jbond]

Thank God I'm a country boy. I'm not a connoisseur, more like a commom sewer. I like wine and I have always found something to my liking on Princess. I like Australian and Chilean wines besides the californian wines that are very inexpensive at home. We cruise about three times a year, but rarely take wine or alcohol with us. It's too much trouble. The mark up is not that much more than any local restaurant. We do take a couple of bottles of champagne with us on special cruises, usually Crystal, but otherwise we'll stay with the Princess selection. It's really great to have a non selective palate.

[chm1219]

If you're flying out of FL and you don't want the hassle of hauling a case of wine through the airports,call Laurie or Shelly @ Just Because of You (800 882-9707).They will gift wrap wine,beer,& water and have it delivered to your cabin.I have used them before and not only are they sweethearts,but their prices are very reasonable.

]

wow---now this sounds like a wonderful convenience! Are they actually in Florida, or where, if you know? I definitely think this is a nice service for travelers, and I plan to look them up for our October cruise. any other info is welcome.

[cruiserforlife]

If you're flying out of FL and you don't want the hassle of hauling a case of wine through the airports,call Laurie or Shelly @ Just Because of You (800 882-9707).They will gift wrap wine,beer,& water and have it delivered to your cabin.I have used them before and not only are they sweethearts,but their prices are very reasonable.

]

wow---now this sounds like a wonderful convenience! Are they actually in Florida, or where, if you know? I definitely think this is a nice service for travelers, and I plan to look them up for our October cruise. any other info is welcome.

 

Evening everyone,

So much fun to chat about wine!So much so that I decided to open a nice red while I type...a 1983 Leoville Las Cases,a bordeaux from Saint Julien.I bought this wine as a future and believe it or not,I still have 6 bottles left.

Now that's willpower!;)

To answer your questions chm1219,"Just Because of You" is located in FL (where in FL I do not know) and they do service all the major cruiseship terminals.Shelly & Laurie are the owners (at least one of them will always answer the phone)and their service is a "gift wrapping" one where they'll wrap your wine,beer,or water as gifts and deliver them to housekeeping the day of your sailing.Housekeeping in turn delivers it to your room during the muster drill.

I used them last January on the Sun (see "Live from the Sun" which I started while onboard and is still going strong to this day!)and everything went as promised.I ordered a mixed case of wine (Meridian Chardonnay & Cabernet I believe),a case of Michelob beer and a case of water.I'm pretty sure my bill was just under $250 delivered.I felt that was a great deal and I didn't have to haul wine through airports and deal with shook-up wines.I wouldn't hesitate to use them again and I will the next time I cruise out of FL.Please be sure to tell the girls I said hi.;)

jbond,

I wouldn't call your palate "non-selective"...anyone who likes Crystal champagne is OK in my book.;)

VibeGuy,

You sound like someone who really knows his wines.I agree with almost everything you've said especially the point about the Drouhin OR. chardonnay...a real beauty!I like their Pinots as well...in fact I like most OR Pinots.Frightingly expensive though,isn't it?

I beg to differ however with your statement about CA not being the best Pinot region in the world.The Russian River appelation in Sonoma produces some of the most delicious Pinots know to man especially the William-Selyem pinots and those from Gary Farrell.Both of those producers (as well as others like Byron and Robert Sinsky)know a thing or two about outstanding,world-class pinot noir.

We also have some really fine Pinot's here in MoCo (Monterey County),especially from "Gary's" vineyard,a real favorite.

By the way,any Bonny Doon wine on a cruiseship would be a MAJOR improvement over anything currently available.

