Anonymous
Post 07/17/2014 09:18     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
How much to spend? I think $20 is nice, anything other than the $10 and under generic. One way to look at it is if you were going out to dinner, you would pay a lot more so be generous. There is also the opposite problem from what this thread discusses -- I have occasionally brought a very nice bottle hoping it would be opened but alas I never got to taste it.
Anonymous
Post 07/17/2014 08:30     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:1st world problem


Uh, yeah. That's were we live. Get over yourself and find a new zinger. First world problem is old and overused.


+1. The most useless post on any thread is the tired "1st World Problem" bullshit. STFU.
Anonymous
Post 07/17/2014 01:21     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:People are not just wine snobs on this thread but nasty wine snobs, is it possible to change the heading? It is always tricky when someone brings a generic wine to dinner. My sense is that most people expect you to open it, which I usually do but I also try to open something else and if necessary I will sneak it into my glass because wine is something I enjoy and I won't enjoy generic wines.

As for the $20 gift, that is a very good price point for finding some nice wine. I also agree with the advice of asking an employee at a good wine store and I like to ask for "something different that they will not have tried before," and then if it gets opened while you are there, you also get to try something new. One of the best things about wine is there are a bazillion and exploring new wines is always fun, and if it is no good, not much lost.

I never serve what people bring, I just save it for later. If its something we like we drink it later. If its not to our taste, we usually just re-gift it later or use it to cook.
Anonymous
Post 07/17/2014 01:19     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:NP here, I love Yellowtail.

My friend always serves yellowtail so when I go to parties at her house, I drink water.
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 23:29     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:You may like Yellowtail or Cupcake but you really should not bring them as a gift to someone's house. Drink them at home.


So how much should I spend on a bottle to bring to someone's home?
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 23:28     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
You may like Yellowtail or Cupcake but you really should not bring them as a gift to someone's house. Drink them at home.
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 23:24     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
NP here, I love Yellowtail.
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 23:19     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Cheap is not always bad. I love Cupcake's Moscato D'Asti. Try it, OP!
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 23:01     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:Could those of you who know wine recommend a 20-30 bottle of good wine to bring as a hotess gift? Or under $20? I dint drink eine, always have to adk for a recommendation at the store. But a couple of ideas might help thise if us who struggle wih this dulemma and run the risk of bringing sn "undrinkable" wine!


Under $20 red wine: I like LAN Rioja and Marques de Caceres, also a Rioja. Good with red meat, especially.
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 22:58     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
I love the buttery oak barrel chardonnays. ..bbring me all the bottles!
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 14:39     Subject: Re:If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Could those of you who know wine recommend a 20-30 bottle of good wine to bring as a hotess gift? Or under $20? I dint drink eine, always have to adk for a recommendation at the store. But a couple of ideas might help thise if us who struggle wih this dulemma and run the risk of bringing sn "undrinkable" wine!


Your best bet is California chardonnay. It's still America's most popular wine. There are wine snobs (including me) who got tired of it and went through an ABC ("anything but Chardonnay") phase, but most people like it, it's very versatile, and very easy to find. If the hostess isn't into Chardonnay, she'll still have no problem serving it to guests, or find an occasion to make an exception to her chardonnay rule.

Chardonnays that are reliable, easy to find, and in your 20-30 range or lower: Sonoma-Cutrer, Simi, Acacia, Chalone, Chateau St. Jean, Dry Creek, Ferrari-Carrano, Kenwood, Kunde, Geyser Peak, Wente. On the cheaper end, Dynamite, Estancia, Fetzer, Folie a Deux, Greg Norman.

For red, don't feel you have to bring a cabernet. Many people think so, but cabernet is expensive--a lot of the $20 ones are blah (though some are good), and cheap ones are going to be darn hard to find. If you must have one, Worthy is good, $25-30, and not that hard to find. It's the second wine of Axios, a high-end (some would say cult) cabernet. On the cheaper end, Dynamite is reliable.

Instead, go for an Argentine Malbec -- Catena is a good one and easy to find. (They also have a good cabernet.) Or a zinfandel. Reliable zins are Seghesio, Ridge, Rosenblum, Dry Creek, Frog's Leap, or Ravenswood (but not the entry-level $11 "vintner's blend"). A fun and a little cheaper one is Plungerhead. Cline makes an affordable one.

Wines to avoid: Anything under $10 (there are exceptions, but ...), anything with a cute name or an animal on the label (yellowtail, little penguin), anything that is available in magnum (1.5 L size) at the grocery or convenience store, generally anything that is stacked in boxes near the cash register.


No one I know drinks Chardonnay, ymmv.

OP, if it were a potluck I would put it out with everything else. If a dinner party I save it for later, then re-gift to someone who doesn't mind cheap wine, or use it for sangria for my book club.


Was out in Napa and Chardonnay is popular again!



Me too! But not the buttery oak-y barrel kind.
Yuck.
Anonymous
Post 07/16/2014 00:07     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
Anonymous wrote:1st world problem


Uh, yeah. That's were we live. Get over yourself and find a new zinger. First world problem is old and overused.
Anonymous
Post 07/15/2014 22:40     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
1st world problem
Anonymous
Post 07/15/2014 11:38     Subject: If you are a wine snob....
People are not just wine snobs on this thread but nasty wine snobs, is it possible to change the heading? It is always tricky when someone brings a generic wine to dinner. My sense is that most people expect you to open it, which I usually do but I also try to open something else and if necessary I will sneak it into my glass because wine is something I enjoy and I won't enjoy generic wines.

As for the $20 gift, that is a very good price point for finding some nice wine. I also agree with the advice of asking an employee at a good wine store and I like to ask for "something different that they will not have tried before," and then if it gets opened while you are there, you also get to try something new. One of the best things about wine is there are a bazillion and exploring new wines is always fun, and if it is no good, not much lost.
Anonymous
Post 07/14/2014 21:30     Subject: Re:If you are a wine snob....
9:57 here. I totally agree that the best solution is to ask an employee at a good wine store (like Schneider's, Macarthur, Ace, Calvert Woodley, etc.) But OP gets that--she said she always has to ask at the wine store. And she asked instead for some suggestions here that might help. I offered some. Not necessarily my personal favorites that I would pick, but ideas that (a) are easy for OP to find, (b) are in her price range, and (c) are likely to appeal to a broad range of people. I personally don't drink that much chardonnay, but I'd be very happy if someone brought me a bottle of Sonoma Cutrer or Dry Creek. Most wine snobs probably have their preferred cabernets or pinots or whatever, but I think trying to bring a good one at a reasonable price to a dinner by someone you don't know is probably a fool's errand, or at least is going to involve more misses than hits.

Just trying to provide the suggestions PP asked for, that would be helpful to someone who doesn't know anything about wine. (And might be looking at the grocery store or whatever store is on the way to the dinner.)