First time Pinot Noir question
 

Hello

THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
What would be the best one to start off with and at what temp should it be Drunk?
I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this

Thank you

Patrick Bateman wrote:
> Hello
>
> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
> What would be the best one to start off with and at what temp should it be Drunk?
> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this
>
> Thank you


Hello Patrick,



How long is a piece of string?

For the purposes of your experiment serve around room temperature, say
21C degrees would be fine.

The best one to start depends on a lot of things. Whether you have a
sweet tooth. Where you live [it may be hard to find recommendations
other ppl in the group make]. Your price range.

So I'm assuming you're in America. Just tell us whereabouts and what
your price range is and what you want the wine for [to enjoy at home,
for a night out, for a special dinner, for a particular dish] and I bet
someone in here will have a suggestion.


And don't worry about stupid questions, I ask them all the time.


Mat.


P.S.: And the best way to "get it right" is just to keep trying stuff
until you find something you like.

I agree with Mat that the best depends a lot on what you're looking
for. For more accurate suggestions (though everything will still depend
on personal tastes), let us know:
1) where you are
2) what you want to spend
3) what other wines you've liked

I'd personally serve quite a bit cooler than 21=B0C. I tend to serve
Pinot (Burgundy or not) rather cool, maybe around 60=B0F (15=B0C?). Bigger
ones might show better at something more like 65=B0, but they'll warm up
quickly. Better too cool than too warm imnsho. :)

PS as Mat said, don't worry about questions. A fool is one who refuses
to ask (or listen).

DaleW wrote:
> I agree with Mat that the best depends a lot on what you're looking
> for. For more accurate suggestions (though everything will still depend
> on personal tastes), let us know:
> 1) where you are
> 2) what you want to spend
> 3) what other wines you've liked
>
> I'd personally serve quite a bit cooler than 21?C. I tend to serve
> Pinot (Burgundy or not) rather cool, maybe around 60?F (15?C?). Bigger
> ones might show better at something more like 65?, but they'll warm up
> quickly. Better too cool than too warm imnsho. :)
>


Hi Dale,

I may be a heathen but I generally prefer my reds on a cold night [cold
outside] at about comfortable room temperature (as I say 21-ish
celcius). This also saves on the problems of having to cool it down etc,
especially for newbies [like me].

Nothing like a big red on a cold night. And the bouquet / palate is a
lot easier to coax out slightly warmer, but yes, not too warm, that just
spoils it. I know when you are inside and its particuarly hot inside the
wine does not go particuarly well.

The only time I've ever gone to the effort of cooling / chilling a red
has been for rose which to me for all intents and purposes may as well
be a white, as well as a bottle of Brown Brother's Dolcetto and Syrah I
think it was which was supposed to be chilled.

It was quite an odd experience. To all involved it just tasted freaky, a
chilled spicy shiraz. It was very weird. Slight fizz too IIRC which made
it even more freaky.


Mat.

Patrick Bateman wrote:
> Hello
>
> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
> What would be the best one to start off with and at what temp should
it be Drunk?
> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this
>
> Thank you

Pathetic.

Just buy some wine and drink it, with a meal.

In om,
Patrick Bateman > typed:

> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
> What would be the best one to start off with


There is no "best one," and not even a "best one to start off
with." The best one for you is the one *you* like best, and that
might be very different from the one I like best. And even if you
got recommendations from someone here, there would be no
guarantee that you could you could find it locally.

As usual for questions like this, the best thing to do is to try
several. Getting a few friends together and tasting a few side by
side would be ideal, but if you can't do that just try them
sequentially, when you can. Go to a good local wine store, tell
them how much you want to spend, and get a few recommendations
from them.


> and at what temp should
> it be Drunk?


Most experience wine drinkers prefer most red wines at around
60-65F.


> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this.


Of course not. You've a beginner and the way to get past the
beginner stage is to ask questions, read, and taste. That's how
we all learn.

--
Ken Blake
Please reply to the newsgroup

In om,
Patrick Bateman > typed:

> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
> What would be the best one to start off with


There is no "best one," and not even a "best one to start off
with." The best one for you is the one *you* like best, and that
might be very different from the one I like best. And even if you
got recommendations from someone here, there would be no
guarantee that you could you could find it locally.

As usual for questions like this, the best thing to do is to try
several. Getting a few friends together and tasting a few side by
side would be ideal, but if you can't do that just try them
sequentially, when you can. Go to a good local wine store, tell
them how much you want to spend, and get a few recommendations
from them.


> and at what temp should
> it be Drunk?


Most experience wine drinkers prefer most red wines at around
60-65F.


> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this.


Of course not. You've a beginner and the way to get past the
beginner stage is to ask questions, read, and taste. That's how
we all learn.

