Wine!

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  • Kontikiboy
    Kontikiboy Forum Participant Posts: 304
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    edited March 2019 #122

    Hi DSB, 

    Not if you want any decent wine!     I know each and everyone has different tastes and pockets and that is evident from this string.   But if you want decent wine and want to improve the quality of wine you drink, keep away from these warehouse places and small supermarches.   Some of the bigger Carrefoure SM’s have some reasonable wines, but at a price.  SM’s always get the rubbish at a cheap price then make a good profit, but it is not the best wine.    Most decent wine producers don’t let much of their good wine leave the country of origin!

    Try and source your wine locally wherever you are touring, there is always somewhere to get good wine, just ask the locals.   We are in Spain at the moment and know a Belgium guy on the site we are in and he sources fantastic wines at very reasonable prices.   We have a garage full of great wines.    We may even need to top up before we leave as we are enjoying them so much.    But you will never see these wines in a supermarket, anywhere.

    Our Belgie friend and his wife are taking us to a nice restaurant in  Benicarlo tomorrow, it’s Raul Resino’s, a bit special, so let’s see what we get to eat and what wine?   Oh, and it’s a special menu including the “in season” artichokes, or Alcachofa.    Will let you know how it goes.

    BillC

  • nelliethehooker
    nelliethehooker Club Member Posts: 13,636
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    edited March 2019 #123

    Popped into Lidl at Stamford yesterday and they had different varieties  of Blue Heron wines on offer. Came away with a couple of Cinsault, a spicey red, at half price....and it certainly tastes very pleasant.

  • brue
    brue Forum Participant Posts: 21,176 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #124

    Just for once I can recommend something, we've been hanging on to a 2014 half bottle present of Jurancon, Petit Manseng but we had it with our pudding tonight. A sherry glass was just right. Not usually keen on anything sweet but this had a nice tang. 🍸

  • moulesy
    moulesy Forum Participant Posts: 9,402 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #125

    Sainsbury's have their "buy 6, get 25% off" at the moment, so with judicious saving of nectar points, I managed to get 12 bottles for ...er ... 18p yesterday. 6 Silver Loki Sauvignon Blanc and 6 Barefoot Malbec. Enough to keep us going till Easter! embarassed

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #126

    Thanks for the heads up Chris.  Will be visiting this weekend......  wink

    David

  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,856 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #127

    Waitrose doing the same at the moment. Shame is I don't think I need anymore wine at the moment!!!

  • Goldie146
    Goldie146 Club Member Posts: 2,448 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #128

    Do you only buy wine when you need it?

    You should always have some in hand "just in case"!

    I have to confess we have quite a lot in hand - to cover all eventualities (from "it's a nice evening, let's sit outside with a bottle of wine" to "It's been an awful day, let's open a bottle of wine" and everything inbetween.

    P.S. - some good offers here, if like us prefer to buy English wine - 

    Three Choirs Vineyards

  • Goldie146
    Goldie146 Club Member Posts: 2,448 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #129

    Sorry for the cumbersome looking link - but click it and it works!

  • brue
    brue Forum Participant Posts: 21,176 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #130

    We'll soon be doing a tour of our local vineyard, Wraxall, it's on the edge of the Mendips, south of Shepton Mallet just off the Fosseway. Maybe the Romans tried it there first?! It will be interesting to see what they are producing and try a few samples. smile

     

  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,856 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #131

    I am sure I could have forced myself but we tend to use boxes of wine as Margaret usually only has one glass of wine which usually means I end up finishing the rest of the bottle!!! I have probably got several dozen bottles of wine in the cupboard so enough to be going on with!

    David

    PS I edited your link to shorten it.

  • Goldie146
    Goldie146 Club Member Posts: 2,448 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #132

    David

    PS I edited your link to shorten it.

    Thank you! I could have done, but rushed off to start making dinner.

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #133

    Does anyone have any experience of Naked Wines?  I've just had a £75 voucher and wondered if it was worth it - or perhaps I will end up by paying around  £75 more for the wine in order to save £75.  I've never used them but wines look relatively expensive to start with.  Is it worth it?

    David

  • Goldie146
    Goldie146 Club Member Posts: 2,448 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #134

    I used a voucher once - and it did seen a good deal. We liked the wine, but felt very pressured to suscribe. If I remember correctly, you paid so much a month and got wine cheaper.

    And then the rather aggresive marketing started. 

    Just hold you nerve and say "no" to future "may be good offers".

  • Boff
    Boff Forum Participant Posts: 1,742
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    edited April 2019 #135

    i've used the voucher in the past.  And the wines were alright at the discounted price. if you think that is damning with faint praise, you wouldn't be far off the mark. 

    If you are serious about wines, do yourself a favour, join the wine society.  No hard sell and exceptional customer service.  

