What wine to get?

heartbreak_star

Next project is to have a crack with cider using apple juice

HBS x

DigForVictory

It's in circumstances like this that I head for Majestic & the like rather than Costco. C are great but pile high & sell the very expensive a bit cheaper. Majestic, Oddbins etc let you have a sip or two & know their terroir. (Which is what most posh wine shops use to inspire terror - it's the wine equivalent of knowing your Lancashire from your Wensleydale.)

Without using the word wedding, ("family party" always more MS!), explain you need cheerful bottles on a specific budget & what can they do for you for Q people for £X.

Know your numbers, of adults & children, be ready to be encouraged to allow a percentage for non-drinkers but don't get the wine merchants' orange juice. Or (unless it's a splendid deal), the caterer's.

Supermarket's own, chilled, along with a couple of dozen big bottles of fizzy pop to mix, ply children with & drink the rest yourself (or donate to Scouts) is more than fine.

The miracle of the "Bin end" is to be explored - there will only be so many bottles of something, but you can get some truly stonkingly delicious bottles at a healthy discount as there may not be enough for a full case or whatever. So it may make sense to have three different reds (if they're all a pleasure to the palate) just so you can cover the numbers. (I have a totally undeserved reputation as a generous & knowledgable toper based largely on this this tip alone!)

Finally, unless you are offered a really splendid deal, or fancy a bit more experimentation & have a car that will cope with the right number of cases as well as another driver, check out the supermarkets. Buy one bottle, have a pensive swig in the carpark (be careful that exhaust fumes do not fuddle the palate!) & if you think it'll do the job, go back in, get the section head, explain the "family party" requirements & ask how much for the number of cases. It isn't haggling, just ensuring every relevant promotion is applied.

There's also a deal at Tesco this week, but whether that works with your cashflow (let alone your palate!) I've no idea:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/deals/cheap-wine-deals/?utm_source=MSE_Newsletter&utm_medium=oneliner-one&utm_term=15-Apr-14-lt&utm_campaign=deals&utm_content=4#tescowinecase25

When in absolute panic & doubt, take the advice from Oddbins or Majestic (have them rank the wines by price & move up one if your funds permit) and then all praise you can accept gracefully & any bafflement you can direct to the right address. Although should anyone tell the bride her wedding drink is plonk, their manners need correcting.

Have a lovely time hunting & a very happy day!

19lottie82

we are having a sit down meal for 37, but 4 don't drink.

I have just ordered from Tesco Wines,

12 bottles Casillero del Diablo Cabernet Sauvignon (RED)

12 bottles Isla Negra Reserva Chardonnay (WHITE)


6 bottles Louis DelaunayChampagne Brut


which with the promotional discounts came to £176 :T

That will do the glass of champagne on arrival and red / white wines for the tables.

PS I'm not a wine drinker and know nothing about it, but my Dad is a real buff and recommended them for the price

Justengaged

Wow, what an amazing response, thank you so much everyone!


I'll try and sample a few over the Easter weekend and see how I get on with, what better excuse to have a few bottles than "testing for the wedding"

27col

A hell of a lot of people would have trouble deciding whether they were drinking red or white. Never mind the type of wine. There is an awful lot of rubbish spouted about wine. particularly about the the "quality".
I once bought an expensive bottle of Chablis while on holiday near to the village of Chablis. Later on, I bought a bottle of cheap Californian Chablis and all who tried the two preferred the cheap version.

VintageBelle

I don't know a huge lot about wine, I'm only a red wine drinker unless it's sparkling. As far as red goes pinot noir is very nice as it isn't a strong 'leggy' wine so might go down nicely for most.

Also it may seem bizarre but I've seen that some branches of Savers the toiletry shop sell booze now and their wine is rather cheap on average £5 a bottle, some less and some just a little bit more.

Depending on when you are getting married have you thought of making Elderflower Champagne? The flowers are out from around May time and you don't need any special brewing equipment really (apart from swing top bottles). There are loads of tutorials online.

ceh209

We're going for this wine from Tesco:

http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=274835474
http://www.tesco.com/groceries/Product/Details/?id=274841028

It's often on offer to £5 a bottle, and hopefully if that's at the same time as 25% off it'll be £3.75 a bottle. We've tried it and we like it, plus we think it's a nice looking bottle and we wanted to having 'matching' red and white wine.

tillyscot

Try Aldi…bare with me!!…..I am serious!….their Toro Rocco Rose was the highly commended winner at the Quality Drink Awards 2013 last year plus there champagne and red come highly recommended too to the most discerning palate!