Ep 547: Back to Basics...12 Bottles to Learn About Some of the Classic Wine of the World

Wine for Normal People

I start by asking for a big favor!! I haven’t asked in about 10 years – but if you get a moment, could you drop a positive review for WFNP on iTunes, or a good rating on Spotify, or tell a friend who you think would like the show? Thank you in advance!

This show is part of the effort to refresh the WFNP catalog, based on the ideas of Patron Chris C, who did a ton of work to help me come up with a list of things he thought I could re-do, given that it’s been 14 years since I covered some of this stuff. If you have any ideas, please drop a DM on Patreon or send me ideas through the site!

This show has my recommendations for filling a case of wine with classics from around the world. These wines will give you a great idea of what these regions represent and why they are so famed. Even for experienced wine drinkers, I think it’s good to go back to the basics and try stuff you haven’t had in a while to remind ourselves why they are so good!

The list contains 12 still wines (no sparkling or fortified this time!), whites, reds, and one rosé. The wines are:

Whites:

1. White Burgundy, which is Chardonnay. I recommend the wine especially from the Hautes Côtes de Beaune or Hautes Côtes de Nuits, Côte d’Or Blanc, or Chablis

2. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc – with a twist. Look for wines from the Awatere or Wairau Valleys.

3. German Riesling from the Mosel (for off-dry wines) or Rheingau. I also mention Pfalz for great dry wines.

4. Portuguese Alvarinho – Vinho Verde, specifically from sub-regions of Monção and Melgaço

Rosé

5. Tavel from the Rhône

Reds

6. Bordeaux – especially from the Médoc or Côtes de Bordeaux for Merlot-driven wines (Pomerol and St. Émilion) and for bolder, more ageworthy wines with more Cabernet -- Haut-Médoc or Saint-Estèphe or for spendier versions – Graves, Margaux, Saint Julien, Pauillac

7. Rioja from Spain

8. Italian reds either Chianti Classico (have food with it!) or Roero/Langhe Nebbiolo/Nebbiolo d’Alba/Barbaresco

9. California – Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir (or more specifically Santa Maria Valley or Sta. Rita Hills)

10. Barossa Valley Shiraz (take another look if you haven’t in a while!). For more restraint, you can look for Shiraz from Eden Valley, a sub region of the Barossa Valley

11. Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon, especially Maipo Andes/ Alto Maipo is best, due to the higher altitude in this area

12. Argentinean Malbec, more specifically from Gualtallary, Tupungato, Altamira or, more generally the Uco Valley and Lujan de Cuyo

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