This question comes from Fred H., “I was wondering what you recommend when navigating a wine menu? Lets say its a 5′5 115lb smoking hot Italian American girl, I don’t want to mess up the date! Help me out Cheech or you will be getting a text from me mid date asking for help!”
Looking at wine list can sometimes be daunting task, especially if you have not a clue about wine. There are many regions, styles, varieties and prices that are staring you in the face. Red or white? Cheap or expensive? French or Italian? These are some common questions that even I ask myself when ordering. The phenomenal thing about wine is that the only way to be more comfortable with the facts is to DRINK more. I’m not advocating getting drunk, but I am saying that the only way to get better at this thing to try different wines from around the world. Don’t stick to the same Chianti, Pinot,Cabernet and Merlot day after day. Take some risks, not too big though, consult me, and enjoy the regional typicities that wine has to offer.
Back to ordering wine on a date. Choosing the right bottle whether you’re a girl or a guy can earn you a couple of notches of respect on your partner’s belt. If you are taking a chick to a nice restaurant and don’t want to look like a fool when ordering a bottle I suggest you do a little research first. See if you can check out the wine list online, this way you have some prior knowledge and if you want, send the list to me and I will choose a bottle for you. Try and find out what type of wine your date likes, this will make choosing much easier. The bottom line is that if you are concerned about choosing a “good” wine you should take the initiative to do a little wine research and learn about different styles and brands. Find out which wines are “good” for you and not for some wine critic or even me for that matter.
If you can not access an online wine list then you are going to have to wing it. First and foremost, ask your date what type of wine they like before you place the order. Never pick the cheapest or the most expensive, go for something in between. If you are a baller, like Fredman, then you can buy the big stuff. Try not to order Champagne because it may make you look a bit cheesy. Just try not too look clumsy and like fool when ordering. If you still have no idea what to get you can simply ask the waiter to choose a wine that would go nicely with your meal. Sometimes this will be the best option if you are totally clueless and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. It will make you look confident and the selection will most likely be pretty a good compliment to your food.
If you don’t want to ask the waiter either I would say go for a nice light white wine. They will typically be food friendly, easy to drink and satisfying; just stay away from the house white. Something like Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc and Muscadet will do the trick.
Choosing a red is not such a good idea, unless your date likes them. They will usually be full bodied, not too food friendly and somewhat offensive if a good one is not chosen.
Like I said before there is not enough room here to right everything about navigating a wine list. One must do some research on their own to discover which styles of wine they like and become more familiar with the different regions of wine production to make a more informed decision. This blog will address all of these issues in future posts and in new web pages. You will find that the more you know about wine, the more fulfilling and addicting it becomes.
In Bordeaux,France, these bottles denote the use of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Malbec. White wines which use this shape are made from Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle. Bordeaux wines are usually long lived which is why the shape came into being. After long periods of cellaring, these wines will produce a lot of sediment. The steepness and height of the shoulders are able to catch the sediment when the wine is being poured. The flat sides also allow the wines to stack and cellar comfortably. This bottle shape is also used a lot in America and in Italy as well.
This shape, with a slightly wider base, sturdier frame and gently sloping shoulders hails from Burgundy. Bottles like this are filled with Pinot Noir (red) and Chardonnay(white). These bottles shapes seems very elegant to me. They don’t have sharp edges, they look gracefull and seem to have a more feminine quality about them. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines are very elegant and round yet, can still deliver through a full body and an intense depth of flavor.
The pressure in Champagne bottles is between 70 and 90 pounds per square inch. That is about 2-3 times the pressure in your cars tires and about equal to the pressure in the tires of a double decker bus! The glass for this wine must be thicker, the base wider and the punt deeper. The punt adds much needed stregnth to the bottle, this is the reason why some bottles have bigger punts than others. Here’s a good way to make money off of your friends. Bet you friend that you can drink from a wine bottle with out opening it. Now all you have to do is find a bottle with a large punt, pour water into it, drink and collect your money. Thanks Stephanie for teaching me this joke. This picture also shows the range of sizes fr Champagne and other wine bottles. The second one from the left is the standard .750mL.
There is wide variety of wines that use this bottle and all of them are white and can range from totally dry to totally sweet. Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gerwurtraminer(GWT), Muscat, and Pinot Blanc are some of the common varieties. This shape is longer, almost flat shoulders, sexier, and usually has a smaller punt. This shape reminds me of a tall sexy girl with gentle curves and an essence of classiness, reminiscent of the wines in these bottles.
