MacDonald's of wines Jacobs Creek, Blossom Hill, Harry's etc

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Apologies to any Grammar Police and Wine extraordinaire's for this outburst.

It is a good job I don't know where you live

 

[whitelion]

Ahh, the start of my HPT career. Went in there after the game last Saturday night for very probably the very last time.

Wasn't a bad pub - I remember it as the Sackville late 60s when it was separate bars - the back one where you accessed it from the car park was a disco called BooBoo's.

 

[GoldWithFalmer]

It is a good job I don't know where you live

I know your the former,the latter too? Maybe?

 

[Machiavelli]

I'm a wine snob, but Jacob's Creek make damn good wines. Blossom Hill and Echo Falls are just dreadful, cynical nonsense.
Aldi and Lidl have a fine selection.
FWIW, you'll get the best 'VFM' in the £7-15 price point. Because of fixed costs (duty, VAT, shipping, bottles, labels, stoppers, profit for retailers, producers, middle-men etc), the amount of money spent on a £4 wine is a few pence, but £5 you're probably getting 10p-20p spent on the bottle. By £7, you're getting to or even above £1 and then swiftly upwards of that. Beyond £15, you're paying for rarity, novelty and market pressure.

 

[wellquickwoody]

Wasn't a bad pub - I remember it as the Sackville late 60s when it was separate bars - the back one where you accessed it from the car park was a disco called BooBoo's.

I know of it, but it was before my time there.

 

[Monkey Man]

I know there are bargains out there,i know a Fiat Panda is not a BMW 7 series,but let's face it you can have fun in both to some degree and you can get from A to B,both have merits,BMW gets you there quicker,Panda can be squeezed through tight narrow streets and you don't care where you park it..

So,with all this in mind-what is the minimum (best) price for a bottle of wine and is there any difference in £100 bottles as opposed to £500 bottles?

Once you're up in the luxury end of the market the prices lose their relationship with quality. You're really paying for the scarcity factor or the perceived prestige of a big name in a great vintage.

I personally don't know of anything below £15 or thereabouts that could be called a really good wine, but at around £10 a decent independent merchant will normally have something worth trying. My advice would be to ask them to recommend. That's their job and they love doing it, regardless of the customer's level of knowledge.

Some countries and regions are just inherently overpriced in UK terms. So for example you can buy an amazing California Chardonnay for £40 or £50 but if that's the style you like, you may find something at half that price from, say, South Africa, or perhaps even Bulgaria - where a few producers are starting to make really excellent wines. Portugal is looking like good value at the moment. Greece is another country where some world-class wine is being made and although you might pay £15-£20 or so for much of it, you're getting a good deal quality wise. The best value wines in the world are possibly sherries - pay £15 for a manzanilla or a fino and that's an awful lot of quality for the money. Assuming you like those styles, and if you don't ... work at it! They're amazing.

Southern France is still relatively affordable at the quality end too.

 

[nicko31]

All disgusting stuff masquerading as quality wine. How they have the front to do this is beyond me. Like the Blue Nun and Tower of the 80's

Toilet cleaner

These aren't really real wines, they are like alcopops really, just made up for the taste. They are in the UK what the mass market demands, the big brands hold 70% of the market

 

[GoldWithFalmer]

Once you're up in the luxury end of the market the prices lose their relationship with quality. You're really paying for the scarcity factor or the perceived prestige of a big name in a great vintage.

I personally don't know of anything below £15 or thereabouts that could be called a really good wine, but at around £10 a decent independent merchant will normally have something worth trying. My advice would be to ask them to recommend. That's their job and they love doing it, regardless of the customer's level of knowledge.

Some countries and regions are just inherently overpriced in UK terms. So for example you can buy an amazing California Chardonnay for £40 or £50 but if that's the style you like, you may find something at half that price from, say, South Africa, or perhaps even Bulgaria - where a few producers are starting to make really excellent wines. Portugal is looking like good value at the moment. Greece is another country where some world-class wine is being made and although you might pay £15-£20 or so for much of it, you're getting a good deal quality wise. The best value wines in the world are possibly sherries - pay £15 for a manzanilla or a fino and that's an awful lot of quality for the money. Assuming you like those styles, and if you don't ... work at it! They're amazing.

Southern France is still relatively affordable at the quality end too.

Interesting reply,insightful and helpful,thank you-To be honest i think the maximum i have ever spent on wine was about an £18 bottle and even i could tell the stuff was decent,i also understand Chile is another quite a strong producer of quality wines,although i'm not sure how the compare price wise.

 

[Superphil]

. Remember £2.16 of whatever you spend on a bottle of wine is duty...

At least that much is duty, it's higher on stronger wine I think. Once you go over £10 a bottle then the percentage cost of tax on a bottle reduces, but a £5 bottle is typically over 50% tax, e.g., a £6 bottle of 15% red is 52.7% tax, so you're getting £2.84 worth of wine.

 

[Lady Whistledown]

I'd genuinely love to try a (say) £500 bottle of wine, just to see how it compares, taste wise, to something considerably less expensive.

