Mont Clair Red WIne

[xylophone]

51 minutes ago, janclaes47 said:

Definitely no mention of any grape sort on the box, but as I said I kinda liked the red version, which is rare because it didn't have any bitter after taste which many of the cheap wines have.

 

Also the age of the boxes worried me. I know a wine can kept for many years when stored in the right conditions, but is this also the case with an adulterated product?

 

Another thing that makes me suspicious is where does this +2 year old boxes come from at once, as they weren't available previously.

 

It surely doesn't takes 2 years to ship and import them.

You make some very interesting points............

 

If the grape variety was Pinotage or/and Cinsault then it's highly unlikely that there would be a bitter aftertaste because neither of those grapes are known for their inherent tannins.

 

And the age of the boxes is a worry I have to say, and there is a reason I say this, because just a few years back I bought what I thought was some Chilean red wine in a box, no not the fruit variety. I thought it was Chilean because it had a picture of some of the Chilean vineyards and mountains on it and also use the word Bodegas in its title, and It also had a generalisation of wines made in Chile.

 

First of all, when I opened it was OFF, and OFF big time, with a cloudy rancid look and smell and was absolutely disgusting. That's when I started to investigate the box itself and this is what I found through much looking and research.........it was actually a cheap wine from Spain which had been put into boxes and then shipped to Denmark, purporting to be from Chile.

 

From Denmark it appears to have found its way back to Spain, and then it was on-shipped to Thailand, which is where I bought it. So from all its travels it was probably a few years old and had not been stored properly, hence the condition of it.

 

Believe it or not I had one hell of a job convincing the staff at Villa Market that it was unfit for drinking and they were not going to refund me my money. That was until I asked them for a glass and I poured some of this "wine" into it and asked the manager to drink it, and he seemed game, that was until he saw it and smelled it and then there was no way he was going to drink it, so my money was refunded.

 

So I can understand your concern about the time taken to ship these wine boxes around the place.

[SkyRider]

On 4/16/2018 at 4:19 PM, xylophone said:

I have just noticed some 5 L boxes of wines from South Africa, called "Africa Horizon" in Villa Market and wondered if anyone else had seen it.

 

It is what is called an "aromatised wine" which means that it has something added to it, but quite what, is not on the label, however at just over 1000 baht for 5 L it might be worthwhile for those folk who drink fruit wine to check it out and report back.

 

On another subject on here, I have been mentioning quite a few Chilean wines which may be worth checking out and I did mention that some of them seem to be a little "rustic" and I thought I would explain that a little more – –

 

Most of the Chilean wines I have tasted and have posted about have been from the lower price brackets and are therefore some of the lower end wines that Chile produces. So as Meatloaf has said, "if you're looking for a Ruby in a mountain of rocks........" you won't find one, but what you may find is a wine which is not a fruit wine and is better than the likes of Montclair.

 

Chile has a varied climate and is sometimes referred to as "cool climate" and I think a lot of these cheaper wines come from areas like that where the sunshine hours and heat are limited. That can play havoc with the Cabernet Sauvignon grape and produce something which is called an "herbaceous/green" wine; this because there has not been enough heat over a long enough period of time to get rid of something called methoxypyrazines, which are responsible for this herbaceous "flavour".

 

Bordeaux which can have similar problems with temperature, can also suffer from this, especially where the predominant grape is Cabernet Sauvignon.

 

So, persevere with the cheaper Chilean wines and see what you think, and perhaps try some with a little bottle age as this may help, and also the 2016 vintage was variable, so they are not exactly the pick of the bunch. Sorry about the pun – – partly intended!

So as Meatloaf has said, "if you're looking for a Ruby in a mountain of rocks........"

 

Great line, great song, and great album.  With the limited selection here, it's hard to find a ruby.  I've been passing on the Chilean wines, but once again, I'll take your advice, and try a few more of them.  

[xylophone]

15 hours ago, SkyRider said:

So as Meatloaf has said, "if you're looking for a Ruby in a mountain of rocks........"

 

Great line, great song, and great album.  With the limited selection here, it's hard to find a ruby.  I've been passing on the Chilean wines, but once again, I'll take your advice, and try a few more of them.  

Good idea...........and try the Carmenere or Merlot (or blends) rather than Cabernet Sauvignon, and try to give 2016 a miss of any of them. Good hunting!

[huberthammer]

As much as Thailand is a great alternative to retire because of the low cost of living it adds some serious extra cost for us wine drinkers. Obviously the main issue is the huge import tax burden but the law that makes alcohol promotion illegal does not help either to get the occasional good deal. 

 

In my opinion the best value in buying wine in Thailand is in Oz and Kiwi wines due to their lower tax burden ("low" is the complete wrong word) so I tend to search for these origins while shopping in Thailand and focus on other countries when drinking/buying abroad.