LARGIN,

I have not had a Concannon Petite Syrah for many,many year but always loved enjoying their "inky" style back in the late 70's.maybe it's time for me to take another look?:rolleyes:

Well,that '83 Leoville is calling me back...I cannot resist...it's really starting to open up.:D

Cheers,

CFL

[VibeGuy]

At the risk of sounding provincial, I'd rank the pinot regions in Burgundy, Willamette Valley, Northern CA Coastal, Southern CA Coastal order. I believe 100% of the pinots on Island Princess (aside from the lone Burgundy) were Santa Barbara or Napa. While I especially love the Navarro Regime Ancienne (okay, I love Navarro), I tend to find Oregon Pinot Noir softer/less alcoholic, less tannic young, and blessed with more mineral/earth complexity, with a more pleasing acid balance, all of which contributes to making them more food-friendly.

 

It's a darned shame the price of mid-grade OR Pinot anymore. When I was in college (and it wasn't that long ago - first Bush administration) there were still some very, very good $10 pinots from reputable producers. That's as dead and gone as the Nehru jacket. I've been selling off body parts to buy the more recent releases of the Domaine Drouhin Cuvee Laurene, which is just the most wonderful wine for fatty salmon.

 

Getting back to Things That Would Go Well On Cruise Ship Wine Lists, I'm constantly thinking about Evolution #9, from the nice people at Oregon's Sokol Blosser.... nine dee-licious grape varieties (Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Muscat, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Muller-Thurgau, Semillon, White Riesling and Sylvaner), that are so lip-smackingly delicious and play well with so many cuisines that I could confidently drink it with every single dish I ate on the Island, including breakfast. It's ridiculously popular at P.F. Changs because it handles spice, sweet, heat and salt ever so well.

 

Eric, Thirstier

[legalslave]

No doubt I will carry on my wine. I am obviously not a wine connoisseur. I like Blackberry Merlot! It's probably because I like the taste of grapes and berries. Doubt if they have anything like that on the ship. I just enjoy having a glass with some cheese on the balcony. The more expensive the wine, the less I enjoy it.

 

Diane

[spongerob]

I wouldn't call your palate "non-selective"...anyone who likes Crystal champagne is OK in my book.;)

 

 

 

 

 

It's like drinking fog...It's something I would really love to see on the wine list.

[laughing husky]

was on the island a few weeks ago, and brought several bottle of some really nice wine.....shared a bottle of Turley's with the maitre de'.......who enjoyed his glass immensely.......

[starfamily]

If you're flying out of FL and you don't want the hassle of hauling a case of wine through the airports,call Laurie or Shelly @ Just Because of You (800 882-9707).They will gift wrap wine,beer,& water and have it delivered to your cabin.I have used them before and not only are they sweethearts,but their prices are very reasonable.

 

I always bring 6-12 bottles with me because we like to have some wine before dinner on the balcony.spongerob is right about the corkage fee,it's hit or miss if you'll be carged the $10 fee or not.

 

The ships regular wine list is very thin and the prices are inflated as one would expect.

 

Have a great cruise.

I am interested in this company but would like to check out a website before calling do they have one where I can see prices?

[nreeder]

Like some others we tend to bring bottles of wine in our carry on, but usually only for "happy hour" on the balcony. We've picked up inexpensive bottles at the Publix market on 17th street when we stay a day before the cruises leave from FLL. We are both wine lovers and have taken wine tasting classes for wines from all over the world.

 

I don't find Princess list all that bad. Compared to restaurants, the markups are mostly less. The Mondavi reserve as someone stated earlier is pretty much at retail rather than two or three times markup.

 

There's also a Mondavi wine package, which we haven't had yet, but was announced a while ago which I believe includes Opus 1 and Mondavi reserve along with some other wines. We want to try that out this Fall on the Sun.

 

I'll be odd man out with posters above. I find no difference between Oregon Pinot Noir and Grenache Rose. You can have that stuff. Maybe California Pinot's aren't what French Burgundy is exactly, but often they are richer and have more flavor that I like (my choice) than some other growing areas. Sanford & Benedict (Sanford Winery) up by Solvaang has great Pinot as does the Russian River Valley in Sonoma.

