Red wine

Big Chris

Big Chris

Big Chris

Soldato
Joined
5 Apr 2004
Posts
5,461
Location
Bloxham
I've never been a wine drinker, I can't stand the taste of white and red has never really appealed to me either.

However, I'd like to give it another whirl as lots of my friends rave about "a good bottle of red" and all I ever drink is lager. I'm getting to the point where I'm out for nice meals more than I'm out on the large so it seems like a good time to make the transition.

So, where do I start?
 
Big Chris said:
I've never been a wine drinker, I can't stand the taste of white and red has never really appealed to me either.

However, I'd like to give it another whirl as lots of my friends rave about "a good bottle of red" and all I ever drink is lager. I'm getting to the point where I'm out for nice meals more than I'm out on the large so it seems like a good time to make the transition.

So, where do I start?
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Virgin wine club that's what I did , try some wines if you don't like them send them back or tell them if you have drunk one and they will refund you. Let them know about the ones you like,then ask for a wine advisor to recommend a case for you.

Failing that yellowtail Merlot is a nice smooth red to get you going for about £6.

If you go the wine club route let me know beneficial for both of us :)
 
If you can't stand the taste, then it isn't for you. Don't force yourself to drink it because your friends do, you'll never appreciate wine that way.

However, if you really want to, the best way to start getting 'into' wine is to try different country/region/grape/producer varieties to see what you like and what you don't like. Go on a tasting session to learn the basics (there's no better way to learn than the hands on approach) or buy some books (I recommend Oz Clarke's).

Avoid large chains of wine merchants and be careful with supermarkets as a lot of it is rubbish, especially the 'was £30 a bottle now £6' type of offers, however there are also some exceptional wines in them.
 
It's white I'm not a fan of, I've only tried red once or twice a few years back and didn't really take to it, but I've discovered lots of foods recently that I used to turn my nose up to yet now quite like, so I figured it might be time to give the vino another bash.

Not sure I want to start with a wine club just yet incase my tastes haven't changed, just wondered if there were any good reds that would ease me into things.

I'll give the Yellowtail a go divaboy, cheers :) Any other recommendations?
 
Well, with red I suggest starting out with something light, fruity, simple and not too complex in flavour. New world wines are your best bet, perhaps a Chilean Merlot, Argentinian Malbec or something from Australia, California etc. Anything like that, which is young (between 2009-2010 vintages) would be your best bet.
 
Can't go wrong with a Cru Classe of some sort! Bit more pricey, but worth it.

Get yourself down to your nearest Majestic warehouse and buy 6 bottles, one of which should be a Croix de Beaucaillou, which at £23 is a steal. Go in and ask for some recommendations as well as they're usually quite helpful.

If you can head down to Berry Brothers and buy there, it's where I like to go buy my wine and the selection is great and the staff are usually friendly, qualified and helpful. Also might be worth going to some wine tastings? Then you'll get a bit of coaching and you can try lots of different stuff.

I'd be happy to suggest more specific wines if you like. Just give an indication of price and I'd love to help get someone else into it!
 
Merlot's always a good shout for a cheap bottle. I'm a big fan of Cotes du Rhone also, dirt cheap over in France but we tend to stick a fiver on their price over here. If you want to spend a bit more (£8-9) then maybe try a Rioja or Pinot Noir.
 
Justin said:
Well, with red I suggest starting out with something light, fruity, simple and not too complex in flavour. New world wines are your best bet, perhaps a Chilean Merlot, Argentinian Malbec or something from Australia, California etc. Anything like that, which is young (between 2009-2010 vintages) would be your best bet.
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This.

These will also be reasonably priced, you don't need to spend much to get a perfectly drinkable fruity red wine (IMHO decent white is harder). Then when you try the more complex (generally more expensive) wines it's easier to make comparisons and appreciate their characteristics.
 
Start with desert wine and gortifieds and move on from there.
That if you like sweet stuff.
It's a how one of my mates got into wine.
 
Jaap74 said:
Pinot Noir is not too "heavy", could be a good introduction. Try one from the Central Otago region of New Zealand
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That's what I am thinking as well. Merlot is a quite heavy wine for starters. Begin with a Pinot Noir, move up to a Cabernet Sauvignon, then Merlot for a real sipping wine.

As others have stated, they need not be expensive. A £6 to £10 bottle should be just fine.
 
I got into red after drinking Brown Brothers Tarrango - you can chill it and is really quite drinkable.

I can remember the first glass of red I tried (probably 16) and tasted like liquidised plasticine... so not the best start! Love the stuff now!

Steer clear of the real cheap stuff but stick to the tried and tested countries/varieties first such as French (Cotes du Rhone), Australian (Cabernet Sauvignon) or South African (Shiraz or Cab Sav).

Get yourself down to your local wine shop and speak to a qualified sommelier and ask them for a nice light but fruity wine and go from there.
 
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