Thursday, November 20, 2008

New Herald and a few Cheapys

The new Herald article is on us today and deals with screwcaps. This was a genuine restaurant critique I read and the fella walked out without eating because of the horror of being sold a screwcap wine. Now, the wine could have been very poor and getting crap wine is no fun when you are spending 40,000 won but the horror he felt at the screwcap was palpable. Today a non-wine drinking friend texted me having read the Herald saying that my standards were dropping and I would soon be defending box wine. This is the battle the producers have to undertake with consumers with regards to closure choice it seems.

There are a few reasonable cheapy cheapy wines about at the moment. Homeplus have two Spanish wines at around the 9000 won range, both from the same bodega, both from the Tesco Finest range, both from Old Vines and one a Garnacha one a Tempranillo. They are good but not great, the Garnacha offering a little more depth but the Tempranillo being a cherry filled fruit glass. Worth a punt.

E-Mart are selling the Argento Cabernet Sauvignon at 9000 won as well. This is a decent bottle of wine. Nothing exciting but no complaints. They are also selling some 3000 bottles of wine that I haven't got the nerve to try. If anyone is willing to go at it for me and let me know I will be in your debt.

I must apologise for the lack of posts recently. I have been somewhat debilitated by blogger being blocked at work, a somewhat uncomfortable set-up at home, a genuine and psychologically scarring lack of money and an upcoming operation that makes me want to drink but makes me think I shouldn't.

Christmas is coming and I should be drinking well soon. With the New Year comes new ideas and my big idea is going to be increasing the quantity and quality of my drinking.

Cheers.

2 comments:

ZenKimchi said...

That is the utmost in disgusting ignorant pretension. I hate wine snobs as much as food snobs. You put forth a great article in the Herald.

Didn't a Japanese study come out recently that showed that screw caps were more effective than corks?

squirrelandgman said...

Don't know of the Japanese study but there is certainly a very strong argument in favour of screw cap. For wines meant for drinking young I would say that they are generally the better choice. Wines for ageing may be a different story as some oxygen is desirable.

Maybe screw caps increase the incidences of reduction(problem due to lack of oxygen), a rubbery, sulphury smell, but this is not nearly as problematic as cork taint.

I'm always happy with a screw cap because I can get at the wine quicker. Saying that, cork is a whole lot more romantic and ritualistic and we all need a bit of romance and ritual in our lives.

Let's hope the staff in the Itaewon restaurant got to drink the rest of the bottle when the wine 'expert' left.