Any wine drinkers here ?

[The Cobra]

Can anyone recommend a nice Red wine that's readily available in Big stores like Big C Tesco Makro etc? 

 

I know nothing about the stuff and don't want to end up with something thats like Vinegar.

 

Any help appreciated., thanks.

[Henryford]

Anything decent is too expensive. Just get used to vinegar.

[LS24]

Penfold's Bin 2 is reasonably priced over here considering.

[bignok]

Too hot for wine. Wine is for cold climates.

[proton]

19 crimes is not bad 599 baht its about 350 back in the UK, Nadin 777 at 345 baht is drinkable even though they stick a bit of fruit juice in it, Rumours is even cheaper at 299

[metisdead]

From the Forum Rules:

 

42. You will not advertise, display, promote, review or endorse, directly or indirectly, the name or trademark of any alcoholic beverage. Such actions are potentially in contravention of Section 32 of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act (2008).

 

Posts with photos of bottles of wine have been removed.

[RayC]

It depends on how you define "nice" and everything is subjective opinion, of course.

 

My rule of thumb in Europe (other than France) is to spend no less than €10 on a bottle. Such bottles will set you back 2000+ baht in Thailand. The other problem buying wine in Thailand is that the supermarkets and department stores generally have no idea how to cellar or store wine.

 

Whatever else Thailand may be, it is not a wine drinker's paradise.

[bignok]

50 minutes ago, proton said:

19 crimes is not bad 599 baht its about 350 back in the UK, Nadin 777 at 345 baht is drinkable even though they stick a bit of fruit juice in it, Rumours is even cheaper at 299

220 in OZ

[ChaiyaTH]

25 minutes ago, RayC said:

It depends on how you define "nice" and everything is subjective opinion, of course.

 

My rule of thumb in Europe (other than France) is to spend no less than €10 on a bottle. Such bottles will set you back 2000+ baht in Thailand. The other problem buying wine in Thailand is that the supermarkets and department stores generally have no idea how to cellar or store wine.

 

Whatever else Thailand may be, it is not a wine drinker's paradise.

Nonsense, plenty of good bottles for 500-700 baht, which sell in restaurants from as little as 1000-1200 too.

 

I can know, i drink a few bottles a week.

[ChaiyaTH]

Im not sure why the OP asks but i assume its for guests and not himself. Just try and grab some pinot noir at 500-700 baht and you will be fine.

[daveAustin]

Black Horse ain't too bad for a Cab at 399. 7-11 usually has it. Equivalent in UK on supermarket shelf probably £6 or £7, so another couple squid for here ain't bad. Just avoid serving Mont Clair to your guests. 

[Stocky]

1 hour ago, proton said:

19 crimes is not bad 599 baht

+1 for 19 Crimes, either the Red Blend or the Shiraz. Available Big-C, Tops, Villa Market and no doubt a few more. If you have a Wine Connection in your area then they have a good selection of wines at reasonable (for Thailand) prices.

[RayC]

26 minutes ago, ChaiyaTH said:

Nonsense, plenty of good bottles for 500-700 baht, which sell in restaurants from as little as 1000-1200 too.

 

I can know, i drink a few bottles a week.

 

"I can know": Robert Parker has entered the conversation 

 

What bit of: "It depends on how you define "nice" and everything is subjective opinion, of course" is unclear?

 

I'm pleased that you are able to enjoy 500 baht wines. Obviously you have an ability to sniff out these high-quality bargains. On the other hand, perhaps, you don't have a very refined palate?

 

[RayC]

33 minutes ago, ChaiyaTH said:

Im not sure why the OP asks but i assume its for guests and not himself. Just try and grab some pinot noir at 500-700 baht and you will be fine.

 

One of the most difficult grape varieties to grow and consequently one with high production costs and you suggest buying a cheap bottle of it. Yep, that makes sense.

[RayWright]

Best value for money / taste I've found is in Big-C Extra on Pattaya Klang Road, not seen it in their other stores or elsewhere.

Knight Black Horse (KBH) at just over 400THB. It's a Australian Cab Sav, but mixed with a bit of Thai Roselle to get round the high foreign alcohol import tax. Bottled at 13%. Also Roselle is used in lowering blood pressure, so essentially a health drink!

No hints of oxidation from the bottles I've drunk, so implies good cellaridge.  

Check the label carefully (yellow with black writing), as KBH also do a Mulberry-Roselle fruit wine which is cheaper, and technically isn't wine and a lot sweeter. A review on this esteemed organ back in 2020 used the word "antifreeze" as a means to describe the taste.

Currently the 2017 is on the shelves, the 2016 does have a slight edge though if you can get it.

Price did jump 5% about 6 months ago.

They usually have it in their bins, so laying down so the cork stays wet. Unlike an old Tesco store I saw recently that's got a bottle of Grange predominantly displayed upright in a lighted display cabinet, at a price that's nearly 2 months rent.

[spidermike007]

I am a big premium wine drinker in the US, and I enjoy very fine wines with some wealthy friends, who are generous enough to share world class wines with me when I'm back there. And I drink really great Russian River Valley single vineyard pinots, and CDP's on my own, which are incredible.

 

But there's nothing like that to be found here and if you can find it here the pricing is just silly. I see wines here for 1,000 Baht that cost $4 in the US, so getting good wine here is very difficult. 

[richard_smith237]

The key info before being able to answer this question is - where are you?

 

In Bangkok you have lots of choice. 

In the middle of nowhere you are stuck to what Big C may have on offer. 

 

If you just want something to wash down a bit of spicy Thai food, then a box of Mont Clare will tick a box. 

