| Author | Message | ||
     86129squids |
Hey all- a good buddy just recently made me aware of an outfit called "Last Bottle", based in CA natch, which sources, procures and offers some pretty interesting wines, at DEEP discounts. I've been watching their emails (daily), and finally bit on today's Zin offering. Tennessee only has allowed interstate wine shipments for a few years now- what the local wine store may have will be wildly different than what's available via mail order. (TN's wine and spirit distributors are wacky and parochial, always have been.) So, I'm a new subscriber to Last Bottle- if anyone I know cares to sign up and buy wines from them, I get a $20 spot credit. (Yeah, I'm cheap, and know full well that a wine collector habit can be dangerou$$$...) Long story short, if you wanna, shoot me a PM with your email and I'll put you on their line. Or not. One of my 2016 resolutions is to drink less cheap beer and more good wines and stuff. Thanks all, and Heppy 2016!  | ||
| Pwnzor |
Gretchen and I are members of two different wine clubs at Yonah Mountain and The Cottage We buy so much wine locally, I can't really see ordering more from the interwebz, but never say never... I'll check it out | ||
| 86129squids |
I've yet to start seriously looking at local wineries, WAAAY too sweet and blech for me- but I've heard a few rumors that there may be better offerings nowadays. Do tell whatcha know! I'm no expert, not by a stretch, but certainly an enthusiast! | ||
| Thumper74 |
Lake Erie has a great micro climate for wines... We have TONS of wineries here. I'll have to load you up soon! | ||
| Big_island_rider |
Love good wine. I am in high-end food and beverage and am a sommelier. Had some 1974 Robert Mondavi Napa Cab Sauv the other day. It was the pre-cursor to Opus One. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Up until recently, we were part of the club at Frogtown (link not included because f*ck them) until the owner and his wife treated us rather poorly. That being said, they have some really great wine, and I cut my wine teeth on touring California's central valley and Napa areas, with Wild Horse and J Lohr being among my favorites. However, since the multiple episodes of douchebaggery at F-town, Gretchen and I have been exploring the rest of the North Georgia mountains and have found there are some very good things to be had. I didn't mention Three Sisters before, because I was referring only to the clubs we belong to. However, Three Sisters has the distinction of being the only vintner in Georgia using grapes grown exclusively on their own property. It's a very homey, family owned outfit. Very friendly cat who lounges around soaking up the residual love radiating from the transient winos such as myself. Right now, on my top shelf you'll find the following labels:         Three Sisters is closed for the season, so we're all out of there stuff... it can be had at some of the package stores, but I like buying it in person. I do pick up a few bottles a week from the grocery store, usually J Lohr, Wild Horse or Rodney Strong. Reds. We only do white rarely, and it's usually ice wine. We also enjoy Cottage's "Baby Doll Legs" which is a rose wine. | ||
| Teeps |
86129squids Posted on Friday, January 01, 2016 - Hey all- a good buddy just recently made me aware of an outfit called "Last Bottle", based in CA natch, which sources, procures and offers some pretty interesting wines, at DEEP discounts. I've been watching their emails (daily), and finally bit on today's Zin offering. Not into "Fine Wines", but I've heard good things about Castle Rock Winery in CA. | ||
| Tootal |
Next time you're at TWO head on down 60 to Wolf Mountain Winery. Awesome place with a great view and excellent wine. You will need a torquey motor to get up the driveway! http://www.wolfmountainvineyards.com/ | ||
| Ducbsa |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mA5AyjYQtz0 | ||
| 86129squids |
Thanks for the tips, folks! Big'un, I've been in restaurant work most of my life, currently settling in at the Knoxville Flemings. I've always been interested in maybe pursuing sommelier certification, but since I had a severe nose injury at age 5, I dunno if I could REALLY parse the fine differences needed. Matthew- I've been on a Pinot Noir kick lately, enjoyed a '13 Gary Farrell cuvee 16 yesterday... how are the ones you've tried down there in GA? | ||
| 86129squids |
Oh, and who wants to check out that Last Bottle site? Holla! I've got 2 bottles shipping of Elyse Zinfandel Morisoli Vineyard 2011 first of the week...  | ||
| Pwnzor |
Well as a matter of fact we were at the Cottage and Yonah Mountain today and spent about $650 on various bottles, so the bar is full and we're all smiley. Picked up some reserve Pinot Noir, very good indeed. | ||
