BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Wine Wine Picking

Does anyone have suggestions on how to pick a good wine?



-Sam

If you are in a restaurant you can ask the sommelier. Tell them what you like (white vs. red, dry vs. semi-dry, etc.) and they will be able to help you select a nice wine. Also, tell them what price range you want to stay in so that they don't break your budget.

It's a bit harder if you are in the store. I have sometimes had good luck by asking the clerk which wines are the best sellers. A lot of stores post the Wine Spectator ratings which are fairly helpful.

What are some good wines?

It depends on several factors such as your price range, preference, and what you are going to serve it with.

Personally, I do not generally care for white wines so I will pair everything with a red wine. Some of my favorites are merlots, pinot noir, cabernet, and syrah.

I have had some excellent wines in all price ranges. Some value priced wines that I like are Robert Mondavi's Pino Noir Coastal, Jacob's Creek Shiraz, Blackstone 2002 Cabernet, and Blackstone Merlot.

My husband is actually the wine connoisseur in our family but when I am forced to make a wine decision and I don't recognize any of the available wines, I will always go with Robert Mondavi. His wines are available in a variety of price ranges and rarely do I find one that I just don't like at all.

You pick a good wine the same way you pick a good car or a good television or good art. You can either rely on your own knowledge or rely on someone else's knowledge.

I always recommend relying on one's own knowledge. Like any other knowledge this takes some time to acquire.

Do you like soda pop? Do you like all soda pop flavors and brands? For every soda flavor/brand there is someone who thinks it is good and someone who doesn't like it. How did you figure out which ones you liked and which ones you don't like?

Your question "What are some good wines?" is easy to answer, but bear in mind, the answer to this question may be very different from the answer to the question "What wines will I like?"

In budget wines I suggest you look to Chateau Turcaud for both red and white, Bodegas Montecilla and Faustino for reds and any maker of Wehlener Sonnenuhr for whites.

Of course, if you don't favor "Old World" wines or Riesling then these good wines won't be good for you.