How frightfully snobbish. I've never had a bad bottle of Faustino.

My personal favourite Reds are New Zealand Pinot Noirs, Waipara Hills or Montana are good choices, Tesco do the Montana Reserve for £9.98.

I read about this site a while ago
http://www.lovethatwine.co.uk/

Not really - its just an opinion. The wine is expensive, comes in mock frosted bottles and everytime i have tried its not been worth the money. In spain it is sold everywhere and always on show at the airports etc. Huge amounts of it are bought by tourists who don't really know what they are getting but because its expensive and looks 'old' they think they are buying something special.

Any Rioja grapes is the best.

Originally Posted by ShiftyDundee
How frightfully snobbish. I've never had a bad bottle of Faustino.
_____________________________________________________________________

Never even heard of it. How snobbish is that?
Alan

Sorry, my mistake!

that made me laugh. ive always liked faustino and never bought it because it looked old, theres only one that ive seen in a frosted bottle and the rest are normal.

But saying that i like loads of wines, esp the wolfbass shiraz

I know. I'm just kidding. It's not expensive in Spain though. At least it wasn't when I was there last year.

Blimey loads of great suggestions, going to buy one tomorrow, I'll let you know which one I opt for.........

Sajid78,
I'm looking forward to hear what you decide. If I were you I'd settle for a really fine Burgundy. Burgundy goes with any meal. My personal recommendations would be Gevry Chambertin, Pernand Vergelesse, or Auxey-Duresse. Up to you but those wines will steal the show compared with any new world wine. In my opinion Shiraz, like Syrah, is alcoholic and peppery ... not suited to Turkey, Chicken, Beef, or Pork. Chateauneuf du Pape is too big a wine unless well-aged. I have some 1995 Vielle Vignes that is about right now. The stuff you buy in Supermarkets is highly priced and wishy-washy.

My personal favourite wines are from Portugal but the average wine buyer thinks of Portuguese wines as Mateus Rose. Good, I can enjoy first class wines at half the price.

Oz Clark was probably referring to Faustino 1 (see http://www.drinksdirect.co.uk/acatalog/faustino_1_gran_reserva_red.html)

Faustino V11 is widely available & looks similar because it's produced by the same company & sold in their "family" bottles, but there the resemblance ends. It is aimed at the mass market & the modest quality & price reflects this. As with most things in life, you get what you pay for ...

I agree with some of your other comments though.


Perhaps some of them know more than you .................. think.


Well no, it really isn't ...

probably!

i think when you're looking for a bottle for around a fiver, things like the Aussie Shirazs / Cab Sauvs are usually more hit and less miss - but that's probably down to my preferences for something more full bodied.

always preferred them to French stuff - which you probably have to spend a bit more to get a better bottle.

Iain

Nah, I agree with you there.

I don't tend to spend more than a fiver on a bottle of wine normally, and like the punch of a full-bodied red as well ... and yes, more often than not end up with a Shiraz.

The one I mentioned in my previous post (Barolo) is glorious, but I tend to make the most of it when I'm at home vitising my folks. My dad gets it straight from the wine makers in Piedmont at a fraction of the price.

Barolo's "lesser cousin" Nebbiolo - same grapes, simpler process - is almost as yummy and quite a bit cheaper, but I've never found it here in the UK.

I don't really drink much red these days myself, but my recommendation would be try to hunt down a good local wine shop if you have one, we have Theatre of Wine just down the road from us and all i do these days when i want something is go in there and ask what they think i should get for the price i have in mind. Maybe we're a bit spoiled but friendly local experts are always good.

St Emilion or Barolo .............Lush

I went for the Faustino V Rioja Reserva in the end.
Here is the Description:
Faustino V Rioja Reserva 75cl
Price
£9.99/unit
£9.99/75cl

Description

13% abv.



Region/Country: Spain, Rioja

Producer: Bodegas Faustino Martinez

Wine Maker: Rafael Martinez

Grape Varieties: Tempranillo, graziano, mazuelo



From our vineyards of Cuesta Clara, Los Trinos and Malpica, 85 hectares of vines with an average age of 23 years old.

Fermented at 28º C and macerated during 23 days.

Aged for 16 months in new American oak barrels from Pennsylvannia and 2 years in bottle.

The Regulating Council of Origin Rioja gave the official qualification of 'Excellent' to the 1995 vintage.



Faustino is the leading exporter of high quality, award-winning Reserva and Gran Reserva wines. Faustino adopts the 'French château concept'. From growing its own vines to vinification to bottling, Faustino's aim is to maintain the highest control over production. Its range represents a palette of styles and vintages to show Rioja at its very best.



Faustino's owned and managed vineyards are located in the upper part of Rioja Alavesa, and enjoy the best geographical and climatic conditions needed to produce the highest quality wines: short, hard winters, land characterised by foothills, gorges and hillsides, neither too much nor too little sunlight, and finally, enjoying an altitude of between 400 and 600 metres.

Manufacturer

BODEGAS FAUSTINO,

OYON,

ESPANA.

Preparation

It is powerful, elegant and delicate. Mellow smoothness combines with tones of fresh grape.

Rich strawberry and raspberry fruit is the keynote of this wine, with complex notes added by its ageing in barrel.



It is the quintessential meat wine - the ideal partner for anything from a steak to a Sunday roast, but it is in fact much more flexible than that.



Drink it with: a rocket salad, (lightly chilled) with tuna and other seared fish, robust pasta dishes, with Moroccan spiced tagines, medium curries like a lamb rogan josh or with French bistro fare like lamb shanks or duck confit, with a moussaka or vegetarian chilli. It's a great all-rounder for cheese.

Country of Origin

SPAIN
Packaging

Bottle
Alcohol

Alcoholic content: 9.75 units

Alcohol by volume: 13%


I have no idea what that means, hope I made the right choice!

My family is originally from Piedmonte... I love the wines from that region, mind you I love most Italian wines. Fortunately Irtalian wine is very underrated which means you don't have to pay the earth for some very good wines... result.

You could do worse than try these guys http://www.italianwinesociety.co.uk/

My current fave for quaffing is Montepulciano D'Abbruzzo which I buy in my local Aldi for the princely sum of 2.75 a bottle But I'm also rather a fan of a sicilian.. Nero D'avola

On the subject of Barolo, I think you'll struggle to find a good one in this country for less £15 a bottle.

I really don't like red wine.......I've yet to find one which doesn't taste of vinegar.
I guess I have an uneducated palate.

The little known Brouilly is gorgeous, as is Nuit St Georges and Grand Sangre De Toro Crianza

I like the Nero too - not too far away from it, the Primitivo (which I think is originally from Puglia) is also yummy and cheap.


I was stupidly tempted by a £8.99 special offer once (Tesco or Asda, can't remember which), and it tasted like diluted water, not the "meaty" 14% I was expecting. Never again. I'll save my Barolo, Nebbiolo, Barbaresco et al for when I'm in Italy or in a decent wine shop now.

*polishes affectionately the six bottles of Barolo 2000 I got for Christmas *

mmmm.... *makes plans to call on EvilMeMeMe in order to help*
I'm down to my last 2 bottles I have a '97 and 2000, still I'm moving to Italy next year so *doing little dance of joy*

I agree with some others that a good Barolo would fit the bill.

Or yet another alternative from the same region.. Barbera D'Alba. A very good one can be had for tenner

Agreed. Even though I never usually drink wine, if I do, I only ever drink white wine.

I most certainly wouldn't drink Jacob's Creek white wine from Australia though! To me, it tastes like drinking cleaning fluid!