Not Sure Which Wine To Choose? JUST ASK!

As DEVO once said: “…freedom of choice: it’s what we got. Freedom from choice: it’s what we want…” Let’s face it; there are A LOT of wines to choose from out there. A lot of grape varietals, a lot of regions, a lot of vintages, a lot of wineries and producers, A LOT OF BOTTLES OF WINE. To quote a buddy of mine who recently asked my advice: “…frankly, it’s a bit overwhelming.”Yes it is, yes it can be, but no it doesn’t need to be. We’ll talk about this more in the near future… We’re preparing some guides… some recommendations… a road map if you will. But until then…

In the absence of a road map, what do you do? And don’t say “just figure it out.” I’ve been there before; I was the guy who refused to stop at the gas station and ask for directions. I learned the hard way. Don’t make that mistake. Don’t be that guy.

JUST ASK!!! The great thing about buying wine in 2010 is that there also A LOT of wine retailers & professionals whose job it is to answer questions and sell wine. Any decent wine store in your city will should have a friendly and knowledgeable staff that can answer any questions you have about wine.

“Which wine can I pair with my mother’s chicken stew?” “Can I drink a red wine with a fish dinner?” “I only have ten bucks… what wine should I buy?” All valid questions and all can be answered by the clerk at your local wine store.

Now if your town doesn’t have a good wine shop, I understand your hesitation to heed this advice. The ‘wine personel’ at the supermarket are usually the same people that stock the battery racks and greeting cards and while Costco has a pretty good wine selection, nobody there knows the answer to a wine question (they probably can’t answer your Hi Def TV ‘LCD versus plasma’ question either.)

But don’t fret; we live in the information age… the very same internet on which you have the ability to view this blog, you can also reach out and ask all the burning wine questions you have… Any of the major online wine retailers like K&L Wine Merchants, Wine.com and Bevmo have ‘help’ email and phone numbers to use in order to ‘get more info’. K&L even has a ‘personal sommelier service‘ that you set up, and your favorite K&L staff member will hand-select wines that match your preferences. YOU pick the countries, regions, grape varieties, price range and how many bottles you want. It’s a great service, delivered to your door (asuming you live in a state that allows wine shipments). It’s all too easy.

Heck; you can always reach out to us: contact@wineexpedition.com – we’ll be happy to answer your questions. We LOVE talking about wine!

I recently took my own advice: I had a question and I ASKED!!

After all of the Easter ham talk last week, I decided to make Chateaubriand for Easter. My go-to wine when eating a nice piece of beef has always been California Cabernet; but I felt like mixing it up this time. I toyed with the idea of a nice bottle from Bordeaux, but decided I’d ask someone at my favorite wine store for a fresh suggestion. As it happens, the guy I bumped into was the Italian wine buyer, and after explaining in detail my planned menu, he suggested the Super-Tuscan pictured below – the 2004 Aglieta “Pomo” Toscano Rosso.

Left to my own devices, I would not have stumbled upon this bottle myself. But I ASKED… I WAS REWARDED. What a wine! It was a big, strong Italian red (and it needed to be with that insane piece of beef that came out of the oven. A stoic nose of spicy red fruit was followed by sweet, dark red fruit with a voluptuous mouth-feel, silky tannins and finish o’ plenty. What a treat and what a pairing.

IT PAYS TO ASK.