Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: Nilsen on December 18, 2004, 01:14:37 PM
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I have sworn to a couple of brands almost since is started my drinking "career", but im looking to expand my horizon with the holidays coming up and all.
I have read some advice and tests on norwegian sites, but i would like some more imput.... dont want to test to many first hand
Im not talking about the very expencive stuff, but somthing you wont be ruined by if you buy a case for the holidays (have people comming to stay for christmas and through to newyears.
Im testing one bottle now but its only so-so.
-edit- my fav in the low/medium price segment is the Veuve Clicquot, but it has been very popular here and I want something good in that segment if you know it.
Straffo...Saw? ;)
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If you don't stick to "Champagne" (tm) - then you can try so-called "Soviet Champagne", sold as "sparkling wine" in the West. Best stuff made in ex-USSR is made in Abrau-Durso (Russia, Caucasus coast) and Noviy Svet (Ukraine, Crimea).
Many local wine "factories" in the South make great Champaign, but they are not exported and impossible to buy even in Moscow.
Abrau-Durso and Noviy Svet make a variety of sparkling wines, (champaigns), from extra-dry to sweet. A bottle of semi-dry costs about 150 rubles here in Moscow, 1 Euro = ~35 rubles.
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Ive looked for them on the website here, and we dont get it but thanks anyway Boroda.
No, it does not have to come from the champagne district but it has to be quality.
price range is 35-45 euros a bottle
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http://www.winedancer.com/en-gb/dept_29.html
probably cheaper to drive to France for the weekend
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Trying for more Little Nilsen's ??? :D
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Originally posted by Roscoroo
Trying for more Little Nilsen's ??? :D
More? you mean more expencive?
No not really. was really no point in saying the price cause we have high taxes on booze here. from the website schaden linked to, i should prolly say 25-35 euros and i can just add 10ish to get our price.
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If you're buying for other people who aren't champagne experts, just buy some spumante. Brut and Extra Dry is what everyone always gets, but to a layman they taste like crap. Spumante is actually drinkable so it makes a great new-year party bubbly.
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Course they know what they drink... they are my friends!
They know for the first hour anyway :p
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If any of my australian friends are here now i would just like you to know that ive opened a cheap bottle of bubbly called...
Hardys Nottage Hill 2001 Chardonnay Brut.
How do you guys like it? Im not in a position to give an objective review atm.
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Nils, I used to sell wine. I highly recommend Domaine Ste. Michelle. It is from Washington State and some of the best American sparkling.
Another (if you can find it) is Triozzi Asti. It's Italian and very fruit forward. Excellent for those who find even Extra Dry too bitter.
If you MUST have true French champagne Perrier Joulet is hard to beat. Each bottle is hand painted and makes a wonderful gift.
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Buy a couple cases of Ripple and Perrier mix and bottle for later.
Leaves more money to buy better stuff for before they get to drunk to notice. :D
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What do you prefer as far as sweetness? I'm a big fan of Brut. This (http://www.lastorders.com/piperheidsieck_brut_nv.htm) one is very good for the price.
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Gosset Nonvintage Brut Rose Champagne
I just googled it quickly and saw some prices in the $35 range. It is certainly one of the best and most unique sparkling wines that I've ever tasted. It's a true Champage made from Pinot Noir and left on the skins just long enough to get a rose color. If you've never had Rose Champagne I highly recommend it.
kbman
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Try the in-between brand, i.e. not Champagne, not sparkling wine (sekt) but Cremant.
I think it's even better than Champagne.
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Try the Pommery, it's quiet good. Or the Balland, but that's a very small productor, you'll never find some here...Hehe, we know them, so we got half price bottles...As for the russian 'champagne', it ain't champagne...in fact, that's what we call here 'mousseux', the poor man's, disgusting white wine with bubbles... sorry Boroda...drank some in Russia, it's...horrible ;)
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If it's not 'real' Champagne ur lookin for, California's Cuvee Napa is pretty good.
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This is good (http://store.yahoo.com/wine-club/veuvclicbrut.html)
This is a bit better (http://store.yahoo.com/wine-club/veuvcliclags.html)
Nice too (http://store.yahoo.com/wine-club/moetandchand1.html)
This is mighty fine stuff (http://www.barrelsandbottles.co.uk/champagne/frames/frame_cristal.htm)
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Originally posted by Curval
This is good (http://store.yahoo.com/wine-club/veuvclicbrut.html)
This is a bit better (http://store.yahoo.com/wine-club/veuvcliclags.html)
Nice too (http://store.yahoo.com/wine-club/moetandchand1.html)
This is mighty fine stuff (http://www.barrelsandbottles.co.uk/champagne/frames/frame_cristal.htm)
Dom is $30 worth of champagne and a $100 name. Cristal I've not had but I'd have a hard time paying that much.
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Originally posted by Schaden
probably cheaper to drive to France for the weekend
With the dollar / euro exchange rate a good California champagne should be just about free shouldn't it?
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Cristal is the most overrated wine in the world...unless you are a Gangsta Rapper.
