Red Table Wine suggestions

Bota, Hardy's and Black Box all have very good box wines with no added sweeteners or flavors as some do. For guests who do not drink a lot of red wine, I find the red Zinfindel goes over pretty well. Refrigerated, I get a minimum of 4 weeks from a box of red wine before the taste changes significantly. For those who like a sweet wine, Hazlett Red Cat is an excellent choice as is Fulkerson's Red Zeppelin. Both NY Finger Lake wines.
 
In general avoid inexpensive American wines. If you do some research you find that nasty fungicides are allowed to THE DAY OF HARVEST!!! Along with god knows what attitives the winery doesn't have to disclose. In general French, Italian, and Spanish wines are more 'real' and are usually quite good in the $10+ range. No to say there aren't great American wines but they usually start in the $20-30+ range.
 
I don't think we have too many reds here, but I tend to support the northern Michigan wineries (up in the Traverse Bay area/Old Mission Peninsula), like Chateau Grand Traverse. Their 2012 Silhouette looks to be an interesting blend: https://cgtwines.com/wine/reds/2012-silhouette/ . They have a really nice semi-dry Riesling that we are fond of at Casa Wildcat.
 
I'm a bit of a wine snob, as my parents own a winery in St. Helena in the Napa Valley, I have a small vineyard in the Santa Barbara County, and I'm always traveling around for the perfect red. I recently tried this: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry...g-red-wine-malbec_us_582c9445e4b030997bbcca29 and can say it really represents value if that is what you are after. If, instead, you are after the very best with price being no object, PM me and I'll hook you up. If you aren't sure, I recommend you try as many varietals as possible to narrow down what makes YOUR taste buds sing. Then you can focus on choices (region, subregion, and maybe even vineyard specific) that give you the most pleasure out of that particular grape or blend. You'll get red wine as it is very much like music...everybody has their own specific taste and none are wrong: My family and myself focus on old-world style wines that are true to the varietal and terroir. New world wines popular today are more fruit-forward (flavor bombs, if you will) and often contain additives to please many, but I don't judge those who like this style. To each their own and the only way to find what you like is to try many.
 
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I'm a bit of a wine snob, as my parents own a winery in St. Helena in the Napa Valley, I have a small vineyard in the Santa Barbara County, and I'm always traveling around for the perfect red. I recently tried this: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry...g-red-wine-malbec_us_582c9445e4b030997bbcca29 and can say it really represents value if that is what you are after. If, instead, you are after the very best with price being no object, PM me and I'll hook you up. If you aren't sure, I recommend you try as many varietals as possible to narrow down what makes YOUR taste buds sing. Then you can focus on choices (region, subregion, and maybe even vineyard specific) that give you the most pleasure out of that particular grape or blend. You'll get red wine as it is very much like music...everybody has their own specific taste and none are wrong: My family and myself focus on old-world style wines that are true to the varietal and terroir. New world wines popular today are more fruit-forward (flavor bombs, if you will) and often contain additives to please many, but I don't judge those who like this style. To each their own and the only way to find what you like is to try many.

Very cool. What's the name of the winery?

My nephew just moved to Napa about a year ago and is now working in the industry. He was a chef in Philadelphia for 10 years prior. They just bought a house so I guess they are staying!
 
Very cool. What's the name of the winery?
Villa St. Helena. They sold the business to a conglomerate but still own the vineyard and sell the fruit to a number of wineries in the area. It's a great place to live if your nephew is in the business. It's not a great place if you are not IMHO. I left decades ago when I had kids to raise. Now that the kids are gone, I've re-entered the business and just getting started (first plantings last year), but in a different area.
 
Wine can be pretty intimidating on a few levels, which is a real shame. What I would suggest is to find a good wine merchant. Wisconsin has always been a decent market for the industry so hopefully that should not be a problem. You are in the SE...it might be a challenge if you were in Prairie du Chien, (I know, I've been there). If not look for a large retailer that has in store tastings like Total Wine. Remember price does not indicate quality. It's an indication of either the market, (think eat crap, a billion flies can't be wrong) or the owners ego. I was in the industry for 15 years, trust me on this one.

Pick a country, the best values come tend to come from France and Italy, South America for specific varieties. Pick a region, Beaujolais, the Rhone, Piemonte, etc. Buy a couple bottles and find an area you like. There is more then enough info on the internet to fill in the missing pieces.

As far as the Mediterranean Diet, I would say, from my cardiologist, the only way to lower cholesterol is to take a statin and switch to a plant based diet. I did and in the words of a fellow who I don't remember, in 30 days I lost a month. I now take a statin and am mindful of what I eat...like that big NY Strip I washed down with a nice nebbiolo d'alba.
 
Just tried a bottle of red called Cooper and theifs it's a dark red that was aged in whiskey barrels.it was great give it a try
 
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The Vacu Vin. About $10 on Amazon.

It sucks the air out and helps prevent oxidation of red wine.

We have one of this -- my wife doesn't like my nickname for it -- the corksucker.
 
I imagine you could put any kind of wine you could think of on a red table ... or any color table for that matter ... :rolleyes:

PS ... does this count as a "red wine"?

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That's my "rumatiz medicine". A small glass with some cheese and crackers makes a nice bedtime snack. Stuff's tasty, and guaranteed at least a month old by the time it hits the shelves ...
 
Can you people please put your great minds together and stop bickering amoungst each other so I can really learn something here?

My wife can't even enjoy a glass of fine wine because it makes her sick and wondering why.

I have a Serbian friend who makes wine, she drinks that and she feels good.

He does not use sulfites and I think that's what makes her sick.
 
Just tried a bottle of red called Cooper and theifs it's a dark red that was aged in whiskey barrels.it was great give it a try

We just had that one last week. It's a nice full body with a port like feel without the sweetness. We enjoyed it.
 
Can you people please put your great minds together and stop bickering amoungst each other so I can really learn something here?

My wife can't even enjoy a glass of fine wine because it makes her sick and wondering why.

I have a Serbian friend who makes wine, she drinks that and she feels good.

He does not use sulfites and I think that's what makes her sick.
That could certainly be the case, I've heard anecdotally that some people are sensitive to added sulfites. Does she experience something akin to an allergic reaction? Some people are in fact allergic to sulfites.
 
That could certainly be the case, I've heard anecdotally that some people are sensitive to added sulfites. Does she experience something akin to an allergic reaction? Some people are in fact allergic to sulfites.

Yes sinus problems and headaches.
 
Can you people please put your great minds together and stop bickering amoungst each other so I can really learn something here?

My wife can't even enjoy a glass of fine wine because it makes her sick and wondering why.

I have a Serbian friend who makes wine, she drinks that and she feels good.

He does not use sulfites and I think that's what makes her sick.
You may want to try sticking with organically and biodynamically produced wines without added sulfites. I don't subscribe to much of the mythology of biodynamics, but most people in that camp have what could best be described as 'extra-organic' practices.
 
Sounds like an allergic reaction, stick to wines without added sulfites. The other poster may be able to point you to varietals that produce less sulfites naturally during fermentation as well.

They pretty much all have sulfites.

Listen, I'm going to freely share an idea.

Design and make a ball that fits into the wine bottle, you drop it in, you move it around, swirl it and let it remove all of the sulfites, chemicals etc.

Alright so there, I gave you a great idea now make it happen before someone else does! ;-)"
 
Sulfites are a byproduct of fermentation. You might be having a reaction to histamines. The levels used in making wine are small by comparison to dried fruit.
 
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