DS Forums

 
 

Which bottle of Wine?


Reply
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Old 11-09-2008, 16:28
Dave 8o]
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Leeds
Posts: 1,642

Help. I've been invited round to dinner, by a work colleague and his wife, as I'm going to be spending a couple of days working with him down in London.

I'd like to take a bottle of wine with me (as a thank you) but I know next to nothing about wine, I don't generally drink wine, mainly because I don't like it. Can anyone suggest a nice bottle of wine that I could take with me?

I don't want to spend a fortune, but I also don't want to buy a £299 bottle of plonk either.
Dave 8o] is offline   Reply With Quote
Please sign in or register to remove this advertisement.
Old 11-09-2008, 16:41
degsyhufc
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Up North
Posts: 58,791
I don't want to spend a fortune, but I also don't want to buy a £299 bottle of plonk either.
Sounds like your taste is out of my league


I watched a show the other day about celeb wine. They said they were good wines and also a bit of a novelty factor. The Gerard Depardieu came out with good marks.
degsyhufc is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-09-2008, 19:09
Dave 8o]
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Leeds
Posts: 1,642
Sounds like your taste is out of my league


I watched a show the other day about celeb wine. They said they were good wines and also a bit of a novelty factor. The Gerard Depardieu came out with good marks.
Whoops I meant £2.99
Dave 8o] is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-09-2008, 19:19
Minky_Bum
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 4,307
I always find that a bottle of Pinot Noir (Red ) or Chablis (white) goes down well. They're easy drinking kind of wines and most people like them.

You know, your hosts will probably provide wine with the meal so why don't you go for a bottle of something bubbly to kick it off - a cava or a sparkling wine (or champers if budget permits)
Minky_Bum is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-09-2008, 19:43
the ravenous priest
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Posts: 10,596
I really like Glen Carlou wines.... they often have them on offer in Tescos... I think normally speaking they retail at around £12-15 depending on the type... personally I like the Zinfandel, or the Tortoise Hill White. I recently gave a bottle of the Zinfandel to my boss who knows a thing or two about wine & he was well impressed.
the ravenous priest is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-09-2008, 19:53
shazzyfizz
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 5,210
Probably a good idea to find out what's on the menu and then take red or white according to what's being served.

Alternatively you could take a nice sparkling wine which you could have as an apperitif. NZ Lindauer rose always goes down well!
shazzyfizz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 01:43
ToySoldier
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2008
Posts: 854
A White Zinfandel Rose will always go down well, as will a beautiful white from the Villa Maria Estate from NZ - they have a store in London (NZ House of Wine) which you could pre-order from and pick it up when you're down there. But, it's overpowered by a lot of foods as it's quite light, so if you're having Venison Casserole or a dark meat, is completely unsuitable. I'd only recommend it if you're on chicken, fish or similar.

Being the 'in' wine, Rose will be well recieved, and even if it doesn't suit that nights menu, they will keep it for another occasion. The futher south you go for a Rose, the darker it will be, and personally I much prefer a Northern, lighter more Salmon-pink Rose than a darker redder wine. But again, it won't suit any heavy meat.

Good Luck! Hope you impress
ToySoldier is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 08:10
LostFool
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2005
Posts: 59,757
Probably a good idea to find out what's on the menu and then take red or white according to what's being served.
No. I always assume that the hosts will have planned dinner and chosen the wine for it. It's rather presumptuous to expect them to use your wine.

I usually take something that they can drink when they want to (or if they don't like it to discretely take to another party) so something different such as a sparkling wine. A bottle of port is usually well received too.
LostFool is online now   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 16:07
LQS
Forum Member
 
Join Date: May 2008
Posts: 4,280
Hi
Pop down to your local wine merchants, they are usually very friendly and knowledgable, and they can recommend something within you price limit.
OR you can never ever go wrong with a bottle of Moet & Chandon, or Veuve Cliquot champagne. Everyone loves champagne ! They can then drink it at their leisure
LQS is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 16:20
whoever,hey
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2006
Posts: 30,072
Whoops I meant £2.99
What a whoppa of a typo that was

You could always just go to the supermarket and pick up a random bottle for £7. Kind of helps if you know what you like yourself. A bottle of CAVA is always a winner if there are some ladies about.
whoever,hey is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 16:30
indianwells
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 12,236
I've yet to find someone who didn't like a Sauvignon Blanc from the Villa Maria or Marlborough estates in New Zealand. Can be had for £7-£10. Alternatively, as someone else said, Chablis will always go down well.
indianwells is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 17:20
shazzyfizz
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2006
Posts: 5,210
No. I always assume that the hosts will have planned dinner and chosen the wine for it. It's rather presumptuous to expect them to use your wine.

I usually take something that they can drink when they want to (or if they don't like it to discretely take to another party) so something different such as a sparkling wine. A bottle of port is usually well received too.
It really depends on how formal the dinner is. If I'm holding a dinner party then yes I tend to get the wine to suit the dishes.

However, if I'm having a casual supper I usually tell my friends what I'm cooking usually a curry or a casserole then they usually bring the alcohol to drink with the meal.

You quoted me but cut the bit out where I also suggested bringing sparkling wine, which I agree is a nice contribution to a meal
shazzyfizz is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 19:42
Dave 8o]
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Leeds
Posts: 1,642
It really depends on how formal the dinner is. If I'm holding a dinner party then yes I tend to get the wine to suit the dishes.

However, if I'm having a casual supper I usually tell my friends what I'm cooking usually a curry or a casserole then they usually bring the alcohol to drink with the meal.

You quoted me but cut the bit out where I also suggested bringing sparkling wine, which I agree is a nice contribution to a meal
It's not formal and I doubt that it will be anything fancy, I really just want to say thank you, I doubt that it will be opened on the night. I'll probably get something sparkling as that seems to be the favourite on here.

Thanks to all for the advice
Dave 8o] is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 21:01
fat controller
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Slightly round the bend
Posts: 12,685
If they like red wine, George DeBeouff (not sure if I've spelt that correctly) Fleurie is a really, really drinkable wine for around £10 a bottle.
fat controller is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 23:27
threecheeses
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: Left London
Posts: 19,883
Do you know if they like red or white?

Personally I only drink red, a white would go in my (imaginary) cellar
threecheeses is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-09-2008, 23:28
jessca
Forum Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 5,037
If you want to take a bottle but also be a bit 'different', you could always take a bottle of Cava/Champagne and a jar of this stuff - a bit of a 'wow' factor...but not something they need to open there and then. If you do decide to do this, might be nice to take the Cava/whatever ready chilled, so that they can do the trick with it if they want

I really like this company - English wines, but they are wines that you drink for the taste, not to be worthy Tesco & Waitrose stock them and they're normally between £6 and £8 a bottle.
jessca is offline   Reply With Quote
 
Reply




 
Forum Jump


All times are GMT. The time now is 17:34.