 

Another interesting observation is that some of the restaurants completely get it and see their wine offering as a service that brings them dining customers more than a money spinner. They know that tourists from abroad know their wines and the prices they pay at home. 

 

http://silklegal.com/importing-alcohol-to-thailand/

[xylophone]

37 minutes ago, huberthammer said:

As much as Thailand is a great alternative to retire because of the low cost of living it adds some serious extra cost for us wine drinkers. Obviously the main issue is the huge import tax burden but the law that makes alcohol promotion illegal does not help either to get the occasional good deal. 

 

In my opinion the best value in buying wine in Thailand is in Oz and Kiwi wines due to their lower tax burden ("low" is the complete wrong word) so I tend to search for these origins while shopping in Thailand and focus on other countries when drinking/buying abroad.

 

Another interesting observation is that some of the restaurants completely get it and see their wine offering as a service that brings them dining customers more than a money spinner. They know that tourists from abroad know their wines and the prices they pay at home. 

 

http://silklegal.com/importing-alcohol-to-thailand/

I have to admit that I'm not too au fait with the latest tax laws, however I did think that Chile signed an FTA with Thailand just a year or two ago, making their wines quite a bit cheaper, in respect of other non-FTA countries?

 

Also I'm not sure that the tariffs quoted are relevant now that the law has just recently changed on tax/tariff/duty, whatever one wants to call it?

 

Whatever the case as you quite rightly say, we pay far too much for wine here and I suppose I'm lucky in a way that I am able to buy some expensive wines a lot cheaper because of an association I have.

 

That still does not preclude me from looking for the "bargains" because the wines mentioned above do not become available very often, more's the pity! Anyway it's quite fun doing this and I get a great deal of satisfaction out of finding a relatively "unknown" wine which I manage to discover and which suits my taste buds.

 

As an aside, good to know that some Kiwi wines are finding their way here, the better ones being the whites, as although occasionally New Zealand gets rave reviews for its red wines, I really can't agree with some of the ratings they get, but perhaps that's just me!

[huberthammer]

2 hours ago, xylophone said:

As an aside, good to know that some Kiwi wines are finding their way here, the better ones being the whites, as although occasionally New Zealand gets rave reviews for its red wines, I really can't agree with some of the ratings they get, but perhaps that's just me!

I would agree, some are passable drinking wines but by no means great wines who deserve the raving reviews. Too many average Kiwi Pinots are giving Pinot Noir a bad reputation these days.

 

Just interested, do you use any online shops in Thailand when you source your wine?

[xylophone]

3 hours ago, huberthammer said:

Too many average Kiwi Pinots are giving Pinot Noir a bad reputation these days.

Absolutely agree with you and I have tried most of the top rated Pinots..........Felton Road, Ata Rangi. Fromm, Dry River, Giesen etc,. and ones from our own film star, Sam Neill. Two Paddocks, but they don't hold a candle to even average Burgundies.

 

3 hours ago, huberthammer said:

Just interested, do you use any online shops in Thailand when you source your wine?

No, but always looking and searching and my contact sometimes comes up with a few good wines which he passes on to me as he is a trade client.

[Henryford]

Saw 5l Mont Clair in Friendship today for 1490 baht which is almost the same as i was paying for 10l from Tesco, a 100% increase !!

[SkyRider]

7 hours ago, xylophone said:

I have to admit that I'm not too au fait with the latest tax laws, however I did think that Chile signed an FTA with Thailand just a year or two ago, making their wines quite a bit cheaper, in respect of other non-FTA countries?

 

Also I'm not sure that the tariffs quoted are relevant now that the law has just recently changed on tax/tariff/duty, whatever one wants to call it?

 

Whatever the case as you quite rightly say, we pay far too much for wine here and I suppose I'm lucky in a way that I am able to buy some expensive wines a lot cheaper because of an association I have.

 

That still does not preclude me from looking for the "bargains" because the wines mentioned above do not become available very often, more's the pity! Anyway it's quite fun doing this and I get a great deal of satisfaction out of finding a relatively "unknown" wine which I manage to discover and which suits my taste buds.

 

As an aside, good to know that some Kiwi wines are finding their way here, the better ones being the whites, as although occasionally New Zealand gets rave reviews for its red wines, I really can't agree with some of the ratings they get, but perhaps that's just me!

That's a lot of very interesting information, thank you for this post. 

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

17 minutes ago, Henryford said:

Saw 5l Mont Clair in Friendship today for 1490 baht which is almost the same as i was paying for 10l from Tesco, a 100% increase !!

I am going through a one week post Songkran de-tox but will be buying Castle Creek next Friday. I'll check out the prices of Mont Clair whilst there...

