bajalera
Super Nomad
Posts: 1875
Registered: 10-15-2003
Location: Santa Maria CA
Member Is Offline
|
|
Wine question
Quite a while ago, somebody [maybe Gull, but I can't remember for sure) posted a lot of good info on wine, but I've been unable to find it.
Steve doesn't drink beer [somewhere I obviously went wrong as a mother and am sorry about that, but on the brighter side, he never races me for the
Negra Modelo). So I'd like to find a couple of reasonably priced wines--preferably, but not essentially, made in Baja California--that go well with
Mexican food.
The random sampling I've done has led nowhere, and I hope someone with wine smarts can give me some advice.
Lera
\"Very few things happen at the right time, and the rest never happen at all. The conscientious historian will correct these defects.\" -
Mark Twain
|
|
|
Dave
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6005
Registered: 11-5-2002
Member Is Offline
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by bajalera
So I'd like to find a couple of reasonably priced wines--preferably, but not essentially, made in Baja California--that go well with Mexican food.
|
There are no reasonably priced wines from Baja. There are some good to excellent wines that are very expensive and more that are of poor to average
quality which are 30-50% + overpriced.
IMO here are the best vintners:
Casa de Piedra
Monte Xanic
Chateau Camou
Santo Tomas (reserves & Duetto)
|
|
|
BajaNomad
Super Administrator
Posts: 4999
Registered: 8-1-2002
Location: San Diego, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: INTP-A
|
|
Dave pretty much hit the nail on the head in my opinion.
I will however note that at the Baja book authors' event recently, I sampled (and bought the last bottle - sans label) of a Nouveau/Novello-style wine
that I thought was pretty good... and cheap.
Since I don't remember the name of the winery, and the bottle I bought was sans-label, I would need help from others that were there with better
recollection. Keri?
Nouveau-style wine: this refers to a particular style of red wine that is fresh, youthful and fruity and designed to be ready to drink within weeks
of harvest. Nouveau wines will rarely improve with age, but will instead lose much of their appeal if kept too long. A festive atmosphere surrounds
the annual release of France's Beaujolais Nouveau, the most famous wine of this type, on the third Thursday of November and there are races to bring
bottles of the new wine to places around the world. Similar wine is made in the U.S. under the same name, and also in Italy, where it is called vino
novello.
Definition from:
http://www.fogwells.com/webworks/glossary/m-q.html#nouveau
When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people.
– Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
We know we must go back if we live, and we don`t know why.
– John Steinbeck, Log from the Sea of Cortez
https://www.regionalinternet.com
Affordable Domain Name Registration/Management & cPanel Web Hosting - since 1999 |
|
|
The Gull
Super Nomad
Posts: 2223
Registered: 8-28-2003
Location: Rancho Descanso, BCN
Member Is Offline
Mood: High
|
|
Dave is right
Low cost is not what I would call Baja wines.
If you are looking for a $15 Cabernet, it is hard to beat Los Vascos from Chile. It is made by Rothschild.
I suspect that some amount of importing takes place in Baja. If not, then Mexico City must have a distributor of international wines. You might just
ask your nearest liquor store who specializes in wine or the restaurant (Le Bistrot Francais or La Pazta) who has a larger wine list where they can
get quality and value wines for you.
�I won\'t insult your intelligence by suggesting that you really believe what you just said.� William F. Buckley, Jr.
|
|
|
bajajudy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6886
Registered: 10-4-2004
Location: San Jose del Cabo,BCS
Member Is Offline
|
|
We have a book on the wines of Baja...if you are interested
|
|
|
Bruce R Leech
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6796
Registered: 9-20-2004
Location: Ensenada formerly Mulege
Member Is Offline
Mood: A lot cooler than Mulege
|
|
I use Goto Negro Merlot for my every day table wine. if you shop around you can find it for about 50 pesos. they have a nice Cab. also. it goes good
with most anything . I don't drink much white wine so cant help you there.
Bruce R Leech
Ensenada
 |
|
|
elizabeth
Senior Nomad
Posts: 742
Registered: 7-30-2004
Location: Loreto, BCS
Member Is Offline
|
|
What is the book?
I actually have had some decent Baja wines for around 7-8 dollars...but of course I can't remember what labels right now!!!
|
|
|
wilderone
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3824
Registered: 2-9-2004
Member Is Offline
|
|
The LA Cetto winery has three wines (a red, white and "blush") which sell for about $3.25. They are all adequate table wines, and depending on what
you consider "Mexican food", would pair well with many meals. For instance the white would be fine with fish tacos or any fish; the red with carne
asada or quesadillas with salsa and guacamole; burritos; the blush type with chips/dips, certain appetizers-nuts, cheese. I can appreciate a great
wine and have had plenty to know the difference, but if you're heading south and want to stock up for the duration, these inexpensive wines shouldn't
be overlooked.
|
|
|
Hook
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9010
Registered: 3-13-2004
Location: Sonora
Member Is Offline
Mood: Inquisitive
|
|
My tastes run towards big, bold reds......
.......consequently, I like Zinfandels with mexican food especially if you are doing beef or red sauces.
In fact, I just put a bumper sticker on the truck that reads
"No vinos sin huevos"....someone sent it to me because of my penchant for colossal reds.
I have also been getting some really tasty Malbecs from Argentina that go pretty well with mexican food. The Famiglia and the Terrazas on the list
below are very good. There are also good ones from Argentina for under 10.00 like the Altos Las Hormigas.
http://www.winex.com/cgi-bin/ducs/display.pl/o__winesearch/a...
But, let's face it, mexican food is the one international food I can think of that pairs better with beer.
Has he tried the "beers" that don't taste like beer like Coors Light and Michelob Ultra?
