Dumb wine questions

[MargaritaMomma]

I used to lean more towards sweeter whites until a few years ago. I second someone else's recommendation for Vouvray (French), and other Alsace wines. Some German reislings and spatlese are actually very dry and I do not like the accompanying taste. Shoot for anything that says "late harvest" as it is bound to be sweeter and might help mask the funk that I detected in the dry german wines. Some people really do like that, but it's not for me. I used to like a "liquid desert" or ice wines, but those have since become too sweet for my palate. Also recommended as a bridge to the red wines was pinot noir and beaujolais. I also agree. You will also find an occasional sweeter, or "off-dry" red such as the dornfelder that I have in my collection now. If you are ever interested in really experimenting with the taste of wines, especially reds, find a wine bar (some of the newer ships actually have these) and you can order a wine "flight" which is a smaller pouring of several wines, usually grouped with a theme relating to their variety, orgin, etc. We had several flights at the wine bar on RCCL Mariner a couple years back. They even provided some snacks to go with which I highly recommend trying with the wines. We even brought along some chocolate, cheese, meatballs, and pizza on different occassions (on a covered plate) since the snack selection wasn't great at the wine bar after a couple days. Food really does effect the taste of the wine and can help you to broaden your horizons with wine. I now love some fabulous reds like old vine zins (if you like licorice some of these have hints of licorice), carmenere (Chilean), tempranillo (Spanish), and many French and Italian reds and red blends. There is so much out there now to try. The wine bar and wine flights are a wonderful concept. Share a flight with a friend and if one of you doesn't like one of the samples then maybe the other one will. One other recommendation I have with sampling reds is to try and stay away from S. African wines and stick with the European, Australian, and Chilean due to quality issues. Since I came from the same perspective on this issue as you just a few years ago, I wish you the best and encourage you to experiment!

[SusieV]

Serious wine connoisseurs once insisted that only white wine be served w/seafood and poultry dishes; red with meat.

 

Whoever told you that is NOT a wine connoisseur. It's an easy rule of thumb for people who know nothing about wine pairing.

[Carolina22]

We too, are "wine beginners". We are going on our first cruise in October and thought we would like to try wine at dinner, so we began purchasing a bottle here and there to experiment. We thought maybe by cruise time, we would find something we liked. We found this thread and it has given us alot of good information.

To be honest however, we have yet to find anything we like! It seems the cheaper it is, the better it tastes? Is that a bad thing? My husband says apparently the "good stuff" comes with a twist off cap and can be purchased at Wal-Mart!! LOL

I promise, we aren't rednecks but, it seems that if it has a cork, it tastes terrible. The problem is just that they seem so ......bitter? Maybe thats the word Im looking for. We were in the grocery store today and decided to try a "cheaper" wine, just to see if our theory was correct and actually it was! We bought a $7 bottle of Arbor Mist and thought it was pretty good!

I guess wine just isn't our thing, huh? :D Hopefully they will have sweet tea on board!!!

[ookpik]

Many of the good houses now are using twist tops!This is due to the increasing ammount of "corked" bottles and subsequent loss of good wine.

It takes a lot of getting used to,but is now more reliable than the inferior

cork being used.

[sultan_sfo]

Great that you have the courage to try some wines. All your comments apply to any wine. Most wines marketed today are "ready" to drink. Those higher priced wine (with corks!) are "puckerish" and have tannins that will allow the wine to "age" gracefully. So your DH is quite right! We drink wine every evening. I enjoy both the $4 Argentinian (Red) Malbec (Trader Joes) and the $100 Calif Cabernet. Right now I am drinking a new $7 Red wine from Costco which the wine guy at Costco recommended. I prefer dry (not-sweet) wines because I like spicy foods and don't eat much desserts. Keep experimenting and get to remember the names of the wines you like. DW drinks mostly chilled white wines because they go well with whatever she is eating! Neither of us are wine connoisseurs -- we just enjoy drinking./Sultan

 

We too, are "wine beginners".

...

My husband says apparently the "good stuff" comes with a twist off cap and can be purchased at Wal-Mart!! LOL

I promise, we aren't rednecks but, it seems that if it has a cork, it tastes terrible.

...

We bought a $7 bottle of Arbor Mist and thought it was pretty good!

I guess wine just isn't our thing, huh? :D Hopefully they will have sweet tea on board!!!

[momofcandj]

Can you buy a bottle in the dining room on Carnival or just by the glass?

 

Still debating if we will bring a bottle or not. We are so new to wine that we truly have no favorite and are experimenting.

