Recommended Red Wine

[MamaFej]

15 minutes ago, drakes2 said:

That's a great wine but highly doubt it will be found now.

In post 90, @DaKahuna said he has been drinking it onboard on his current cruise. Hopefully, he will leave some for you and for me. 

 

I suppose he's got "dibs," however. 

 

 

My apologies if I don't have the pronoun right. 

[drakes2]

3 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

We have been told that there are supply chain issues and it is not know when Celebrity will be getting their complement of better wines.  Right now on Silhouette there is no Decoy Cabernet Sauvignon or Caymus.  

 

I have been drinking Mouton Cadet Bordeaux Blend, Cakebread Pinot Noir, Chateau Souverain Cabernet Sauvignon, and some others the Sommelier has offered.   Tonight for dinner we are eating in Tuscan and I am undecided between the Alta Vista Estate Malbec or the Layer Cake Primitivo.  I am leaning toward the latter to go with my filet. 

 

Go with the primitivo for the filet.

[zitsky]

Hey this thread is like having your own private sommelier!  🙂

[RickT]

My favourite red wine on board is Decoy Cab Sauv.  I like smooth full bodied wines.  That said I take time to talk to the sommelier and give them some idea of what I like in order to be introduced to new wines.

 

Just off the Millennium and Marren was fantastic.  I’d pop by and she’d ask what I wanted.   Sometimes my answer was “whatever you suggest” and I have to say I now have some new favourites.  

[Josie201]

7 hours ago, drakes2 said:

They had much better selections pre covid. Still on the fence if I should upgrade to premium. Probably cheaper to pay daily upcharge 

I will be watching what you decide.  I’d be unhappy to pay to upgrade only to have limited lower quality options!   We don’t sail again till November so hope these issues are distant memories !  

[zitsky]

How long do y’all spend with the sommelier?  Because there are so many tables to service whether in Blu, Luminae, or MDR.

[DaKahuna]

I had the Malbec with the calamari, caesar salad, and minestrone soup.  It was delicious and I liked it a lot.  Full body and flavorful with jut a touch of fruit.  I will be having more.  

 

I went with the Primivita to pair with my filet.  I found it was a little more tart and kept taking small sips of the remaining malbec to make sure it was just not me.  I am not saying it was a bad wine, in fact it was good but I just not think it was as good as the malbec to my unrefined palet. 

 

The surprise was there was a Moscoto on the Tuscan wine list that we had not seen previous.  My wife drinks Moscoto as her ''hey let's have a glass of wine" drink.  She said it was very delicious.  My understanding is that it is only available in Tuscan but I will see what happens when I try and order it in Luminae or the Retreat Lounge. 

 

 

[DaKahuna]

13 hours ago, zitsky said:

How long do y’all spend with the sommelier?  Because there are so many tables to service whether in Blu, Luminae, or MDR.

 It depends on how busy he/she is and whether I am looking for recommendations or just want to order a wine I have pre-selected.  I would say on average, two or three minutes. 

[zitsky]

50 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

 It depends on how busy he/she is and whether I am looking for recommendations or just want to order a wine I have pre-selected.  I would say on average, two or three minutes. 

Thanks for the review with pictures!  Did not realize the Primitivo was Zinfandel.

 

I have also learned to like Moscato or Riesling as a before or after dinner drink.

[terrydtx]

Here is a little history of the Italian Primitivo grape.  This is from a web site True wine. I find a huge difference between Primitivo produced in Italy from Puglia region vs the US, primarily in California. We much prefer the Italian version and over the years find some very excellent wines are produced in the Puglia region of Italy. Another favorite Italian wine region is Sicily where some full-bodied rich Nero De Avalo wines are produced from the volcanic soils around Mt Etna.

 

Origin of Primitivo grapes

Primitivo grapes are red grapes grown in the country of Italy in the Puglia region. This grape variety when ripe has an attractive dark black color. This is especially the case when it comes to producing rich wines like Liquorosol. The wines from this grape variety have a more bitter taste as well as a higher tannin content than other wines.

A good example of a wine made from this grape variety is Liquorosol. Liquorosol bottles usually have an alcohol content of up to 18%. This leads to a longer aging process than usual.

To this day, the true origin of this grape variety remains a controversial mystery in the wine world. Currently, southern Italy – Puglia is the region known to grow a lot of these grapes. There are many theories that this grape variety was introduced from the Gulf of Croatia through sea-going merchants. The evidence is that in this region today many grapes with similar characteristics to Primitivo such as Crljenak Kasteljanski are grown.

In the history of the wine-growing regions, this grape variety has encountered many violent fluctuations. Since the 90s of the last century, the grape growing regions have competed with each other and increasingly made this grape variety less and less in terms of area. Until this century in Europe, only the fields in Italy remained, where you could see this grape variety.

