Wine recommendations.....

[TheBoyBilly]

....as I am a lucky bloke really. I have the best of neighbours and would like to show my appreciation at Christmas. There are three households involved, one single lady and two couples (one with kids who I will get a selection chocolate box each for) I would like to buy a fairly decent bottle of plonk for the adults. I was thinking of playing safe with whites for the ladies although I am a red man myself. What would you suggest? I would think £15-20 a bottle would be nice considering I would be buying 'blind,' as I appreciate price isn't always the best indication of quality.

Bill

 

[MossCommuter]

If it has to be white try this and think of nettles and buttered toast:

http://www.sawinesonline.co.uk/sa-w...itsig/constantia-uitsig-constantia-white.html

If you think the sweet stuff would be appreciated then, this (you should find single half bottles on sale somewhere... try Selfridge's):

http://www.eclectictastes.co.uk/shop/product-240-donnafugata-ben-rye-2008

They're my two current favourites in that price bracket, anyway.

Can I be your neighbour please?

 

[MossCommuter]

I should have said; the Ben Rye goes really well with Christmas Pud

 

[TheBoyBilly]

MC you are very welcome to be my neighbour. I am very lucky, as I said before. No noise and very considerate and helpful, I think these folk deserve a nice little present and I know they all like a drop of wine. £45-60 isn't a lot for having 'next-doors' like these.

Bill

 

[slowmotion]

Give them some fizzy stuff. Very few couples dislike that.

Edit: There will be some really good deals a few days before Christmas, I would guess.

 

[Ashtrayhead]

Try and buy organic wine = no hangover! (Ocado have a good selection, with customer reviews)

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Try and buy organic wine = no hangover!

You've got to be kidding, although actually I only buy organic heroin for it's non-addictive qualities! i

 

[SavageHoutkop]

No, really, I agree. I think it might be due to lower sulphur content but I'm not sure.
Although having said that in the higher price brackets you'd hope that the wine is good enough quality for this not to be an issue; but at the lower end of the price scale it's almost always true...

 

[Gareth]

Interestingly enough, I do not suffer hangovers from Organic wines, or Ciders & Perry naturally brewed without using the usual chemical fermentation stoppers or fining's: It is usually the smaller local producers that brew these.

I never get a hangover from the rather potent Wines, Meads, and Root beers that I home-brew, but these are all completely natural: from foraging the wild growing berries, fruits, flowers and roots, gathering the honey from our hive (I brew wines & root beers with honey instead of sugar), using rain water from the butts in the garden, and capturing and nurturing wild yeasts to do the brewing with.

For 3 or 4 years now, when we have bought a commercially made wine, it has usually been one from the range offered by Broadlands Wines; My link mainly because they offer something different to the usual wines offered by the supermarkets, and the Asda superstore here in Norwich often has Broadland wines on the 3 bottles for a tenner offer.

 

[wiggydiggy]

If you start now, you can brew your own

I'd recommend an Elderflower and an Elderberry, the best bit is once you give them a couple bottles of each you can keep the rest for yourself lol

 

[Gareth]

I have successfully brewed an Elderflower Champagne and an Elderflower Bucks fizz from dried Elderflowers purchased from my local herbs & spices stall on the market. It just so happens that I bottled up the Elderflower Bucks fizz last Sunday morning, and I hope that it will ferment out between now and Christmas to be a successfully dry, if not Brut Bucks Fizz by Christmas morning.


Here is a link to how I home-brew (an out of season) Eldeflower Bucks fizz: My link

 

[User482]

Elderflower sparkling is absolutely delicious - if you can find it, try Lyme Bay. They serve it at River Cottage with a cider brandy-marinated cherry.

 

[wiggydiggy]

I have successfully brewed an Elderflower Champagne and an Elderflower Bucks fizz from dried Elderflowers purchased from my local herbs & spices stall on the market. It just so happens that I bottled up the Elderflower Bucks fizz last Sunday morning, and I hope that it will ferment out between now and Christmas to be a successfully dry, if not Brut Bucks Fizz by Christmas morning.


Here is a link to how I home-brew (an out of season) Eldeflower Bucks fizz: My link

Cheers

These arn't my recipes but I use this site: www.zen37219.zen.co.uk/recipes.htm

I'm currently following the Carrot Whiskey, and the Banana and the Peach wines.

I think I'll try adding some fizz to some of the Peach as I think that one may be best suited? I tasted the 'whiskey' the other day and it nearly blew by head off - very strong and medium drink

 

[lukesdad]

Mersault.

 

[Shadow]

I think these folk deserve a nice little present and I know they all like a drop of wine. £45-60 isn't a lot for having 'next-doors' like these.

If you know what they like, give them something similar or, to be adventurous, something totally different. Go to your local independent wine merchant and you can find some really quality stuff at £12+. Please, please stay away from supermarkets. And stay away from cheap fizz, there is a reason its cheap, its generally awful and if they enjoy half decent stuff they won't appreciate it!!!

The Wine Warehouse is close to you. Or PM me, I can deliver to your door! (I'm in the trade, if you hadn't guessed).