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

On 4/21/2018 at 7:18 PM, Jeremia Juxtaposed said:

I am going through a one week post Songkran de-tox but will be buying Castle Creek next Friday. I'll check out the prices of Mont Clair whilst there...

Well. They had run out of Castle Creek, I guess I told too many people where to go..

 

I checked the prices of Mont Clair 5 litre boxes.

 

- Red 1005 Baht - so I bought one and it is now chilling in my fridge

- White 1,495 Baht - so I didn't buy one....

Edited May 11, 2018 by Jeremia Juxtaposed

[xylophone]

Montclair red 3 ltr boxes now 1019b in Big C here, but 999b in Makro.

 

There was none around for a while, because a friend of mine was looking to buy about 15 boxes for an annual dinner for his "association/club", however I did manage to find some Bodegas Valley red for him at 899 baht for 3 ltr.

 

And much to my chagrin, the Montclair boxes still followed the same old routine of trying to "disguise" exactly what it is, because one had to look very carefully to see the words, "Red fruit wine Celebration" on the side of the box, whereas the Bodegas Valley clearly stated that it was wine blended with fruit juice.

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

22 minutes ago, xylophone said:

Montclair red 3 ltr boxes now 1019b in Big C here, but 999b in Makro.

 

There was none around for a while, because a friend of mine was looking to buy about 15 boxes for an annual dinner for his "association/club", however I did manage to find some Bodegas Valley red for him at 899 baht for 3 ltr.

 

And much to my chagrin, the Montclair boxes still followed the same old routine of trying to "disguise" exactly what it is, because one had to look very carefully to see the words, "Red fruit wine Celebration" on the side of the box, whereas the Bodegas Valley clearly stated that it was wine blended with fruit juice.

Yep. I had seen the 3 litre boxes in Big C so double checked when I saw the price for the 5 litre celebration red wine for 1,005 baht. Not sure why the price difference in the white wine was though....and I tend to think it may have been 1,395 in retrospect..

 

EDIT = I have just checked the box and it just says "Red Celebration" on the front.

 

I have just quaffed a glass and it didn't seem as bad as I remembered.. 

Edited May 11, 2018 by Jeremia Juxtaposed

[xylophone]

3 hours ago, Jeremia Juxtaposed said:

EDIT = I have just checked the box and it just says "Red Celebration" on the front.

 

Yes, they put the fruit wine bit on one of the sides...……….!

[bankruatsteve]

On 5/11/2018 at 6:50 PM, xylophone said:

Yes, they put the fruit wine bit on one of the sides...……….!

I just noticed the (now standard?) 3 liter box has no mention of "fruit wine".  Just "RED Celebration fruity" on the side.  I wonder what that's about?

[xylophone]

2 hours ago, bankruatsteve said:

I just noticed the (now standard?) 3 liter box has no mention of "fruit wine".  Just "RED Celebration fruity" on the side.  I wonder what that's about?

Yes I have noticed that now b..steve and wonder if it is just another piece of deceptive marketing from the powerful Siam group, thinking that they can get away the the wording, "Fruity Celebration" here in Thailand, after all TIT!

 

Same fruit wine as before I believe.

[siamcrut]

I only once bought at Macro a 3 liter box of chardonnay wine. To be fair can’t remember 100% if it was from Mont Clair. But it was Australien. Anyway back home put it in the fridge and next day poured a glass and was surprised of the intense color. So I tasted a bit and was disgusted.

No way to drink that, so I mixed it with some soda. Then it was a bit better but still not what I was used to drink back home. So I got curious and inspected the box and could find in tiny small prints that they ad egg-powder for coloring!!! VVTF, tossed the full box right away. That’s fraud. Since then I stick to beer in Thailand.

 

 

 

[marcusarelus]

6 minutes ago, siamcrut said:

I only once bought at Macro a 3 liter box of chardonnay wine. To be fair can’t remember 100% if it was from Mont Clair. But it was Australien. Anyway back home put it in the fridge and next day poured a glass and was surprised of the intense color. So I tasted a bit and was disgusted.

No way to drink that, so I mixed it with some soda. Then it was a bit better but still not what I was used to drink back home. So I got curious and inspected the box and could find in tiny small prints that they ad egg-powder for coloring!!! VVTF, tossed the full box right away. That’s fraud.

Pity.  I put in a bay leaf, garlic cloves, onion, carrots, black peppercorns and celery and saute with Thai beef for a day and it's great.  

[xylophone]

14 hours ago, siamcrut said:

I only once bought at Macro a 3 liter box of chardonnay wine. To be fair can’t remember 100% if it was from Mont Clair. But it was Australien. Anyway back home put it in the fridge and next day poured a glass and was surprised of the intense color. So I tasted a bit and was disgusted.