 

I'm thinking maybe just buy a glass of a different wine every night and see if I like any. But if we find one we really like it would be nice to know we have the option of buying the bottle of it.

 

Im guessing it might be cheaper by the bottle rather than the glass?

 

Thanks,

[lhanson38]

Rhonda,

 

It sounds like you might enjoy some of the German offerings, which many people overlook. Try a nice spatlesen. It tends to be more fruity than dry, but a good one will have a proper amount of acid to balance the "sweet". Price wise German wines can be pretty accessable because the demand is usually much lower than wines from some of the more well known wine producing countries. Of course, you can also spend a ton of money if you're in the know.

 

Not all German wines are Blue Nun!!! (sorry if I offend any BN fans out there;) )

WoW do they really still make that.

[cruisinbuddy]

Thanks for the info. I'm really looking forward to trying things that I would normally never try.

 

Tom

Then make sure you do the wine tasting. Usually 2 whites and 2 reds. This way you can try them before you buy them.

There's also the 15 minute rule, well not so much a rule but; put you red wine in the fridge for 15 miutes before serving and take your white wine out of the fridge 15 minutes before serving.

[capncarp]

We too, are "wine beginners". We are going on our first cruise in October and thought we would like to try wine at dinner, so we began purchasing a bottle here and there to experiment. We thought maybe by cruise time, we would find something we liked. We found this thread and it has given us alot of good information.

To be honest however, we have yet to find anything we like! It seems the cheaper it is, the better it tastes? Is that a bad thing? My husband says apparently the "good stuff" comes with a twist off cap and can be purchased at Wal-Mart!! LOL

I promise, we aren't rednecks but, it seems that if it has a cork, it tastes terrible. The problem is just that they seem so ......bitter? Maybe thats the word Im looking for. We were in the grocery store today and decided to try a "cheaper" wine, just to see if our theory was correct and actually it was! We bought a $7 bottle of Arbor Mist and thought it was pretty good!

I guess wine just isn't our thing, huh? :D Hopefully they will have sweet tea on board!!!

 

A couple of things to remember:

The best wine for you is one you will enjoy drinking, whether it's highly recommended by the sommelier (cellar-keeper) or if you simply enjoy the ads they produce on TV.

Keep experimenting, with different types, with different foods, and at different times.

Always take a second taste--the first one may shock your tastebuds, but the second taste may reveal some pleasurable qualities.

Your tastebuds may change over a period of time, so don't be surprised if you start liking drier or sweeter wines.

Read up a little about some wines, go to your local wine shop and ask a few questions, pick up some wine literature there, or check out the internet for things you might like to try.

Most of all, ENJOY!:D

[karlym]

There's one thing you should do with wine. White wine take it out of the fridge or cooler 15 minutes before you want to drink it, and red wine, put it in the fridge for 15 minutes before you want to drink it. Make sure you go to the wine tastings on board. This way you can try a sample of a few wines and not worry if youdon't like it.

 

You nailed it. I heard it as the 10 minute rule but it is the same. White chilled until 10 min before serving then take it out of the fridge and put the red in for 10 min.

 

Regarding red wine and breathing that someone mentioned: just opening the bottle does nothing. Red wine needs to be poured (preferably into a carafe but a large wine glass would work in a pinch) at least a few minutes before serving/drinking in order for the air to mix with the wine. That is what is means to let it breathe.

 

Karlym

[Moonbeamsun]

Also pouring is an art in itself. A good pourer will give the bottle a little clockwise twist, in the pouring position ( if you/they are right handed, anti, if left handed) just after filling the glass. This stops the "drips" falling on the tablecloth, or you!!;)

[Born Cruiser 2]

Born Cruiser here. Just thought I'd share:

 

My husband and I are boarding the Westerdam in Ft Lauderdale this Sunday for a 14 day B-T-B. With the current wine markup we found it to be advantageous to bring our own wine.

 

Holland handles the same wines we drink "at home", but with the excessive markup, our under $10/bottles of wine will now cost $39 or more, plus 15%

gratuity. Since we can open two bottles at dinner most nights the tab can

become costly, too say the least, for two weeks.

 

We found an excellent way to transport a case of wine: My rolling "document case" (lawyer's rolling briefcase) which has two combination locks. It will hold exactly 12 bottles of wine, wrapped and snugly packed. It can be "locked" and checked directly to your stateroom.

 

You can find these "document cases" at Office Depot, or the "other" office

supply store. A good way to bring a case of wine without breaking your back!

 

Our plan is to refill the case when we return to Ft Lauderdale for the 2nd

leg of the cruise.

 

Bon Voyage to all!