The Wine & Whisky Thread

[Marco]

Not as far as I remember, dude. It was just labelled as 'Cidre de Normandie'. Bloody good it was, too - easily as good as the 'boutique' stuff you buy here for £8-10 a bottle!

It made some class fart gas afterwards, too!

Marco.

[Rare Bird]

Thats all that matters

[bobbasrah]

Meant to do this for a while, so...
Living right adjacent to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova (formerly part of Romania), good local wine is realtively cheap and plentiful here, and brewing has a long history.

Many of the nouveaux riche and young have a fascination with imports, and the traditional Feteasca Neagra is almost dismissed as common.... It is largely the same with the wonderful selection of beers, imported is best, swallow the ad while you are at it... Local brews are Ursus, Ciuc, Timisoareana, Silva, and many many more, predominantly Pils, but also dark ale-types.... 50p a pint is positively painful.

Local wines are plentiful, and can be purchased in plastic bottles from local producers by the road or in markets for less than a pound per litre. Most are cheeky little wines in that you get a nasty smack in the mouth without warning, usually followed by a headache if continued. It is traditional here to dilute the wine when drinking by adding water, which probably reduces but does not eradicate the after effects. Some of these home-grown smallholding wines however are truly sublime even if young, but it can be pretty hit and miss. Everybody makes wine here it seems.....

A 10 year old good Feteasca Neagra Sec at 4 quid a bottle may not impress here, but it is a superb traditional wine from a very different and old grape which is disappearing under the weight of demand for pinot-noir etc from the EU. This is a different wine to my typical Rioja choice, but is full bodied, and hits the tastebuds with subtlety, rather than taking a diversionary route via the gonads.

At home, it is time to get a bit of cheese out. No plastic bound Mature Cheddar (Cheddar here is as firm as spandex), but a 4 month old 2kg birch wrapped goat cheese courtesy of a shepherd (and his flock of goats grazing at 4000ft) for the princely sum of 5 quid. Crumbly full flavoured yet so young, it is not easily dismissed, and the combination with FN is absolute heaven.
Like the average Greek, Italian, and French, I cannot complain.....
I will post pics if I ever get photobucket to work.

Bob

[Alex_UK]

Really interesting Bob, thanks for posting. I envy the 50p a pint/£1 a litre for beer/wine - but I'd probably be dead in a month!

As for the cheese... not normally a big fan of goats cheese, but sounds intriguing!

[bobbasrah]

LOL Alex,
Alcoholism is indeed a big problem here, but at least the Government don't make a killing on it with duty because production is so widespread, unlike the UK. If everybody gave up drinking, smoking, and driving in the uk for a month, the exchequer would be in even deeper doo-doo. How so much income is wasted by government was always beyond me, other than in "rescuing" banks etc. in recent times for the benfit of the taxpayer. Ahem, yes..... Cough...

Brewing, Distilling, and Wine making (white and red) is widespread here and not the sole preserve of the commercial lads. Unlike the monopolies that exist in the UK, this makes taxing the hell out of it by Government here not a shrewd move. So prices remain relatively low, as is also common elsewhere in Europe.

All sorts of varieties are grown for commercial production in reds and whites, but the traditional grapes are very under-rated in this modern age of cabernet-sauvignon or Chablis with everything. Feteasca is made in red and white, and is rather good, if different.
Beer is almost exclusively commercial but with a staggering number of brands, and most breweries have been bought over by the likes of Heineken, Carlsberg, etc in recent years.

I neglected to mention Tsoika, as there is also traditional distillation here, ranging from moonshine that can kill or cure, to the commercial production line stuff.
Various sizes of shiny copper stills are made and on sale by the road in the summer months which would give Her Majesty's Inspectorate a heart attack. With a long tradition of home distilling, the chances of it being outlawed here are slim to none in the short term.

Mass produced cheeses are common (Cascaval) in the supermarkets, and most have the constistency of a Pirelli (inc Cheddar - Cedar), but goat, sheep, as well as cow cheese is available commercially.
Get up into the mountains or the outlying small farms however, and the locally hand made cheeses are still crafted the traditional way.
Wonderful to see this still thriving, and the Health and Safety nanny attitude which wiped it out in the UK is not welcome here thank god.... Long may it last.

[Alex_UK]

It is such a shame that side of UK culture has all but disappeared - even the local producers have to go commercial to survive... As you say, long may it continue where you are Bob!

[Marco]

Guys,

Aldi currently have about 7 or 8 very high-quality wines they've got in as a 'Special Purchase' for Christmas, one of which is a superb 2006 Chateau Tour Du Cauze Saint-Émilion Grand Cru:





...which is selling for a mere £9.95!!

Bear in mind, that a wine of that quality and vintage would normally cost around £20-25 a bottle, from a 'posh' wine merchant.... So, if you like quality claret (step forward, Barry ) get yer arse along to Aldi, pronto, as there is only a limited quantity available.

Incidentally, you won't find this wine (and the other 'Special Purchase' wines, such as Riojas, etc) in Aldi's usual wine section. You'll find them in the aisles towards the back of the store, in a separate section, near the Christmas chocolates, etc.

Also there, for those who love top-quality dessert wines, is a superb Beerenauslese, from Austria. Having enjoyed this wine numerous times in both Germany and Austria, I can vouch for its quality. If you prefer a white dessert wine that's not as sickly sweet as Sauternes, then the Beerenauslese should hit the spot nicely.

Have it along with some Panettone, Christmas cake, home-made shortbread or mince pies, and trust me, you'll be in heaven!

Again, hurry now, whilst stocks last!!

Marco.

[Tim]

Goodness, a Saint-Émilion Grand Cru for under a tenner - great shout Marco

[Tim]

Um £4 or £20 all the same crap

. . . tis Friday I reckon

[The Black Adder]

Guys,

Aldi currently have about 7 or 8 very high-quality wines they've got in as a 'Special Purchase' for Christmas, one of which is a superb 2006 Chateau Tour Du Cauze Saint-Émilion Grand Cru:





...which is selling for a mere £9.95!!

Bear in mind, that a wine of that quality and vintage would normally cost around £20-25 a bottle, from a 'posh' wine merchant.... So, if you like quality claret (step forward, Barry ) get yer arse along to Aldi, pronto, as there is only a limited quantity available.

Incidentally, you won't find this wine (and the other 'Special Purchase' wines, such as Riojas, etc) in Aldi's usual wine section. You'll find them in the aisles towards the back of the store, in a separate section, near the Christmas chocolates, etc.

Also there, for those who love top-quality dessert wines, is a superb Beerenauslese, from Austria. Having enjoyed this wine numerous times in both Germany and Austria, I can vouch for its quality. If you prefer a white dessert wine that's not as sickly sweet as Sauternes, then the Beerenauslese should hit the spot nicely.

Have it along with some Panettone, Christmas cake, home-made shortbread or mince pies, and trust me, you'll be in heaven!

Again, hurry now, whilst stocks last!!

Marco.

Very good gear indeed...

Personally I think 2010 was a from fantastic year for most mid region French wines so if I see a 2010 AOC I just buy it..