As I drink some Foillard 2011 Corcelette while doing some cellartracker maintenance I am reminded of the first time I had this wine with great friends in France and can’t help but be transported back to good times. Not to mention the wine is just plain delicious – It’s like comfort food.
Which brings me to my post-- I’m interested to hear about wines that just remind you of good times or that you drink like “comfort food” that always seem to satisfy.
What are your favorites for a Sunday afternoon glass to recall fond memories or that feel like the proverbial chicken soup?
Just about any Ridge wine puts a smile on my face. I think it is just the consistency and value and rarely a bad bottle…always makes me think about why I like wine to begin with…
Ridge is one producer that, based on the posts/comments here, would be a perfect fit for my palate, but I haven’t tried any yet… need to give those a try soon… I’m facing the reality of being overcapacity at the offsite storage, but I guess I could try buying just one bottle to try for once…
For me it’s definitely Fontodi Chianti Classico. We drink it once or twice a year and each time we ask ourselves why are we not drinking it more often.
I have a few…each evoke different feelings of comfort for different reasons.
Chateau Musar - This reminds me of the first “real” tasting group I was a part of down on the island. The group that poured me my first glass of Coche-Dury, DRC, First Growths, and of course Musar.
Oregon Pinot Noir - This was my first trip to wine country in the summer of 2006. I went to as many places as I could on that trip…and there’s always a sense of comfort when I open a good bottle of Oregon Pinot Noir.
N.V. Bartlett Estate Blueberry “Oak Dry” - This is a wine that just makes me feel like I’m home in Maine. I’m officially biased about these wines because Bob & Kathe Bartlett are more family than anything else. This is a wine that not only drinks well right out of the gate…but with 3-20 years bottle age it continues to evolve on a level that I just love as a wine geek.
Another thread jogged my memory on this. C and P Breton Bourgueil Franc de Pied. I serendipitously discovered this the first year I started to get serious about wine. Oddly, I always mentally resist opening a bottle thinking it won’t go particularly well with dinner, or that it’s not quite what I’m in the mood for. And every time it turns out to be just perfect – pure and somehow “healthy” seeming. Definitely my “chicken soup” wine.
The 6-pack of the Old Vine Wine Company 2011 Cienega Valley Carignan “Wirz Vineyard” has been one for me in recent months.
In the past, my choices often fluctuated like a butterfly from flower to flower. One 6-month period it was Château Mont-Redon '05 Côtes du Rhone; another, it was Duval Leroy “Rosé de Saignee” Champagne or Bodegas Olivares “Altos de la Hoya” Monastrell from Jumilla. I have favored all sorts of wines, and I probably am more appreciative of toned-down wines than I was 15 years ago, but I don’t have any reservations drinking a big, rich red or white wine from time to time.