--
Ken Blake
Please reply to the newsgroup

One other thing. If you have a decent local wine merchant, he or she can
help guide you towards something you might like within a comfortable price
range.
"Patrick Bateman" > wrote in message
om...
> Hello
>
> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
> What would be the best one to start off with and at what temp should it be
> Drunk?
> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this
>
> Thank you

One other thing. If you have a decent local wine merchant, he or she can
help guide you towards something you might like within a comfortable price
range.
"Patrick Bateman" > wrote in message
om...
> Hello
>
> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
> What would be the best one to start off with and at what temp should it be
> Drunk?
> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this
>
> Thank you

> "Patrick Bateman" > wrote in message
> om...
>> Hello
>>
>> THis may seem like a stupid question, but her it goes
>> I am a first time Pinot Noir taster and want to get it right.
>> What would be the best one to start off with and at what temp should it
>> be Drunk?
>> I hope i am not making a fool out of myself asking this

At first I wasn't going to respond to this, as it's such a broad question -
and a compound one at that! ;^)

As for serving temperature, I'd say you've been given good advice.
Something around cellar temperature is good. Room temperature (72°F) is a
bit too warm, but much below ~60°F will kill the aroma.

Something that may not have been mentioned is that you should serve any good
wine in a proper glass. One of the finest properties of good Pinot Noir is
its aroma/bouquet. You need a large glass that tapers to a smaller opening
to concentrate and focus the aroma of the wine to maximum effect. Don't
cheap out on the glass. A proper one will cost at least as much as the
bottle of wine itself - but if you're careful handling it you can reuse it
many times. BTW, don't overfill the glass. Something like a quarter to a
third full is plenty.

As for specific wine suggestions, it depends on where you live. If you're
in the USA, I'd recommend one of several widely distributed but solidly made
(and reasonably priced!) Pinots, such as Beaulieu Vineyards (BV),
Kendall-Jackson, Meridian, and even Gallo of Sonoma. When you're interested
in something more exotic, pick up a copy of the Wine Spectator and see what
they recommend. Once you break the $20 barrier, you can start getting into
Burgundies - but be careful there; Burgundy is a minefield. You can spend
a lot of money for a bottle of Burgundy and not get as much pleasure as a
decent $8 bottle of California Pinot Noir delivers.

Tom S

Thank you very much for everyones help.
I am in Sydney, Australia- And my local wine merchant is a tad on the
cheap side. "You can get a good red in a Cask wine"- thats how cheap...
Will take everyones' advice and find the one that suits me.
Thank you again

Patrick Bateman wrote:
> Thank you very much for everyones help.
> I am in Sydney, Australia- And my local wine merchant is a tad on the
> cheap side. "You can get a good red in a Cask wine"- thats how cheap...
> Will take everyones' advice and find the one that suits me.
> Thank you again
>

In that case.....

I'm sorry to harp on, but I would go to Dan Murphy's. Even check their
website for specials. http://www.danmurphys.com.au

I'm pretty sure they have stores in the Syndey area.

If your local is cheaper, go there obviously.


Just go and buy some stuff and see how you go.


If you let us know your price range and the other info ppl have
suggested there are some Australians in here who could point you in the
right direction.


Mat.

"Patrick Bateman" wrote in message
> Thank you very much for everyones help.
> I am in Sydney, Australia- And my local wine merchant is a tad on the
> cheap side. "You can get a good red in a Cask wine"- thats how cheap...
> Will take everyones' advice and find the one that suits me.
> Thank you again

Hi Patrick
Welcome to the group and the discovery of good wines. I recently brought a
case of a Mornington Peninsula Pinot - Marinda Park Norms Pinot Noir 03 from
Randalls in Melbourne at $17 a bottle and it is an absolute cracker. This
wine drinks Waaaaaay above it's price point (more like $40 to $50) and you
can order it at www.randalls.net.au (click on the hot new stock button at
the top of the home page and scroll down about halfway) or you may be able
to find it locally (call the winery and ask who they sold it to in Sydney is
a good start.) Otherwise for something widely available the De Bortoli Windy
Peak Pinot is a pretty reliable wine at around the $12 mark though I haven't
had it for 4 or 5 years. Good luck.
Cheers Andrew

"Patrick Bateman" wrote in message
> Thank you very much for everyones help.
> I am in Sydney, Australia- And my local wine merchant is a tad on the
> cheap side. "You can get a good red in a Cask wine"- thats how cheap...
> Will take everyones' advice and find the one that suits me.
> Thank you again

Hi Patrick
Welcome to the group and the discovery of good wines. I recently brought a
case of a Mornington Peninsula Pinot - Marinda Park Norms Pinot Noir 03 from
Randalls in Melbourne at $17 a bottle and it is an absolute cracker. This
wine drinks Waaaaaay above it's price point (more like $40 to $50) and you
can order it at www.randalls.net.au (click on the hot new stock button at
the top of the home page and scroll down about halfway) or you may be able
to find it locally (call the winery and ask who they sold it to in Sydney is
a good start.) Otherwise for something widely available the De Bortoli Windy
Peak Pinot is a pretty reliable wine at around the $12 mark though I haven't
had it for 4 or 5 years. Good luck.
Cheers Andrew

Tom S wrote:
> Once you break the $20 barrier, you can start getting into
> Burgundies - but be careful there; Burgundy is a minefield. You can spend
> a lot of money for a bottle of Burgundy and not get as much pleasure as a
> decent $8 bottle of California Pinot Noir delivers.

Very, very true.
Unfortunately, I'm one that has to learn things the hard (and
semi-expensive) way.