In the US there is a grape variety called Zinfandel. It is a fact shown by genetic studies that these grape varieties are related to each other. The popularity and success of Zinfandel helped rebuild the reputation of Primitivo.

It is fortunate that in the 21st century we can enjoy premium wines from Primitivo.

True Wine presents you with wines made from this grape variety:

Edited April 2, 2022 by terrydtx

[markeb]

Most sources I know (including Italian wine importers) say that Primitivo and Zinfandel are genetically the same grape. Since they're pretty much all clones and not grown from seed, there's little or no genetic drift. But everything else about Puglia and California is different, without even accounting for the age of the vines and the skill and preference of the winemaker. I like both (also like Sonoma zins and Lodi zins, but they're very different as well) depending on my mood and whether I'm drinking it alone or with a meal, and what I'm eating.

[canderson]

If you spot this one, it's a real winner.  Had it on our November '21 Connie sailing:

 

 

[zitsky]

Had a bottle of Antinori about 15 years ago that I didn’t like.  Haven’t tried it since.  I would give it another try.

[bnurick]

12 minutes ago, canderson said:

If you spot this one, it's a real winner.  Had it on our November '21 Connie sailing:

 

 

Agree 100%.  This is a can’t miss choice. On Edge right now and it’s the 2018 vintage. Here are the Robert Parker ratings.  $140 on Fine Cut menu before 20% discount.

 

[markeb]

17 minutes ago, bnurick said:

$140 on Fine Cut menu before 20% discount.

 

 

Have you Googled retail on that one? That's a crazy value!

[dateacher]

While I am not on a ship, we did go to dinner and based on some comments here, I ordered a Pinot Noir from Oregon and it was delicious. Thank you.

 

Edited April 3, 2022 by dateacher

[MamaFej]

11 minutes ago, dateacher said:

While I am not on a ship, we did go to dinner and based on some comments here, I ordered a Pinot Noir from Oregon and it was delicious. Thank you.

 

Which one, please?

I've become a Pinot Noir fan lately, and would love to have suggestions. 

[terrydtx]

30 minutes ago, MamaFej said:

Which one, please?

I've become a Pinot Noir fan lately, and would love to have suggestions. 

I would love to know too, we love the better Oregon Pino Noirs. My wife is from Oregon and we both graduated from Oregon State University.  We spent a week last year wine tasting in the Willamette Valley. Oregon also has some excellent Pino Grix wines too. 

[canderson]

7 hours ago, markeb said:

 

Have you Googled retail on that one? That's a crazy value!

Yup.  They're selling it for just a few bucks above retail, if/where you can still get it.

@zitsky

Noted that you'd had an Antinori wine before that you didn't like.  Because you say you enjoy big reds, I will assure you'll like this one if you can score a bottle aboard.  This one is a true 'super Tuscan'.  That said, if I had a case, I'd still be cellaring it.

[markeb]

37 minutes ago, MamaFej said:

Which one, please?

I've become a Pinot Noir fan lately, and would love to have suggestions. 

 

4 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

I would love to know too, we love the better Oregon Pino Noirs. My wife is from Oregon and we both graduated from Oregon State University.  We spent a week last year wine tasting in the Willamette Valley. Oregon also has some excellent Pino Grix wines too. 

 

Even ignoring Miles (Paul Giamatti) in Sideways, Pinot Noir is such a rabbit hole! Not in the industry, but have friends who sell wines and have met more than a few winemakers. Everything about Pinot Noir conspires against the winemaker, yet somehow there are incredible examples. But they are completely different! When someone says (as people have on this thread) they love big California Cabernet Sauvignon, I have some idea what I think they're talking about (although there's much more variety there than people tend to think). But when someone says they're a fan of Pinot Noir, unless I've had a few that night or know them pretty well, I just shake my head and move on. Because most Burgundies are somewhat similar to most Willamette Valley wines, and at least seem familiar to Russian River, but have little in common with most of Monterey County, and wouldn't even be recognizable on the Central Coast...  (Overgeneralization and there are always exceptions.) So if you really love Santa Barbera, you'll likely hate Burgundy, and are unlikely to like Willamette!

 

Looking at my cellar tracker for things I liked enough to buy (which for Pinot Noir is generally going to be $25 and up; they're are good ones at $15, but they're harder to find, and I just don't remember them.

 

Around $25 and sometimes less

AVERÆN  from Willamette Valley

Imagery Estate (screw cap!) from Sonoma County, probably heavy on Russian River fruit (you'll find mixed reviews on this one)

Kendall-Jackson Pinot Noir Jackson Estate Anderson Valley. Definitely not a no-name KJ wine!

