Somewhat new to wine

take a look at mourvedre from provence (southern france) Bandol Aoc

these suckers require alot of chewing and are very full bodied when drunk young.

Domaine tempier or chateau pradeaux are two of my faves.

though am not fully sure of your price point

Welcome to the boards - nice screen name. I'm a bit of a parrot head myself.

You should talk to Parcival, he drinks a lot of heavy, full bodied wines.

I agree with g-man regarding mourvedre. You might also look for some bottlings of

Petite Syrah
Syrah (French ones from the Cornas region and some Aussie ones aka "Shiraz")
Look for Cahors, also

Agree with Haggis.
Concannon makes some Petite Syrah which is pretty chewy.

Thanks for the replies
I have been discovering Petite Syrah and find them quite pleasing.
I will look for some Mourvedre as well.
I have also discovered some great blends that I like quite a bit as well.

I usually run my wine thru a small, 3 stage aerator (don't really have time to decant).
It does seem to do a decent job of opening up the wine a bit.
Does anyone have experience with these cone shaped aerators? I wonder if by opening up the flavors more, it tends to make the full bodied wines more "fruity" in a way?

quote:

Originally posted by thelostverse:
Welcome to the boards - nice screen name. I'm a bit of a parrot head myself.

You should talk to Parcival, he drinks a lot of heavy, full bodied wines.

Too true, too true.

My vote for the truly full bodied, you can almost cut them with a knife wines:
--CA Cabs (younger is perhaps going to give you more of what you're looking for right now. Though, as I have learned, getting some age on this suckers opens up a totally different, but equally fantastic experience)
--CA Syrahs or Grenache. These, even to my young palate preferences, need some time. Open them too early and you're going to have some undrinkable swill on your hands with many of the big guns (e.g., Cayuse; Saxum). Many Rhone wines might suit your tastes as well
--CA Pinots - Kosta Browne in particular which some "accuse" of being a syrah is big and chewy

Happy Exploring

quote:

Originally posted by ParrotHead:
I usually run my wine thru a small, 3 stage aerator (don't really have time to decant).
It does seem to do a decent job of opening up the wine a bit.
Does anyone have experience with these cone shaped aerators? I wonder if by opening up the flavors more, it tends to make the full bodied wines more "fruity" in a way?

I use the Soiree aerator - it seems to do a decent job. The difference is subtle, but noticable.

If I don't feel like using that, I'll sometimes recork and shake the bottle (not recommended for unfiltered wines, though).

quote:

Originally posted by Dan Tien:
....Soiree aerator - it seems to do a decent job. The difference is subtle, but noticeable.

Compared to what?

PH

Compared to the three stager. Haven't you been reading this thread? That one does a decent job and this one does a decent job but it's apparently decenter.

Even I was able to figure that out. You gotta keep up!

But can you imagine if you poured through BOTH of them? Hands down that would have to be the decentest of all. The ultimate in decency as it were.

All the suggestions in this thread are good. You'd probably also enjoy Bordeaux wines from France. These are blends based on cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and a handful of other grapes.

A handy way to get started is carry around a map of the region. http://goutaste.com/wp-content...oads/BordeauxMap.jpg Many of the wines don't say Bordeaux on the bottle; they'll use a smaller and more prestigious place-name from within it. The areas to the left of the river are generally blends based on cab; the ones to the right of the river are usually based on merlot. All are chewy, and most will benefit from age and/or decanting.

Northern Rhone syrah might also be your wheelhouse. A wine map will also help you learn the place names here. The northern Rhone can get insanely expensive, but wines from the Crozes-Hermitage region are more everyday priced and a good introduction to the flavors here.

In the spirit of "teach a man to fish," you could do a couple things to find wines you like. (The spreadsheet is awesome!) I have a Delong Grape Varietal table at home:

http://www.delongwine.com/prod...grape-varietal-table

and it organizes a couple dozen of the best-known wine grapes by weight and acidity. You could try the ones near the bottom.

Also, get on a couple mailing lists for wine ships in your area, and go to the free tastings. With winter weather coming up, they'll probably be featuring lots of chewy reds. When you're out at restaurants, you could also ask to try a splash of a by the glass wine if it's one you haven't tried before.