BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Wine question about wine recommendations

Are there any sites that make recommendations based on what you like? I went out to dinner recently and had Tobin James Ballistic and really loved it. I liked it so much I went out and got a bottle right after dinner.

I would love to find more wines like the ones I like. Any places I can go other than some pricey wine shop to get good recommendations?

How about here?

Tobin James Ballistic is a (red) Zinfandel from Paso Robles in California. It retails from the winery at $18.

I love Zin for its upfront spicy berry flavours, and if that is what you liked about this wine then the first alternatives are other California Zins.

Ravenswood are a very reliable producer that makes Zins at many proce points, least expensive being their 'Vintners Blend' at around $8.

Moving away from Zinfandel, another red in the same flavour spectrum would be Shiraz, of which there are many at all price points, avoid the very cheapest and you should really enjoy them. Australia is making some great ones.

When you get tired of Zin and Shiraz go a bit further and try Petite Sirah from California and Malbec from Argentina.

Thanks Peter. I tried the Ravenswood (good but didn't thrill me like Ballistic). I've tried many Shiraz (mostly Australian) and loved most of the ones I've tried. My favorite is Wolf Blass.

I will definitely try the others you suggested and let you know what I sample. I did try Washington Hills Syrah last night and loved it.

Oh and I found a site that pops up awesome recommendations based on what you like. It's called snooth.com (it's kind of like itunes for wine).

Awesome indeed!!

For the Tobin James Zinfandel 2005 I clicked on 'Browse Similar' and selected USA wines and Snooth listed

Chateau Ste Michelle & Dr Loosen Riesling Eroica 2008
Chateau Ste. Michelle Cold Creek Vineyard Chardonnay 2007
J. Lohr Estates Riverstone Chardonnay 2005
Domaine Drouhin Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2007
Robert Mondavi Fume Blanc 2005
Makers Mark Bourbon
and more

Good though these are, I cannot see that a selection of white wines and a whisky have any similarity to a red Zin!

I agree, no similarity at all but the really funny thing is I happen to love Makers Mark Bourbon and I'm a big chardonay drinker too so maybe these crazy computers are getting smarter and smarter.

I guess this is what web 3.0 is? I'll have to ask Jill. She seems to be up to date on this web trend.

I suggest you the most convenient way of selecting wine and that is online wine search in which you not need to find out each and every wine brand but you will get a wide list of wines according to the variety, year etc.