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+--- Thread: Wedding Wine on a Budget (/thread-430.html)
- bsnyder - 02-14-2000
I'm getting married June 2000, and have been given the task of getting the wine. It is an outdoor, country wedding. There will be a cocktail hour with crudite, fresh fruit, and cheeses followed by a green salad with Citrus Vinaigrette Dressing, The main course will be Hickory Smoked Pork Tenderloin and Southern Fried Chicken w/ Red Bliss Potato Salad and Cole Slaw. I'm trying the keep the wine cost per bottle under $15. Any help is most appreciated. The caterer has recommended that I get 36 bottles of white, 6 red, and 6 white zinfadel. Thanks again.
- Innkeeper - 02-14-2000
If you want to stick with your caterer's suggestion go with three cases of R.J Phillips, Barrell Cuvee, Chardonnay, Dunnigan Hills, 1998; a half case of Sonoma Creek, Sonoma County, Pinot Noir, 1996; and a half case of McDowell Valley Vineyards, Mendocino, Grenache Rose', 1998. Don't want to overide your caterer, but national stats say it be better to get two cases of Chardonnay, one case of Pinot Noir, and one case of the Rose'.
[This message has been edited by Innkeeper (edited 02-16-2000).]
- misterjive - 02-28-2000
Also, you've got to get some Brut, and not just for the toast. Check out the wedding wine info toward the top of this forum. I agree with Innkeeper about national stats, and it seems kind of odd to get 36 bottles of white but only 6 of red. A California Zinfandel would go with both your meats, and an oaky Cali Sangiovese might as well. Get 24 bottles of Chard, 6 of Merlot or Cab, and 6 of (real) Zin or Pinot Noir, and 6 or even 12 of White Zin (plus some bubbly). As for the White Zin, I don't drink the stuff, and disapprove of it on principle, but then, Robert Mondavi invented it, and he's a bujillionaire, and I'm not. The bottom line is that lots of people (read: women, if I must be sexist) who don't otherwise drink wine happily drink white zin. So buy De Loach. They make reliably good wines....By the way, you can get plenty of good wines for under $12 a bottle (buy South American; the way I promote the Southern hemisphere in these pages, you'd think I got kickbacks from Argentine and Chilean producers). And most importantly, have a great wedding!
- Zinner - 02-29-2000
As Innkeeper and misterjive say, the advice from the caterer does seem a bit heavy on the whites. But you might consider whether the guests are used to drinking wine or not. If your guest list has a lot of regular wine drinkers, I'd go for more red. If they're novices, perhaps more white or white zin.
As misterjive says "lots of people who don't otherwise drink wine, happily drink white zin." However don't expect this to be limited to women. In our family, I(female) am the adventurous oenophile, while my older brother, my nephew and several other male relatives go for the white zin, whatever else I put in front of them(misterjive, you are just hanging out with the wrong women). And by the way, it is the folks at Sutter Home who get credit for white zinfandel, not Robert Mondavi.
bsnyder, you might also get an opinion from local wine merchants who can tip you off to what might be particularly value-priced in your market. In D.C., Calvert-Woodley or McArthur's should be able to help. Talk with several consultants, if you can find the time. If there's an in-store tasting, it might be fun to hit that and scope out the situation, while enjoying some wine.