 

Up to $45 or so

Calla Lily Estate Pinot Noir Pinot Noir Reserve (actually from Napa, which isn't really known for Pinot Noir)

 

From Yamhill-Carlton in the Willamette Valley. My current vote for best Pinot Noir AVA in North America.

Gran Moraine Pinot Noir

Penner-Ash Pinot Noir Estate Vineyard

Pike Road Wines Pinot Noir Shea Vineyard

 

And so on. Yamhill-Carlton and Dundee Hills. Followed by Russian River. Did I mention I love Pinot Noir, but I also drink Merlot. So my name is NOT Miles...

 

 

 

[markeb]

3 minutes ago, canderson said:

Yup.  They're selling it for just a few bucks above retail, if/where you can still get it.

@zitsky

Noted that you'd had an Antinori wine before that you didn't like.  Because you say you enjoy big reds, I will assure you'll like this one if you can score a bottle aboard.  This one is a true 'super Tuscan'.  That said, if I had a case, I'd still be cellaring it.

 

The Antinori family arguably makes some of the best wines in Italy, and maybe the world. They may well be the Rothschilds of Italy. They are partners with Chateau Ste. Michelle in Washington in Col Solare, one of my absolute favorite wines, and between the two groups also own vineyards and wineries in California. They make some amazing wines.

[terrydtx]

1 minute ago, markeb said:

 

The Antinori family arguably makes some of the best wines in Italy, and maybe the world. They may well be the Rothschilds of Italy. They are partners with Chateau Ste. Michelle in Washington in Col Solare, one of my absolute favorite wines, and between the two groups also own vineyards and wineries in California. They make some amazing wines.

We have enjoyed many of the Antinori family wines from Italy. They have pricing of wines from very affordable to taking out a second mortgage. A good friend of ours, daughter is the tasting room manager at Chateau Ste Michelle in Seatle. 

[MamaFej]

I remember the first time I saw Pinot Noir chilled. It was at a hotel lounge in Santiago. I thought, "What the heck is a red doing in the chiller?" It was so good!

 

Shows you how much I know.

 

Later that year, at an onboard wine tasting, the presenting sommelier referd to Pinot Noir as "A white wine in a red wine costume."

 

I have tried several in the last couple of years, and there is definitely a huge variety. So much so, that I thought the waiter had brought me the wrong wine once. It turned out to be one I have enjoyed several times since, with a heavier feel than most other PNs I have tried. And, yes, it has a screw top. 

 

I guess my pallatte is not very refined. I like a $7 wine I get at Costco more than some $40-$70 wines. That works well for my budget. 🤷‍♂️ We do drink the nicer stuff on special occasions. The South Coast Winery club selections that arrive every 3 months stay unopened longer than the Costco wines. 

 

I didn't drink until I was 36 (my 19 year-old was born when I was 35: coincidence?)

I guess I never really developed taste for stuff I can't easily afford, anyway. 

[markeb]

4 minutes ago, MamaFej said:

I like a $7 wine I get at Costco more than some $40-$70 wines.

 

I do too! There are great wines at all price points. Anything over about $50 should be really good, and will likely get better if you lay it down and wait. The best thing ever is finding a $10-15 wine that you really enjoy and don't need a review from Parker (who has a tasting profile I really don't care for...) to know you enjoy it. And if you like it, who the *&%$ cares what anyone else says!

 

We have a great wine bar/shop/restaurant about two miles from our house, with great wine priced from "6 for 60" to $200 or so. Tonight's tasting for members was Italian wines and we left with 2 1/2 bottles (DW had fish and I had lamb...) of Soave Classico from the Veneto region of Italy. About $20 a bottle, but a very unique white wine that we both loved. Those are the fun finds that make wine great. And wine should be FUN! 

 

Also a BTW, most somms will tell you that Americans drink their whites too cold and their reds too warm. I might not drink a good Pinot Noir truly chilled, but it's probably best well below room temperature and most whites are best warmer than refrigerated (or iced). A good rule of thumb is to put a red in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before drinking, and to take a white out of the refrigerator 20 minutes before drinking.

[markeb]

29 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

We have enjoyed many of the Antinori family wines from Italy. They have pricing of wines from very affordable to taking out a second mortgage. A good friend of ours, daughter is the tasting room manager at Chateau Ste Michelle in Seatle. 

 

We think we'll be back there briefly in June. Really want to go over to the Columbia Valley (Red Mountain, Candy Mountain, etc.), but probably won't have time. Woodinville is a lot of fun. And I have to figure out how to get a bourbon home from the Woodinville Distillery...