PS-I'm with Dave, most all Baja wines are overpriced and/or underachieving. Argentina and Chile are kicking their collective arses.
[Edited on 6-27-2005 by Hook]
[Edited on 6-27-2005 by Hook]
|
|
|
BajaNomad
Super Administrator
Posts: 4999
Registered: 8-1-2002
Location: San Diego, CA
Member Is Offline
Mood: INTP-A
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by elizabeth
What is the book?
I actually have had some decent Baja wines for around 7-8 dollars...but of course I can't remember what labels right now!!! |
http://www.bajabooksandmaps.com/index.html?cp=http://www.baj...
http://tienda.bajanomad.com/cgi-bin/tienda.cgi?item_id=18912...
[Edited on 6-27-2005 by BajaNomad]
When I was young, I admired clever people. Now that I am old, I admire kind people.
– Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel
We know we must go back if we live, and we don`t know why.
– John Steinbeck, Log from the Sea of Cortez
https://www.regionalinternet.com
Affordable Domain Name Registration/Management & cPanel Web Hosting - since 1999 |
|
|
movinguy
Nomad
Posts: 257
Registered: 3-19-2004
Location: Chula Vista, CA and Tijuana, MX
Member Is Offline
|
|
| Quote: |
PS-I'm with Dave, most all Baja wines are overpriced and/or underachieving. Argentina and Chile are kicking their collective arses.
[Edited on 6-27-2005 by Hook] |
De acuerdo - try these guys too:
http://www.conchaytorousa.com/wines/diablo.html
Inexpensive and widely available . . .
|
|
|
sylens
Senior Nomad
Posts: 584
Registered: 4-6-2005
Location: Ensenada
Member Is Offline
Mood: ando bajando
|
|
Vinisterra Domino
Winetasting at Pyramid was Vinisterra wines, I believe.
Check out www.vinisterra.com
The Domino (red, white and rosada) is their line of wines to introduce non wine drinkers to the joys of wine. They also make a wonderful Tempranillo.
BTW Santo Tomas has also come out with a new, simple wine, called ST, supposedly for the novice wine drinkers...
Lili
|
|
|
yankeeirishman
Banned
Posts: 1070
Registered: 3-5-2004
Location: Kalifornia
Member Is Offline
|
|
http://www.chiff.com/wine/n-america/baja.htm
Nice descriptions here of the wine suppliers of Baja.
What control freaks there are here. Don\'t believe that post you just read!
|
|
|
bajalera
Super Nomad
Posts: 1875
Registered: 10-15-2003
Location: Santa Maria CA
Member Is Offline
|
|
Great! This is just exactly the kind of info I was hoping for.
My thanks to you all.
Lera
|
|
|
Dave
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6005
Registered: 11-5-2002
Member Is Offline
|
|
Well, I was going to write that I found Cetto Nebbiolo at COSTCO for 82 pesos and that's a fair price but...
I just tasted it and it isn't. The 2000 vintage isn't worth half that.
|
|
|
Gypsy Jan
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4275
Registered: 1-27-2004
Member Is Offline
Mood: Depends on which way the wind is blowing
|
|
Price and storage issues
I have been privileged to taste high end wines in many settings where they were kept in optimum storage situations.
But, when it comes to buying an enjoyable and tasty wine from a mass market retailer, whether it is Costco, Gigante, Comercial Mexicana, Calimax or
(in the U.S.) Trader Joe's; my advice is to buy the lowest cost bottle available (unless you know from experience that it is terrible).
The reason is that the lowest price bottles go out the door the fastest and are replenished the fastest, so you have a better chance of a pleasurable
wine experience.
[Edited on 6-30-2005 by Gypsy Jan]
[Edited on 6-30-2005 by Gypsy Jan]
[Edited on 6-30-2005 by Gypsy Jan]
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow mindedness.”
—Mark Twain
\"La vida es dura, el corazon es puro, y cantamos hasta la madrugada.” (Life is hard, the heart is pure and we sing until dawn.)
—Kirsty MacColl, Mambo de la Luna
\"Alea iacta est.\"
—Julius Caesar
|
|
|
bajalera
Super Nomad
Posts: 1875
Registered: 10-15-2003
Location: Santa Maria CA
Member Is Offline
|
|
And if they don't pan out, at least is wasn't an expensive experience. Sounds like good advice.
\"Very few things happen at the right time, and the rest never happen at all. The conscientious historian will correct these defects.\" -
Mark Twain
|
|
|
movinguy
Nomad
Posts: 257
Registered: 3-19-2004
Location: Chula Vista, CA and Tijuana, MX
Member Is Offline
|
|
| Quote: | Originally posted by Gypsy Jan
I have been privileged to taste high end wines in many settings where they were kept in optimum storage situations.
But, when it comes to buying an enjoyable and tasty wine from a mass market retailer, whether it is Costco, Gigante, Comercial Mexicana, Calimax or
(in the U.S.) Trader Joe's; my advice is to buy the lowest cost bottle available (unless you know from experience that it is terrible).
The reason is that the lowest price bottles go out the door the fastest and are replenished the fastest, so you have a better chance of a pleasurable
wine experience.
|
Unless obtained direct from the winery, most Baja wines have been transported/stored under, shall we say, unpredictable conditions. You can cook a
bottle of red pretty quickly in the summer.
I cringe when I see people buying $100 bottles of Bordeaux at Costco - don't know where that's been stored either . . . 
|
|
|
dono
Junior Nomad
Posts: 91
Registered: 9-11-2003
Location: Los Barriles B.C.S. Mex
Member Is Offline
|
|
Lera do you ever go to Costco in Cabo? they have alot of good Mexican and chilean wines aroud $5 to $10 that are very drinkable also City Club has
some good wines at a good price
|
|
|
![[*]](images/xmbforum/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