| Airbozo |
We are members of a couple of wine and spirits clubs. Chronic Cellars in Paso Robles has a great collection of drinkable wines and a few long term gems. Their sparkling wine, Spritz and Giggles is another inexpensive treat that you will enjoy. They are great people as well and go out of their way to keep their club members happy. https://www.chroniccellars.com/ Roederer Estate produces the best sparkling wine I have ever tasted. The L'Ermitage 2007 happens to be THE best of the best, especially when served in the Magnum (yes there is a significant difference). Champagne and Sparkling wines usually give me a headache or stomach ache, but not these wines. Proud club member. http://www.roedererestate.com/index.php Re:Find Distillery in Paso Robles was a surprise find for us. We stopped in a couple of years ago to the Villicanna Winery and found out they were distilling what the California Alcohol Board forces them to call "Clear Brandy" (Vodka) and "Botanical Brandy" (Gin). There wines are good, not great, but they have done a great service distilling the grapes into several different Spirits (The Rye Whiskey is due soon). The Vodka drinks like a fine wine and has a viscosity found normally only in wine. http://www.refinddistillery.com/ We have dropped a couple of our club memberships from Napa due to the high cost and general snobbery of the owners and most of our wine trips are now to Paso Robles. Since we live in the Santa Cruz Mountains, we also have about a dozen wineries in close proximity and visit them a couple times a year. | ||
| Hootowl |
Not a wine of the month guy (those are usually the stuff the distributors can't move) but I know what I like, and can discern between varieties. Reds anyway, no interest in whites. I can't tell you what vinicultural region a wine comes form though, my palate is not that refined. If you like fruit bombs, try Petite Petite. There are two elephants on the label. It's petite syrah and petite verdot. Amazing at around $15 and available at most grocery stores. http://www.michaeldavidwinery.com/?method=products .productDrilldown&productID=04BA7F6B-B0B4-673B-75C 8-33E9948A5677&originalMarketingURL=product/PETITE -PETIT-13-12/750-ML Pay no attention to the price on the web site. I bought a bottle last week for $13 something at the local HEB. I've probably bought a hundred of them over the years. | ||
| 86129squids |
Roederer: Oh YEAH. I'm gonna try to give sparkling wines as much attention as still wines, but that will take some effort. A real good NZ sparkling wine I've enjoyed a year or so ago for the new year, and one I can offer from the list at work, is Sophora- kind of a light rose sparkler, yum. For some reason all my favorite wines are from Paso Robles- Justin cab, Robert Hall merlot, and a white I'm forgetting now... Re:Find is definitely something interesting! If they're doing all that stuff, are they doing anything like grappa? Hoot, I love a good petit syrah, I'll look for that one. Bogle is my go-to, haven't seen any others I remember here lately. | ||
| Aesquire |
If you ever make it to western NY, get a hotel room and take a Winery tour, in a minibus. ( the only safe way to try 52 different wines! ) The local stuff is quite good, with dozens of young mini wineries popping up all the time. The area is full of micro climates, and the slopes of the Finger Lakes are supposed to be just like blah blah Tuscany blah France,....you get the idea. | ||
| 86129squids |
Just went in with my neighbor on some 2014 Weather RRV Pinot Noir today... gotta be careful, talk about SERIOUS impulse purchase danger! OTOH, I'll be set for some good picnickin in the spring! Oh yeah Hoot- if you find any Earthquake petit syrah, grab a bottle or 2, good stuff. | ||
| Hootowl |
"if you find any Earthquake petit syrah" One step ahead of you...and I agree, that's a good one. Petite Sirah is my favorite grape. | ||
| Airbozo |
No Grappa. Yet. Wouldn't put it past they in the future. People just have to ask for it I suppose. Pretty funny that we went in to taste their wine and found out they made vodka. Until the 1st of the year they could not sell vodka directly to the public, but they can sell brandy. The labels were different, but the alcohol in the bottle is the same. They also have to keep the tasting sections separated and minors cannot be in the distilled spirits section. Liquor laws are funny. I have actually been looking into what it takes to start a distillery and it is a mess. Every permit or legal paper starts and ends with the local fire departments sign off. It can be a circle jerk too. |
