A Good Bottle of Wine for £20?

jezzer256

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Hi

I'm 15, so I don't know much about wine. But my Dad does, and I want to get him a nice bottle for his birthday. Whats a good solid bottle for around the £20 mark?

I don't want any old plonk I could get in Asda for £4.99! I don't think he'd like that that much :D.

Cheers

Jezzer
 
it depends on the type of wine he likes, there is a lot more to wine than just red or white

i suggest you pop to oddbins as they have a great selection at decent prices, the staff know what they are talking about, and they should help you choose something nice

you can get a good bottle of wine for about £8 and a really good bottle for about £12-15, so you don't have to spend over £20. i suggest normal wine, not bubbly/sparking, as you have to spend a lot more to get something decent. you can certainly impress with a good choice of £15 wine

i'd also suggest new world, rather than old world, or "aged" vintage wines as you should get more value for money that way

something like a barollo or chatueneuf de pape will set you back about £15ish, those are red wines

for white wines a good celler selection marlborough region sauvignon blanc from new zealand will be about £15+ (but you can still get good ones for £8)
 
Certainly is more to do with personal taste than price. £20 is a lot for a single bottle and in my personal opinion the best I've had have been nearer the £10 mark.

I like full bodied red wines. Lots of taste and not sweet.

I prefer old world wines I love red and am a huge fan of the Spainish Roja.

http://www.laithwaites.co.uk/produc...mscssid~5F7B2284907C43729F01FD43153C31D4.pasp
http://www.oddbins.com/products/productDetail.asp?productcode=31036

Quiet a stunning Italian red...Italian reds not very popular over here so might be nice to buy him something different
http://www.laithwaites.co.uk/produc...mscssid~94FFEC6B1E7849EA8226780A48EF9C56.pasp

Another favourite is French chateauneuf du pape.

http://www.oddbins.com/products/productDetail.asp?productcode=90694
 
Why not get him a book on fine wines ,it will last a lot longer than a bottle ;)

or alternatively i could sell you a bottle of my home brew for £19.99 :D (it's very exclusive, as in it's only me that will drink it)
 
De Bortoli Yarra Valley 1998 or 2001 Shiraz or Merlot (if he likes red) or the Chardonnay if he likes white. Both are usually available at good off licenses for under £20.
 
I would suggest a lifetime membership of The Wine Society,if he's not already a member.£40 these days,which is obviously a lot more than you planned,but he'd never look back!I've been a member for 30 years,and although I buy from Laithwaites (or The Sunday Times,same thing),OddbinnsSainsburys,various other online wine merchants and local merchants,nothing beats the IEWC.
 
I would much rather go for a bottle of whisky (or even WhiskEy)

I often by my father a bottle of aged single-malt (eg 10yo Glenfidich)

A grand whisky can be purchased for around £20.

Lasts longer and goes much furher than a wine.
Personally, I would never spend over £8 on a bottle of wine. If you are spending over £15 then you are in the price range of some very nice spirits.
 
nice bottle of chateau neuf du pape
 
Hi

I'm 15, so I don't know much about wine. But my Dad does, and I want to get him a nice bottle for his birthday. Whats a good solid bottle for around the £20 mark?

...
Hope you're 6'2 with good fake ID
 
You don't have to spend loads to get a decent bottle of wine. Some of my favourites are Brown Brothers' Australian reds such as their 2006 Tarrango and 2005 Barbera. They're around £5-6 each and have a lovely fruity taste exceeding that of some I've had at double the price.
 
It is so much down to personal taste that recommendations, whilst well intended, are of limited value. You really are much better off trying to find out (directly or indirectly) what he likes. People always appreciate something they have tried and liked in the past.

If pushed though, I would say one of the safest options (for red wine) is probably a Rioja - provided it says Gran Reserva on the label. They seem a little less hit-and-miss than French, Italian or New World reds in my experience.

But I do also like the suggestion of a good wine book. The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia is the best one I've found - and you don't need to be 18 to buy it :)
 
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To be safe I'd steer of the 'Pinotage' grape (typically used in South African wines) unless you know your dad likes it. It produces wines which can be rather different from the norm (not necessarily a bad thing) and as a result is one of those varieties which you either love or hate.
 
best thing you can do is steer a conversation to wine and find out if he prefers dry, medium or fruity.....if you dont find out what he prefers, you could spend £60 and still get one he didnt like....

if he likes dry, to be honest go with Sancerre or Chablis, its difficult to knock those two for dry wine, both can be had in supermarkets for around £8-10 a bottle and taste fantastic, if you go to a wine merchants you'll probably pay around £15 for a similar quality.....supermarkets buy HUGE....wine merchants just buy big....

if he likes medium, well, it depends, a lighter Sauvignon blanc can be interesting but its difficult as some will taste dry, stick to the Aus/kiwi ones to be honest for the most part.....again, £8 in a supermarket is going to be as good quite often as £15 from a wine merchant.......

for sweet, well tbh i cant say too much as i just dont go for sweet wines myself, sometimes i'll indulge in a dessert wine, but not normal sweet wines so i cant comment.....

i tend to lean towards dry myself....

one key thing is to look at the label, if it says consume within a year of purchase then best to avoid as its likely to be a fairly cheaply made and processed wine.....you often find the main names that are sold by supermarkets say this purely because they know the supermarket storage conditions are not ideal for keeping wine a long time......this is where a wine merchants will do you better as they are more likely to keep the wine in a suitable way so it can be kept for a while.....but you tend to pay a bit more for the privilege....

if he is a wine lover, then get him a couple of £8-10 bottles from a supermarket and he will most likely be happy as they are usually pretty decent......if he is a wine snob, well, get him a £20 bottle from a merchant and let him love or loathe it.....he'll be happy either way in that instance...lol
 
Like others here, I can only recommend what I like. :thumbsup:

If I'm treating myself I love Nuits St George or Paulliac at about £20 a bottle. Otherwise a St Emillion or Fleurie at about £8-10 a bottle. 2005 was a very good year for Bordeaux wines so will be more expensive.

In terms of white I enjoy Pouilly Fumee or Pouilly Fusee at about £12 - 15 per bottle, or a Muscadet Serve et Maine (sur lie) at about £4:clap::clap:


Having lived in France, I'm quite a traditionalist so know nothing about New World wines.

All of the above can be bought from Tesco's / Sainsburys etc
 
I've just been bought back two bottles of Pineau des Charentes which is a blend of cognac and grape must. It seems to be sold as a wine but is more like a spirit. I have to say I love it, it's the best drink I've tried in years. I was told you can't buy it outside France but I have found it on-line from between £10 to £15
 
I've just been bought back two bottles of Pineau des Charentes which is a blend of cognac and grape must. It seems to be sold as a wine but is more like a spirit. I have to say I love it, it's the best drink I've tried in years. I was told you can't buy it outside France but I have found it on-line from between £10 to £15

Delicious drink.As I mentioned earlier,I tend to buy mine from The Wine Society,but Tescos do a more than adequate blanc:)
 
Delicious drink.As I mentioned earlier,I tend to buy mine from The Wine Society,but Tescos do a more than adequate blanc:)
Thanks Drd. I just looked at Tesco, 12 bottles for around £90 with shipping (minimum order 2 boxes of 6) which is the cheapest I've seen it. Does anyone know how much this costs in SW France as the friends that bought it for me won't tell.
 
Like most alcohol in France,a great deal cheaper than here.It depends on the quality.Last time I bought some just outside Cognac at the distillery it was an absolute bargain,until you take into account the cost of getting there and back:D
 

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