 

The fun thing we find about wine (and our favorite kind of dinner party at home is to have three or four bottles of the same grape variety from different producers wrapped up so you don't know which is the $50 bottle and which is the $6,99 Gallo of Sonoma and have friends taste and decide what they like.) There's been lots of time when the Gallo came in second among four vineyards. So each of our taste buds are personal and I'm not saying you have to like what I do. We find it's fun trying out something new. We either decide we'd like more of that, or that we don't need to try that one again!

 

I think that part of Princess decisions on what they will stock depends on how much they need to order. If you think about it, Princess has 15 ships that hold from 700 to 3,000 people per week. That's a lot of wine. We found that even in Tahiti they had the same wine list that you would see in the Carribbean so they are obviously buying in bulk and shipping it around the world. They can't really get enough from the very small producers. For Princess I'm sure wine like everything else, is a revenue producer. That being said, they haven't in my opinion gouged us as much as some other cruise lines that get commented upon.

 

Thanks

Norm

[cruiserforlife]

I am interested in this company but would like to check out a website before calling do they have one where I can see prices?

 

Not that I'm aware of.I suggest calling the girls first )toll free)and ask them yourself.They are very easy to deal with.In talking with them,I got the impression that they get what you want rather than stock specific wines.

nreeder,

Sanford Pinot & Chardonnay are both fantastic wines,made in the clean,fruit-oriented style I prefer.Both go well with foods and are reasonably priced.

In one phase of my wine career,I was the buyer for the Lodge of Pebble Beach and all their properties.You can imagine the amount of samples we'd get on a weekly basis,wineries just dying to get on the list at the Lodge.We would always "brown bag" 20-30 wines per week and just go with what our group thought tasted best that particular week.I was never amazed or surprised at the winners,regardless of price.

The brown bag "blind" tasting ultimately decides who stays and who goes...

[chm1219]

No doubt I will carry on my wine. I am obviously not a wine connoisseur. I like Blackberry Merlot! It's probably because I like the taste of grapes and berries. Doubt if they have anything like that on the ship. I just enjoy having a glass with some cheese on the balcony. The more expensive the wine, the less I enjoy it.

 

Diane

you're definitely not alone. I love it too. Guess they don't stock that one. LOL

[spingal]

We have never paid corkage.

Like Larry, I have never paid corkage and we always bring a bottle of open wine into the dining room.

[Tania]

I just called Just Because and they said that they can what what you want. No website.

 

Our liquor store monopoly here in Ontario, Canada doesn't allow for well-priced California wine in my opinion. So, I'm unfamiliar with them.

 

In the mid-80's I purchased a case of Buena Vista Cab...it had decent concentration and a pleasant rich "smoky" feel in the mouth. I just tried a Coppola Cab that is similar, if memory serves me correctly. Can anyone suggest something similar in the $15-20 range, if such an animal exists?

 

Thanks,

 

Catherine

whose bottles of Crystal, Dom and La Belle Epoque await patiently in the wine fridge

[travelnnana]

When we left FLL for the Panama Canal, we stayed at the Embassy Suites the night before. In the AM, we wheeled a small suitcase up the street to a wine/liquor store. They packed 10 bottles of wine - securely. We carried it on board; put several bottles at a time in the refrig; had the steward bring us clean wine glasses daily and ejoyed a glass each evening before dinner!

In 2006 we are going to Australia, New Zealand. I guess we will pick up a few bottles at each port.

[VibeGuy]

Tania:

 

I'd look at some of the Chateau Ste. Michelle WA Cabs, from their Reserve releases. The 2000 and 2001 were excellent (I have not yet tasted the 2002) and exhibit a lot of varietal character and not a lot of tampering. Their reserves are also generally ready-to-drink at release, instead of requiring a lot of time in bottle to be approachable.

 

Their non-reserve single-vineyard or appellation-specific releases are nice for mass-market cabs in that price range as well but I wouldn't describe them as "worth seeking out" - it's the Reserves that are really special, and CSM has excellent distribution.

 

Eric

[FSUFan1k]

What is a "wine shipper" or "JBOY" ?

Did you find this carrier in CA? Thanks for the help.