Hi

Welcome. My suggestion has to do with your comment about drinking mostly cab and zin. When people say they don't like white wine (and I know you didn't say that), my response is that they haven't tried the right white wines. As for reds, there's an ocean of great wine coming out of Spain and France, especially the relatively affordable wines of the Rhone Valley. I'd suggest attending tastings and trying new varietals. If you can, get together with a group of like-minded people and taste the wines of different regions. I'm sure you'll find many that you enjoy.

+1 to what Board-O said. Welcome to the forums.

Awesome, thanks guys. If you have any recommendations that come to mind, I'd love to try a few.

quote:

Originally posted by masilva48:
If you have any recommendations that come to mind, I'd love to try a few.

I say this with no snarkiness, but asking for wine recommendations from people whose palates you are unfamiliar with is like asking the waitress at a restaurant what she recommends. Just get out there and drink some wine. You'll figure it out. And +1 on the welcome.

PH

I agree with what the guys above said. The reason you drink mostly Cab is because there's so much of it around Napa and Sonoma. In Napa, it would be dumb to plant something for which you would get half the price or less. Sonoma is not so much locked into Cab, so my suggestion is to look around Sonoma.

Napa does have other varieties, it's just that prime land goes to Cab and that's what people think about. But you like big wines, so look for Petite Sirah. There is some in Napa. And Syrah, there's some in Napa as well, but more and more interesting in Sonoma.

And you don't have to drink single grapes. As mentioned, there's a lot of great wine coming out of France, Spain, and elsewhere. Tonight I had a wine from Toro. If you like big Cab and Zin, it's something you'd likely enjoy but it was a fraction of what you'd pay out of Napa.

Anyway, good luck on your explorations!

quote:

Originally posted by GregT:
Tonight I had a wine from Toro. If you like big Cab and Zin, it's something you'd likely enjoy but it was a fraction of what you'd pay out of Napa.

It'd be a good idea, as Greg suggests, to try a Toro or other Tempranillo based wine, to see how you like a wine with a little more acidity.

Thanks everyone, much appreciated!

Echo what everyone else said and welcome

There's a great crew of folks out in San Fran. Meeting up with them would be a great opportunity to meet some good people and enjoy a wide variety of wines that might be off your radar right now

I really think you guys are missing the mark here recommending Rhones and Toros, etc. The palate of the OP currently likely prefers the profile of what's near him/her: California Cabs and Zins. Recommending that he/she go to something that is a significant change from what he/she said they like isn't good advice, IMO.

masilva48, I'd try Bevan Cellars. Good, big, easy-to-enjoy wines that I'd be you'd enjoy. Also, Bedrock makes some really great Zins that can be realtively easily sourced. I wouldn't call either of these marketly, "lesser-known," but they're good wines/wineries and you can find them. AND, the mostly won't break the bank.

Awesome, thanks so much for the help. My wife and I are headed up to Napa/Sonoma in a couple weeks so we'll go check them out.

Have any of you bought Roy Piper's cabs? I was thinking of buying the 2014/2015 3-pack. Would love to hear how they stack up in your opinion to others in that price point.

Thanks again!

Roy's wines are excellent. Do yourself a favor and try the Pinot Noirs around Sonoma. Much different than the cabs and zins you are used too.

IW

quote:

Originally posted by Italian Wino:
Roy's wines are excellent. Do yourself a favor and try the Pinot Noirs around Sonoma. Much different than the cabs and zins you are used too.

IW

Awesome, thanks man. I pulled the trigger on that Piper 3 pack.

And thanks for the tip on Sonoma pinots. A buddy was nice enough to pop a bottle of kosta browne this past weekend and we loved it. I'm now on the waitlist but will probably take a while to get off. If you have any favorites, please let me know and I'll go check them out.

Yes definitely try some spanish wines. Priorat is my favorite but there are so many others. If you like napa cabs, take some time to try bordeauxs and wa state reds as well.

Oh and i have yet to try a white i like ;-)

quote:

Originally posted by Red guy in a blue state:
+1 to what Board-O said. Welcome to the forums.

What Blue State said plus: ITALY

Thanks everyone, I really appreciate the help.