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited April 2019 #136

    I've decided not to bother Boff..  I've been doing a bit of reading around, and am getting stories of Angels, wings and paying £20 a month by direct debit.  There sound like there have been a few horror stories!

    David

  • Wherenext
    Wherenext Club Member Posts: 10,585 ✭✭✭
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    edited October 2019 #137

    For those who just want a decent quaffing red then try the exceptionally good value Costieres de Nîmes currently on offer at Aldi, about £5.99. I have in the past recommended a different CdeN from them but that sold out. This seems to be their replacement.

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited October 2019 #138

    I'll have a look for it Wherenext.

    David

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #139

    I really must share this Prosecco from Aldi.  It's £8.99, so not one of their cheapest offerings, but IMHO, a very worthwhile Prosecco.  A little sweeter than most (a sort of apple/ with a sweet lemon taste), but very pleasant indeed......

    David

  • cyberyacht
    cyberyacht Forum Participant Posts: 10,218
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    edited November 2019 #140

    My stock of red obtained at the wine supermarket in Calais back in June has now been exhausted. I shall have to start paying UK prices now. frown

  • DavidKlyne
    DavidKlyne Club Member Posts: 13,856 ✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #141

    David

    Not a particular lover of sparkling wines, Champagne being the exception, but only in moderation!  However I noticed in Waitrose today they also had Prosecco for the same price but they also have a 25% off offer for six bottles of any wine over £5 a bottle. The offer applies to six bottles or more and includes boxes of wine and fortified wines. 

    David

  • brue
    brue Forum Participant Posts: 21,176 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #142

    I just looked in on menu of the Italian restaurant in our family and they are selling Vaporetto Prosecco to the customers. Having drunk it I'd say it's another one to try. A bit more per bottle than DSBs but I would guess it's not as sweet.

     

  • cyberyacht
    cyberyacht Forum Participant Posts: 10,218
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    edited November 2019 #143

    I see from the web this morning that the UK are averaging 108 bottles per year. Clearly I'm not pulling my weight.

  • brue
    brue Forum Participant Posts: 21,176 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #144

    Nor me...wink

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #145

    I assume that is per person CY.  Taking it that there are a few folk who don't drink wine, I guess that puts all wine drinkers above this average...

    David

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #146

    I'm more of a red wine drinker, David, but am generally not a fan of white wine.  However, I do quite like sparking white.  I generally get in a bottle of Prosecco if we have a pizza!  Only occasionally buy champagne - special occasions or Christmas.. laughing

    David

  • SteveL
    SteveL Club Member Posts: 12,299 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited November 2019 #147

    Went shopping at Sainsbury's today. They currently have the double up offer on Nectar points. We hadn't realised as they had an old email address for us so we hadn't been told. The offer covers various things including taste the difference wines. So obtained 4 bottles of our favourite Gigondas £60, for £30 worth of Nectar points. There might be other ways to do it but I downloaded the Nectar App onto my phone, scanned our card, which then let me download a £60 evoucher for use at the checkout. All while we were wandering round the store, isn't technology wonderful, occasionally.😂  The offer only lasts another 5 days, so if you have any points going spare you will have to be quick.😀

  • Riba
    Riba Forum Participant Posts: 70
    edited November 2019 #148

    Any of the Yellow tail and Gato negro range do it for me 😀

    We bought alot of French wine back with us from our last holiday, but it's all local stuff we found.

  • SteveL
    SteveL Club Member Posts: 12,299 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    edited May 2020 #149

    We decided as we couldn't go to France this year, France could come to us. I recieved an email from a vineyard near  Vacqueyras in the Provence. We had visited it whilst in the area and liked their wines. I suspect, because they are at the end of a long narrow road and track, sales are somewhat down. They supply a lot to local restaurants, which of course are closed. They were offering a discount on shipping using FedEx. This resulted in the wines costing less than comparable ones here. Currently we are still taxed as part of the EU, so possibly not the case next year.☹️

    They arrived first thing this morning, exceptionally well packed. Boxes of 6 each bottle suspended in a plastic and cardboard sleeve, so any bumps and bangs wouldn't be transmitted to the glass. Although we haven't tried these wines as they are 2019 the harvest last year was very good. In fact the weather was so good, it was almost over when we arrived in mid September. The weather is picking up Thursday and Friday and I foresee a BBQ to road test one of the Rose.😀🍷

  • DSB
    DSB Club Member Posts: 5,666 ✭✭✭
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    edited May 2020 #150

    Sounds like a good deal Steve. Glad the shipment arrived safely.  Do let us know how it all works out.  The proof of the pudding.... and all that..... laughing 👍👍

    David 

  • ADD46
    ADD46 Forum Participant Posts: 437
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    edited May 2020 #151

    SteveL that looks good. Enjoy your bbq and wine. 😊