Well, I say that: I've love to try a £25,000 bottle of wine for the same reason, but for research purposes, I'm willing to stick to something ever so slightly more realistic

 

[Monkey Man]

Interesting reply,insightful and helpful,thank you-To be honest i think the maximum i have ever spent on wine was about an £18 bottle and even i could tell the stuff was decent,i also understand Chile is another quite a strong producer of quality wines,although i'm not sure how the compare price wise.

There's more interesting stuff coming out of Chile these days and it's not usually too expensive, but an awful lot of so-so stuff that is not that exciting, personally speaking.

Some £18 wines are amazing (like I say, try S Africa, Greece, Portugal, Southern France) but at that level you'd probably get a mediocre Chablis or a very uninspiring Napa Cab. (Of course there are exceptions if you're lucky enough to find them.)

My advice is, always ask for advice ... and talk to some of our brilliant independent merchants.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

I know your the former,the latter too? Maybe?

Yes. Very both (in enthusiasm if not skill). Mrs Tackle and I pay a weekly visit to Majestic, Canterbury, where I spend a full hour talking The Albion to Nick, the Arsenal supporter and Colin, the Charlton supporter, and 5 minutes with Mrs T, whizzing round the store to stock up with various pneumatic sirens from the boudoir of the grape. Heavy reds are my thing. Frankly I shop at Majestic because some of the wine is decent and I don't have the time or money to cater fully to my appetites. I had some of this in San Diego a few years ago (below). It is pure nectar. Mrs T imported a bottle for me last year, bless her. I'm no expert but I can tell poop from clay, as my old man used to say. My old boss' daughter is wine buyer for Air New Zealand, and makes a good living teaching massive audiences in China about wine. She took a few of us out to the Oxford and Cambridge club a few weeks ago, and picked some top slurp. Not as good as this, though:



ps, I see your having a laugh

 

[SAC]

The worst wine I have hd recently was in a 'Spoons. No idea what it was, other than white, but so disgusting I had to leave it.

 

[Dave the OAP]

This is my favourite wine at the moment. Along with denbies Surrey gold English white and Chapel Down Bacchus!

 

[Machiavelli]

Once you're up in the luxury end of the market the prices lose their relationship with quality. You're really paying for the scarcity factor or the perceived prestige of a big name in a great vintage.

I personally don't know of anything below £15 or thereabouts that could be called a really good wine, but at around £10 a decent independent merchant will normally have something worth trying. My advice would be to ask them to recommend. That's their job and they love doing it, regardless of the customer's level of knowledge.

Some countries and regions are just inherently overpriced in UK terms. So for example you can buy an amazing California Chardonnay for £40 or £50 but if that's the style you like, you may find something at half that price from, say, South Africa, or perhaps even Bulgaria - where a few producers are starting to make really excellent wines. Portugal is looking like good value at the moment. Greece is another country where some world-class wine is being made and although you might pay £15-£20 or so for much of it, you're getting a good deal quality wise. The best value wines in the world are possibly sherries - pay £15 for a manzanilla or a fino and that's an awful lot of quality for the money. Assuming you like those styles, and if you don't ... work at it! They're amazing.

Southern France is still relatively affordable at the quality end too.

Agree about Portugal, Greece, sherry and Southern France. Haven't had one for years, but Madeiras can be great value too, and some of the greatest wines in the world.

 

[GoldWithFalmer]

Yes. Very both
ps, I see your having a laugh

Excellent stuff.. Thought so....

 

[carteater]

Jacob's creek is okay. But Blossom Hill is ****ing disgusting, it's vile, and I downed a bottle of it once.

But the worst wine I've ever tasted, if you can call it that, is BUCKFAST.

 

[GoldWithFalmer]

There's more interesting stuff coming out of Chile these days and it's not usually too expensive, but an awful lot of so-so stuff that is not that exciting, personally speaking.

Some £18 wines are amazing (like I say, try S Africa, Greece, Portugal, Southern France) but at that level you'd probably get a mediocre Chablis or a very uninspiring Napa Cab. (Of course there are exceptions if you're lucky enough to find them.)

My advice is, always ask for advice ... and talk to some of our brilliant independent merchants.

I suppose its all about pushing boundaries and experimentation,will try South Africa as i normally play safe...

 

[Superphil]

This is my favourite wine at the moment. Along with denbies Surrey gold English white and Chapel Down Bacchus]

If you can, get yourself some Stopham wines whites, the Pinot Gris is excellent, and their Bacchus is pretty good too, as is Nutbounes Bacchus. You can get the Stopham wines in Hennings, and possibly Quaff. Another one I think is pretty good is the Albourne vineyard range. English whites are so good at the moment, and will only get better I'm sure, might even come down in price a bit too.

 

[Notters]

This is my favourite wine at the moment. Along with denbies Surrey gold English white and Chapel Down Bacchus!

View attachment 84950

Your favourite english wines are from Kent and Surrey? Hang your head in shame.