Advise on wine

[yama23]

I am thinking that I would to start to have a glass of wine after work every once in a while. I am in Ontario and wondering if anyone could suggest a good bottle of wine.
I would prefer a bottle of white wine that is sweet and not tart.
Any suggestions would be great thanks.

[bi-robin-calif]

Hmmm..a sweet white wine. Let's see...A Reisling, a liebfraumilch, both tasty, sweet wines. "White" zinfandel is sweeter yet. But the problem with Reisling is that it is a late-ripening grape, with low yield, so such wines tend to be on the higher end of the price scale.

Sauternes are" dessert" wines, and very sweet and flavorful. Very fruity.

My favorite sweet white wine is Dolce (http://www.dolcewine.com/), from Napa Valley. However, it is very expensive ($85 US/375ml). It goes well with fruit, cheese, chocolate.

Unfortunately, it is too expensive for my wallet these days.

[12voltman59]

Do you like red or white wines??

Do stay away from the "blush" wines like "White Zinfandel"--it may be sweet and many people like it--but it is basically a "pushed" wine--highly fortified with added sugars not with naturally occuring ones.

Whites do tend to be sweeter than reds --perhaps the "sweetest" true red wines are Pinot Noirs.

Some good whites are Vignoiers---Jacob's Creek from Australia makes a low cost Vignioer---there are also a number of California and Oregon wine makers making some good ones.

Pinot Grigios, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blancs are also good choices.

Sauvignon Blancs, Rieslings and Liebfraumilch

You can go with Desert Wines and go for a Sauterne or Ice Wine but both can be quite pricey---they are very sweet

There are some Chardonnays that tend towards "sweet" but most are really not so sweet and tend to be both buttery and oakey thanks to being aged in oak barrels

Wine is a really fascinating, broad and deep subject---the variety of wines is really an incredible thing--it is fun learning about wines....

I am pretty much a red wine drinker but for whites--I now prefer Vignoiers---especially now that summer will soon be here....they go good with things like grilled chicken breasts, shrimp, scallops or lighter white fish---

Good luck finding something you like--but please do stay away from White Zinfandels and wine coolers-----arrrgggghhhhhh!!!!!!!!!

[rutgerberit]

I'm not that into wine, byt I do love German white, half-dry wines from the Mosel valley... :tong: They're not too strong and not too tart, but not that sickly sweet like some sweet wines tend to be.

[meteast chick]

I am a sweet wine drinker myself, so I stay away from all red wines, especially merlots, and stick with the white variety.

My favorite is Johannesburg Reisling, but I do also like Pinot Grigio, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris.

luv and kisses,
xoxoxoxoxoxox
meteast

[littlerayofsunshine]

I enjoy Pinot Grigio or a Sauvignon Blanc. They are crisp and sweet without being Fruity or sugary. Nicely dry.

[innaminka]

Most of the German wines from the Mosel/Rhine region are sweetish. Rieslings and Moselles.
Pinot Grgio/Gris are quite a lot drier, but really fresh and the Sav Blancs you mentioned tend to have their peculiar fruitiness without actually being sweet.
As an alternative - try a Chenin Blanc - just a hint of sweet but luscious.

BTW be aware that the sweeter the wine - provided its not artificially beefed up, the lower the alcohol content.

[flexuality]

I am curious if anyone knows of any wine that is least likely to cause headaches?

Most people say stay away from red wine....but I find that white wine is worse for me.

I have actually been fairly okay with blackberry wine and it's cheap. I seem to have a heck of a time with any alchohol that has a lot of sugar or "color" added.

And I can't stand carbonated anything! :tong:

does that leave anything? lol!

[littlerayofsunshine]

flex,


I suffer migrains, so anytime I drink in excess, I get a headache. The drier white wines and sparkling wines a.k.a Champagne tend to effect me less. Red wines will set one off after a couple glasses.

[NakedBike]

Flex-someone else might confirm this but I think in the reds if they are sulfate free they are less likely to cause you distress. In general though the reds are not as sweet as white-a biggy for headaches post consumption but also the actual alcohal content to reds is generally higher 13 to 15%. I would think then a no sulphate red with a lower percentage of alcohal. While in Quebec last year my wife & I enjoyed some of their light local reds-some if not most were sulfate free. I personally find sweet wines are more prone to giving me headaches as do sulfates during allergy season.

[Orlando157]

If you are getting headaches from moderate wine consumption it's the winemaker - When they over produce the yield from the vineyard the graps lack flavor so MSG is added .. that's what cause the headache

Being up in Canada you have access to "Ice Wine" - This is rich almost like nectar - Check it out

Also Canada being so high up lattitude wise does great on the German grapes - Try the Reislings

A good clue to sweetness is to check the alcohol level - Since alcohol level is a direct refelction of the grapes sugar consumtion during the fermentation process the higher the alcohol the lower the residual sugar - Look for something around 5% to 6 % and use that as a reference point

My personal pick for great fruity wine would be the Italian Muscats - IMHO they are hard to beat and match well good company - They should be drunk slightly chilled and if possible naked :male:

[flexuality]

littlerayofsunshine,

I get migraines too...and clusters....although I don't find that drinking will always trigger a migraine. If I already have a bit of one...or one's starting....I don't DARE drink tho! :(

NakedBike,

You might be right about sulphates. And also I do notice that the sweeter the wine, the more likly I am to get a headache...almost immediately too. I'll have to watch for sulphates on the labels. Thanx! :)

Orlando157,

MSG's definately not a good thing headache-wise! :eek:

Never heard of Ice Wine....I'll hafta look for that!

I know there was a fairly dry red wine that I drank on occasion many years ago that I seemed ok with...but I can't remember the name of it. Cabernet S......? or something like that....wasn't too sweet, but tasted good. :)

[yama23]

Ha ha...roger that on the naked part Orlando157.
I will be indulging this weekend. I am going to start with a bottle of ice wine cause i have heard good things about it...chilled and i will be naked, and i will sample a bottle of Johnannesburg Reisling suggested by meteast chick...more than likely also naked.
I will let you all know what i find and thanks for all the great suggestions.

The funny thing is when i thought about the different types of wines and how i could figure out what would be the best wine for me, all i could think of was posting this topic on this site cause i knew everyone would gladly help me...this is really a great site.

[12voltman59]

To add to my previous post--regarding Viogniers--they too are not sweet in the sugary sense--they also have that "fruity" aspect to them and to my taste are very "fresh and clean"--not heavy like so many Chardonnays tend to be--at least to my palate----

For another incredible white--not sweet but a blend that is very crisp and light--- try a wine called "Conundrum" -it is not an inexpensive wine but a very nice wine experience---

Check out the link below for information on this incredible white wine:

http://www.conundrumwines.com/history.shtml


As the article notes--the wine was originally developed by Caymus Vineryards-the producers of one of the best California Cabernet Sauvignons

The only problem with Conundrum in the past is that it has been a limited production wine that usually disappears pretty fast once each year's vintage shows up in stores and it is a bit pricey---around $40 or so per bottle depending upon where you are located---but now that they are working to dedicate one production facility just for Conundrum---hopefully quantity will increase while price will moderate--I just hope they don't sacrifice quality though.....but then--with the type of people associated with the wine--I hope they remain dedicated to maintaining the quality of the wine.

P.S.--just by doing a Google search--I found a website that has the 2005 vintage on sale for $26.95 a bottle --that is a very good price------

[chook]

The best advise I can give you is drink that stuff in moderation :)


Cheers Chook :bigrin: