STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

AllieGurl · Marc Jacobs

Any wine connisours? (sp) Present Help!

Sunshinegirl · Kate Spade

Just make sure the bar includes a bottle of Silver Oak: http://www.silveroak.com/default.asp?l=HOME No other Cabernet Sauvignon's compare. It will run atleast $100 for a bottle but it is so worth it.

shopgirl · Kenneth Cole

Target is selling a 12-bottle cellar for $75. Perhaps you could one each for red and white wine. If not, if you buy a 24-bottle fridge try to get one that has two settings.

Go to a small wine shop that you trust and tell them what kind of wine and food your husband likes and they can suggest bottles for you. The smaller shops might not have as big a selection as the larger shops, but they usually have items by smaller growers.

You'll also need glasses and a great decanter or two. Reidel is a great source. A Rabbit-style wine opener is helpful.
this is so stylish

this site looks pretty good to help you get started.
http://www.savoreachglass.com/articles.php/10

There are great vineyards in Santa Barbara that all have wine clubs. You could take a weekend trip as part of his xmas present. I love visiting SB and it is such a quick drive from LA. http://www.sbcountywines.com/

For reading about wine, I would take a look at Robert B. Parker Jr., the son of the author of the Spenser books. He is considered one of the top authorities on wine; it is said that his ratings can make or break sales. I prefer Dottie Gaiter and John Brecher, the wine columnists for the Wall Street Journal, because I like their writing style.

Sunshinegirl · Kate Spade

alliegurl,

Here is a good site: http://www.wineenthusiast.com/. I agree with shopgirl, find a small wine shop in your area that can assist you. A decanter is a necessity w/red wines. Good luck and let us know if you have any additional questions.

jah · Dooney & Bourke

I second the suggestion on Riedel. They make the best glasses and a decanter is essential for red wine. Williams Sonoma has a nice collection. I particularly love the stemless - think they are so chic. They are called the "O" glasses.

In terms of some wine to stock the fridge, I love Australian Shiraz (particularly the 2001 Plantagenet Shiraz, Mount Barker and 2003 Plantagenet Hazard Hill Shiraz). A nice Malbec from Argentina would be good (2004 Altos Las Hormigas Malbec, Mendoza). You'll need a French wine for the collection, I recommend 2003 Domaine Patrick Javillier Cuvee des Forgets, Bourgogne ($20-$25).

HTH!

Suasoria · Chanel

What's your price range on the bar? What's your style? Contemporary, exotic, traditional, retro?

A cooler that holds 16 bottles is not that much, frankly. I think in a very short period of time you'll wish you had gone bigger. Try for at least 24, two cases. Maybe save some of the money you might have spent on the bar and go for a more robust chiller?

If you find something you like at Wine Enthusiast, then check vintagecellars.com - if they have the same item it's liable to be up to 20-30 percent less. I got a cooling unit and all the racking for my built-in cellar room from them. Good people. Gave me a break on the shipping too. The site is a bit less user-friendly than it could be, so it generally helps to know what you want.

Accessories: decanting is somewhat of a myth. They look cool, but decanting is rarely necessary except in the case of red wine that's two or more decades old that has collected sediment. The other reason to decant is to aerate a very young red wine that may need a bit of enhancing, but that's why you swirl it around the glass.

Riedel is the wine person's de facto standard, but Oneida has some decent mid-priced crystal too. Don't let your guests use the Riedels. They're just for the two of you. A safe starting place is one style for Cabernet/Bordeaux, another for Chardonnay, and a flute for Champagne/sparkling wine, if you drink that. The shape of the glass directs flavor and aroma to the right places on your face, and the diameter of the glass creates the proper surface area. The conventional wisdom is the right glass can make a $8 wine taste like a $12 wine.

I personally don't recommend the O (stemless) glasses. You're supposed to hold a wineglass by the stem. This is so the temperature of your hand won't affect (warm up) the temperature of the liquid in the glass. You don't hold a wineglass by the bowl.

I like foil cutters because they make things tidy. My favorite corkscrew has one built-in - http://tinyurl.com/wl6l8 - and I hear that this style is approved for plane travel by the Transportation and Safety authorities because it doesn't have a knife blade. Don't quote me on it.

I would get him a vacu-vin or some other type of re-corking gadget, and a handful of extra rubber stoppers. I have no idea how I lived before I got one. http://tinyurl.com/yyks42

Shopgirl and I are totally in sync about the Wall Street Journal wine critics. I like them much better than Parker. SG, do you have their book, the WSJ Guide to Wine? How is it?

My grandparents owned a winery in California for 40+ years, and in the words of my grandpa: "Wine is like art. If you like it, it's good. If you don't like it, it's not so good." So I trust my own tastes and preferences rather than those of experts and editors. There's a lot of $7-10 wines that are great. There are $60-100 wines that are only eh. I don't pay attention to what kind of wine pairs well with what kind of food - if I want to drink a big fruity Cab with a buttery pasta, or drink something other than Zin with pizza, well then, that's what I'm going to do. Call the wine police and have me arrested.