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Rather than going for the Brut Champagne, try the Blanc de Blancs. Why don't you make it the excuse to take a week's holiday and drive down?
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Baby Duck
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VC is pretty good cheap champagne. I dring willingly and with appreciation many sparklin' wines, but a proper champagne is pretty hard to beat. Give me four glasses -- two of champagne, two of someting else -- and a blindfold, and I'll willingly test that statement.
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I used to sell wine myself. Once you pass the $25 mark or so, the increase in cost is faster than the increase in quality.
As far as quality for a great price goes, Korbel Chardonnay Champagne is a good buy. It could probably be rated as an 'Extra Dry" and tastes great.
Looking for something a little more conventional? Taittinger Millesime(sp?) or Moet White Star are good.
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Make your own champagne.
Grab a bottle of carbonated water.
Mix strongest cognac you got in it.
Squeeze a little bit of lemon juice.
There!
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Nilsen , I see you've finally realized u can't drink with the big boys, and are going for the light-weight stuff.
Well, although I'm saddened to see the loss of another 'real' drinker, I do wish you the best in your new 'sipping' life, and want u to know that , although we drinkers will miss u greatly, we do wish u the best.
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Nilsen!
I spent an afternoon in the French town of Epernay during the summer, which is where the offices of about seven champagne firms can be found. The Champagne region of France is near Reims, where we were staying.
So we went into the first champagne company we could find, which was Moët & Chandon, and were surprised to find that the bottling is done right there in town. I was expecting it to happen in the country.
Some signs to look for - If the label has no date, the champagne is not a vintage. A "vintage" is when all the grapes that went into making the champagne are from the same year, and it has to be a particularly good year for that to be possible. In the case of Moët & Chandon, the last vintage year at the time I was there was 1998. Other signs to look for are "Premier Cru" and "Grand Cru". I can't remember the explanation (I think Straffo would know) but it's something to do with the blending of the grapes.
You need to get something that's to your taste - dry or sweet. In your price range that should be possible. I bought a Brut for around 32 euros.
Moët & Chandon website (http://www.moet.com/moet.htm?to=gb/homef.htm) (has a nice girly on the home page. Well I thought so, anyway! ;)
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Well, yeah, Vintage will set you back. The blends are mixes of years to maintain more or less the same taste. So Moet, VC ant the others all have their own taste.
Beyond that, my snobbish take is:
If it's pink or sweet, you're better off getting a sparkling wine from somewhere else.
And again, I'll do the blindfold test. Just show up at my house with two bottles.
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Campagne? We don't need no stinkin' champagne... try Cava!! :D
Daniel
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Originally posted by CyranoAH
Campagne? We don't need no stinkin' champagne... try Cava!! :D
Daniel
If memory serves, the only one I've had was Freixenet. Well known brand over there?
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Originally posted by beet1e
In your price range that should be possible. I bought a Brut for around 32 euros.
You are forgetting the 100% or so tax on alcohol in Norway.
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Originally posted by majic
If memory serves, the only one I've had was Freixenet. Well known brand over there?
Yep, it's one of the most popular ones. Not exactly top class, but not bad either.
The company is well known for their xmas commercials. This year they hired Pierce Brosnan... dumb ad, anyway :)
(http://ttd.cache.el-mundo.net/documentos/2004/11/19/freix3.jpg)
Daniel
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Originally posted by airbumba
Nilsen , I see you've finally realized u can't drink with the big boys, and are going for the light-weight stuff.
Well, although I'm saddened to see the loss of another 'real' drinker, I do wish you the best in your new 'sipping' life, and want u to know that , although we drinkers will miss u greatly, we do wish u the best.
Concidering that I just woke up from a party that lasted until mid-sunday I feel kinda.....tired still. That champagne testing with some cognac and GT to break up the bubbley with 2 of my friends lasted longer than I had expected. Sertainly longer than our "wives" enjoyed :(
Oh well... these partys are so far apart now..... and I remember why too.
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Originally posted by majic
Dom is $30 worth of champagne and a $100 name. Cristal I've not had but I'd have a hard time paying that much.
My wife and I had Dom for our anniversery. I must say , that it was GREAT. Understand it is expensive , but it was good stuff
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Champagne is what happen to a wine you an't really drink as is...
Did you guessed I hate Champagne ?
:p
Btw you can be wrong with a Veuve Cliquot a Mumm a Moët et Chandon.
Beetle the grand cru are supposed to produce be the best grape at 100% the premier cru are between 90% and 99% of a 100% scale.
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Originally posted by straffo
Btw you can be wrong with a Veuve Cliquot a Mumm a Moët et Chandon.
yup, the Veuve Cliquot is very good.. :)
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Serve the cheapest stuff you have with LuteFisk and no one will know the dif. You save $$$
:aok
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Originally posted by Nilsen
yup, the Veuve Cliquot is very good.. :)
Also known as "Chateau Legopeneur". ;)
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lol Curval.. :D
Didnt work on my gf on sunday.... but maybe it wasnt enough that I drank it, maybe she should have had some too :rofl