I want to buy a $200 bottle of red wine. What is the best kind for that money? It's a Christmas present.?

Question

I haven't seen my uncle in 10 years.

He's Italian and LOVES his red wine. I want to buy him a great bottle or red wine.

I know some people are going to say "you can get a great bottle for 50, 100, etc." but I want to spend 200, and really want to impress him.

What kind should I get?

Answer 1

I totally disagree with Joex and James. People who says 4 bottles of $50 is better than 1 bottle of $200 obviously never have a great bottle of expensive wine.

For $200, you have all sort of choices. It is a luxury to able to spend that kind of money on wine, and personally I would consider what his love is before making that big jump.

First, see what type of wine he drinks. You need to know the region and the type of grape. If he is an Italian and drinks only Italian wine, it would be an insult to get him a nice bottle of French Bordeaux. On the other hand, different people have different taste, and for me, a Chinese American, I absolutely detest wines from Asian and prefer my Californian and French.

Here are a few choices I would consider:

Californian: Caymus Special Selection ($150) or Joseph Phelps Insignia ($160). These two are the premier grand cru of California wines, and their reputation is beyond dispute. While they are widely available, owning one is is different. If you want some "boutique" Californian wine, you can look online for Robert Foley Claret ($150), Pride Reserve Cabernet ($140), Maiden ($200), Lokoya ($175), all are great wines and all are very hard to get. Very impressive if he knows his Californian wines. As for Opus One, they are most known for the name rather than the quality. While 2004 vintage is better rated (90), you can get far better wine for $170 than Opus.

French: I have a love for French Bordeaux, and nothing comes close to the first growth - Ch Margaux, Ch. Lafite, Ch. Latour, Ch Mouton Rotheschild, and Ch. Haut Brion. Depending on the vintages, they can range from $170-500. The 2004 vintages are cheaper - a Margaux would run about $200 on the market at present. On the other hand, 2005 and 2006 vintages are very expensive. You can also get some of the very fine non-first growth Bordeaux - I saw a bottle of 2003 Ch. Angelus for $140 the other day.

Italian: They make some fabulous wines, many are in $200 ranges. I would go for the SuperTuscans and the Tuscans, such as Antinori Solaia and Tenuta Ornellia and Lucente and Gaja. All of these runs about $200, depending on vintage. They can be hard to get, but they will be highly appreciated by an Italian wine lover.

Australian: Hands down, Grange ($180-250). Grange is a Cabernet/Syrah blend, very well rate and highly sought after.

Have fun spending the money. Just keep in mind that most of the wines that I listed will have to wait for a few years before they are drinkable, so don't expect him to crack it open right away. Of course, unless you buy an older bottle - for Californian, pre-1999; for French, pre-2000 and possibly pre-1992; and for Italian/Australian, pre-1998. So, if you want to have him open that bottle and share with you right away, you may want to consider a bottle of champagne - such as La Grande Dame ($170) or Dom Perignone ($160) or Tattinger Comte ($200) or Cristal ($200).

Answer 2

Listen, if he's Italian and LOVES red wine, then you are much better off taking that $200 and buying 4 bottles at $50. The sentiment will be the same, but the person you are buying for will be much happier. My entire family is Italian (I'm 2nd gen) and I can tell you that once you pass $50 on a bottle the taste to cost ratio becomes irrelevant, and if this person LOVES red wine like I and my family do, they'll be much happier to have 4 bottles than one.

Why not buy 4 of the same type of wine from 4 different regions? Like an Italian varietal wine, but one from Italy, one from California, one from New York state, and one from Australia? Or wines from inside Italy working their way from north to south?

Or maybe you can go from full bodies reds to sweeter kinds and then even sparkling wine in a gift package.

One wine you MUST include no matter what is a "Vino Nobile di Montepulciano" This is often referred to as a "Super-Tuscan" and should not ever be confused with "Montepulciano D'Abruzzo" as they are totally different wines that just have some of the same words in their names.

Also, what region of Italy is the person from? Maybe they might like something from close to home? There are many websites out there that can help you look for italian wines by region.

4 is better than one... especially a week or 2 after the holidays.

Answer 3

I agree that you're best off getting 4 bottles of $50 wine. Once you reach that level, most of the money goes into the "rarity" of it, as in a particularly good year, or a small winery. A $200 bottle from a small winery could be as good as a $50 bottle from a slightly larger winery, it's hard to say.

If you go under $50, though, you're not really getting a "special" wine that much. $30 is special to me, but a $20 bottle I wouldn't think of as being special, if that makes sense. I'd rather four $50 bottles than one $200 or ten $20 bottles.

Try a theme of some sort -- 4 different bottles of the same type from the same region (maybe the region your family is from?), or 4 different years of the same wine, maybe 4 different varietals from the same winery? Lots of combinations, but finding a set of 4 should be easier than a set of 5 or 10 ;)

Answer 4

a box of 'chillable red' and an 'all day lasagna'. only for special occasions. i screwed up my last chance and did 'bleeding meat on open flame'. the smallest lasagna is too large unless i get all my friends together. do you boil a pigs head? i had a friends mother that would have a tamale day about once a month. i always loved the smell, and the final product... the in between stages less so.

Answer 5

1

Answer 6

Any bottle will do. Just pay $ 200.00 for it and tell your uncle. You won't be lying.
I asure you, he'll be impressed with you.

Answer 7

If you like scotch/whiskey blend, I would use that $200 to buy a bottle of Johnny Walker Blue label. So smooth... like butta, has a hit of vanilla and oak.

Yum.

Answer 8

Barolo, “Ornato” Pio Cesare 1998

Should be right up his alley.

Answer 9

How about a bottle of Opus One

Answer 10

go to a small wine specialty store and ask the owner.