No way to drink that, so I mixed it with some soda. Then it was a bit better but still not what I was used to drink back home. So I got curious and inspected the box and could find in tiny small prints that they ad egg-powder for coloring!!! VVTF, tossed the full box right away. That’s fraud. Since then I stick to beer in Thailand.

 

 

 

Well it was probably "off" either through age or being in too much heat........the usual causes of the "intense colour" and bad taste.

 

Egg whites or similar are often used in the production process in order to "fine" the wine (filter/take out particles) and don't interfere with the colour or the taste of the wine.

 

[xylophone]

I thought I'd post on here again to try and resurrect the thread, however it's difficult to know which wine thread to post on because there are so many of them and a few of them I just cannot find in the search option, however Linda has helped out, so here goes with this post although I would like to also put it on the Phuket thread!

 

Anyway went to the Villa Market store here in Chalong and noticed a red wine from Chile which was on special at 409 baht; it was called Brisa Cabernet Sauvignon and it was the 2018 vintage which appears to be one of the better vintages of late.

 

I would have bought a bottle to try, but unfortunately I was there in the period when wine cannot be sold.

So if anyone is looking for what would appear to be a decent bottle of red wine, this might be worth trying........and of course reporting back on how it was!

[eezergood]

Lets resurrect this one 

[xylophone]

2 hours ago, eezergood said:

Lets resurrect this one 

OK, you start!!!!!

 

BUT there are another couple of threads which deal with wine in general, rather than sticking to Montclair, but again, having said that, this thread does contain a lot of useful information, so resurrect it is!

Edited May 21, 2019 by xylophone

[JTXR]

I used to be able to buy the 3l boxes of Montclair red at my local MaxValu, but they never carry anymore.  I saw them at BigC a few days ago for 990 baht.

[eezergood]

36 minutes ago, JTXR said:

I used to be able to buy the 3l boxes of Montclair red at my local MaxValu, but they never carry anymore.  I saw them at BigC a few days ago for 990 baht.

 

36 minutes ago, JTXR said:

I used to be able to buy the 3l boxes of Montclair red at my local MaxValu, but they never carry anymore.  I saw them at BigC a few days ago for 990 baht.

I think they are to be totally phased out - will try to get more info for you on this but the producers are moving into more 'higher quality' stuff i hear 

[eezergood]

47 minutes ago, xylophone said:

OK, you start!!!!!

 

BUT there are another couple of threads which deal with wine in general, rather than sticking to Montclair, but again, having said that, this thread does contain a lot of useful information, so resurrect it is!

I lost those other threads- but happy to chip in where i can

 

[xylophone]

21 minutes ago, eezergood said:

I lost those other threads- but happy to chip in where i can

 

Yes, I have a devil of a job to try and find old posts and threads and when I look at my avatar name, "xylophone" to try and find previous posts, I can only uncover two previous pages and that's it! 

 

 

22 minutes ago, eezergood said:

I think they are to be totally phased out - will try to get more info for you on this but the producers are moving into more 'higher quality' stuff i hear 

Jeez, that will be a turn up for the book, although I have seen some Montclair branded wines in store from the likes of Australia's McLaren Vale and so on, and initially they were too highly priced, but I see they have come down in price a little.

 

However they may have a problem with the brand, inasmuch as they will be trying to market a more upmarket wine on the brand-name "Montclair" which was always associated with a low quality fruit wine?

[eezergood]

39 minutes ago, xylophone said:

Yes, I have a devil of a job to try and find old posts and threads and when I look at my avatar name, "xylophone" to try and find previous posts, I can only uncover two previous pages and that's it! 

 

 

Jeez, that will be a turn up for the book, although I have seen some Montclair branded wines in store from the likes of Australia's McLaren Vale and so on, and initially they were too highly priced, but I see they have come down in price a little.

 

However they may have a problem with the brand, inasmuch as they will be trying to market a more upmarket wine on the brand-name "Montclair" which was always associated with a low quality fruit wine?

I meant the boxes buddy - not the wines

 

[scorecard]

Mont Clair red is available at Rimping supermarkets in Chiang Mai in thick white plastic bags with tap, with a gusset on the bottom of the bag so it can stand upright. Can't recall the price.

[eezergood]

12 minutes ago, scorecard said:

Mont Clair red is available at Rimping supermarkets in Chiang Mai in thick white plastic bags with tap, with a gusset on the bottom of the bag so it can stand upright. Can't recall the price.

smaller size form 

[Henryford]

I wonder how much Mont Clair sales have fallen since the big price increase. I used to buy loads but stopped buying it altogether. The producers must have lost a bomb.