The Wine Thread

[JohnnyFlake]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

With Madeira, I would suggest a 10 year minimum. Rainwater and 5 year just don't cut it for me... I'd rather drink Sherry at that price point.

I really like Broadbent's Colheita Madeira or 10 year. Their 10 year is the best value in Madeira as a whole IMO. D'Oliveira's 10 year is a close 2nd place.

If you had to drink a 5 year, Broadbent's probably your best bet. I haven't been a fan Blandy's "bread and butter" Madeira's and don't like the 500 ML bottles.

Thanks for your opinions. We all have them and they are very subjective. What one likes, others may not. That is why tastings are what it takes, to truly find out what one likes.

[mosesbotbol]

Originally Posted by JohnnyFlake

Thanks for your opinions. We all have them and they are very subjective. What one likes, others may not. That is why tastings are what it takes, to truly find out what one likes.

Rainwater and 5 Year are bottom of the barrel of Madeira; regardless of the producer. I do not believe Sandeman is selling anything beyond the most basic variety.

The other Madeira that is worth of mention without being too expensive is the Rare Wine Company Historic series. They range from dry to sweet. I think there is like 5-6 different ones. They are produced by Barbeito, which I think is one of the better vintage producers. I like their dry to medium editions the best.

If you want to spend a little more without being crazy... 1977 D'Oliveira Terrantez Madeira at around $150 or 1968 Vintage are two excellent ones.

As a whole, Madeira has climbed in price similar to what 1er Cru Bordeaux has and may be out of sight in the near future. 19th century bottles for like $200 are long gone...

[JohnnyFlake]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

Rainwater and 5 Year are bottom of the barrel of Madeira; regardless of the producer. I do not believe Sandeman is selling anything beyond the most basic variety.

The other Madeira that is worth of mention without being too expensive is the Rare Wine Company Historic series. They range from dry to sweet. I think there is like 5-6 different ones. They are produced by Barbeito, which I think is one of the better vintage producers. I like their dry to medium editions the best.

If you want to spend a little more without being crazy... 1977 D'Oliveira Terrantez Madeira at around $150 or 1968 Vintage are two excellent ones.

As a whole, Madeira has climbed in price similar to what 1er Cru Bordeaux has and may be out of sight in the near future. 19th century bottles for like $200 are long gone...

Again, I thank you for your thoughts. Obviously your taste and wallet are far above my range. I am quite happy with 5yo and 10yo Malmsey and the Rainwater. Personally, I will not spend over $30/$35 for any bottle of Wine.
However, it's a whole different story, when it comes to Bourbons, Scotches, etc. But then again, that's just me!

[mosesbotbol]

Originally Posted by JohnnyFlake

Again, I thank you for your thoughts. Obviously your taste and wallet are far above my range. I am quite happy with 5yo and 10yo Malmsey and the Rainwater. Personally, I will not spend over $30/$35 for any bottle of Wine.
However, it's a whole different story, when it comes to Bourbons, Scotches, etc. But then again, that's just me!

You should be able to find 10 year Madeira for $30ish. I was buying D'Oliveira's 10 year for $25. Broadbent 10 for under $40 is a good buy.

What kind of Scotch could one buy under $35 that is worth talking about? There's no spirit that can compete with depth & length of flavors of a great Madeira, but they are just different animals.

I am gifted a lot of nice spirits, but hardly ever drink them. My girlfriend is more into them than I. Recently I added a little Arbeg Supernova to our bottle of JW Black and boy it did it transform the Black to another level. I hardly added any. I was told the Black use to use more of it like 40 years ago... Thought I'd try to recreate that blend...

[JohnnyFlake]

Originally Posted by mosesbotbol

You should be able to find 10 year Madeira for $30ish. I was buying D'Oliveira's 10 year for $25. Broadbent 10 for under $40 is a good buy.

What kind of Scotch could one buy under $35 that is worth talking about? There's no spirit that can compete with depth & length of flavors of a great Madeira, but they are just different animals.

I am gifted a lot of nice spirits, but hardly ever drink them. My girlfriend is more into them than I. Recently I added a little Arbeg Supernova to our bottle of JW Black and boy it did it transform the Black to another level. I hardly added any. I was told the Black use to use more of it like 40 years ago... Thought I'd try to recreate that blend...

The only Scotch that's in the $35 range, worthy of mention, is JW Black. It's my go to Scotch. Nothing else I can think of.

That's interesting about adding Arberg to the JW Black. Do you think that the heavy peat is what makes the change to another level?

Do you think adding a small percentage, maybe an 80% Black to a 20% Talisker would work? I don't have any Arberg.

[mosesbotbol]

Originally Posted by JohnnyFlake

The only Scotch that's in the $35 range, worthy of mention, is JW Black. It's my go to Scotch. Nothing else I can think of.

That's interesting about adding Arberg to the JW Black. Do you think that the heavy peat is what makes the change to another level?

Do you think adding a small percentage, maybe an 80% Black to a 20% Talisker would work? I don't have any Arberg.

Start with 5% Ardbeg or Lagavulin (any heavy peet Scotch) and see how that goes. Maybe 10% max. Not much is needed at all really. I served the "improved" Black blind to someone and they knew right away in a good way something was different.