 

If you want something to wash down a steak then most Cabernet Sauvignons will do the trick.
 

Chilean Wines are well priced over here.

 

If you are in Bangkok and want better mid ranged wines then purchasing in bulk from online wine stores such as Wine Pro will mean you can get reasonable wines such as Appassimento, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc etc... 

 

 

 

There's plenty of choice here - half decent wine is more expensive here than it is in our western nations of origin, so are a lot of things, thats just the way it is and not really an intelligent point of debate.

 

Another issue with wine threads on this forum is that its impossible to have a good discussion without the 'reverse-snobs' getting involved with dumb sweeping generalisations.

[BigStar]

41 minutes ago, RayC said:

On the other hand, perhaps, you don't have a very refined palate?

 

It's indeed surprising among so many refined palates here to find one unrefined. However, we're talking serious money here for our pensioners. Visa agent fees leave little leftover to pay the electric bill. So minor offenses to one's delicate palate can sometimes be tolerated, as long as they're not perpetrated by Starbucks coffee.

Edited December 10, 2023 by BigStar

[Fab5BKK]

Some fair comments here...

 

Wine tasting is all about sharing. However, quality wines could be hard to get here, because of:

• Choice
• Price (taxes, margins)
• Quality (storage)

Luckily, I manage to get my wines directly from France. I place an order twice a year (Champagne, Muscadet, Chinon, Sancerre, Chablis, Gevrey-Chambertin, Rielsing).

[NickyLouie]

Unfortunately the bagged South African table red or white wine is passable and still overpriced.

 

[Walker88]

If you're going to buy wine at Big-C, might as well buy the cheapest thing they have, since the stuff is unlikely to have been stored properly since bottled. Nothing is going to taste particularly good, whether 1 satang or 1000 baht.

 

The oddity---or perhaps not---of wine in Thailand is the tax affects the price decreasingly as the actual value of the wine increases. Either because importers fudge, Customs is totally unaware of finer wine pricing, or money changes hands, the price of better wines in Thailand is not much different from the retail price in the US. Europe may be cheaper, but not the US. Any wine that goes for maybe $30+ in the US will not be priced much differently in Thailand at the larger importers, but a $5 wine in the US will cost much more than that in Thailand. There are a range of Toscanas, Chiantis and Barbera d'Albas I can buy in Bangkok at the same price I pay in the US. That's also true of even higher priced wines like Sassicaia or Solaia, or a good Brunello di Montalcino. Even the restaurant markup for these wines is not much different than one would see in a US restaurant. I can pay 3100 baht for a Le Volte at a place like El Gaucho, and in a US restaurant I would pay maybe $90.

Edited December 10, 2023 by Walker88

[sirineou]

3 hours ago, The Cobra said:

Can anyone recommend a nice Red wine that's readily available in Big stores like Big C Tesco Makro etc? 

 

I know nothing about the stuff and don't want to end up with something thats like Vinegar.

 

Any help appreciated., thanks.

Sweet, semi-sweet. Dry?

  Even if you answered I would not be able to help you because we almost never buy wine here , we go to Greece every summar and always bring back a few bottles . Always a bit more than we are avowed but no one has ever given us any trouble. 

Going to the US for Christmas and will bring back some with me when I come back.

I like a semi sweet wine, It reminds me of comunion  

Take your smart phone with you when you go shopping for wine, and google the label to make sure it is to your preference (sweet, semi. or dry" you mentioned "not like vinegar" so I assume either sweet or semi.   

[liddelljohn]

any decent non acidic white wine around  not too dry ??????at a sensible price???  I love reds but they screw  my diabetes ,, some whites are ok 

Edited December 10, 2023 by liddelljohn

[ArnieP]

28 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Chilean Wines are well priced over here.

Agreed. They’re the ones to look out for and are in the 600-700฿ price range.

[TroubleandGrumpy]

I used to drink a lot of wine in Australia - even had some in storage (once owned a Grange).

The wine in Thailand is massively over-priced and very under-quality.

I believe that is because the excise and duties and local taxes on imported wine is extreme.

But where is the local market/industry that they are protecting - it makes no sense at all (TiT).

 

I have looked everywhere and never found what I would call a decent wine in Thailand at a resonable price.

We once went to one of the Michellin 2 stars in Bangkok - they had a few nice wines - but extremely expensive.

Whenever we visit Australia we grab a couple of bottles each and bring them back.

I believe Singapore has very good wines available - but no idea of their prices.

[Jack100]

I found that I enjoy the taste of a Merlot  better than others . My question is  whether there is a more 
upmarket Merlot than   you can recommend   ,maybe even keep  for a while ?

Also  are there good Aussie Merlot  wine years  to buy  out here ?

[richard_smith237]

10 minutes ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

I used to drink a lot of wine in Australia - even had some in storage (once owned a Grange).

The wine in Thailand is massively over-priced and very under-quality.

I believe that is because the excise and duties and local taxes on imported wine is extreme.

But where is the local market/industry that they are protecting - it makes no sense at all (TiT).

 

I have looked everywhere and never found what I would call a decent wine in Thailand at a resonable price.

We once went to one of the Michellin 2 stars in Bangkok - they had a few nice wines - but extremely expensive.

Whenever we visit Australia we grab a couple of bottles each and bring them back.

I believe Singapore has very good wines available - but no idea of their prices.

 

I once went to Vineyard  in Khao Yai and did the tour... interesting enough, but the wine was not really enjoyable.

I thought of purchasing a few of their reserve bottles, but at about 1500 baht each I realised what a rip off it is. 

 

Thai wine in Thailand is still taxed very highly and the local vineyards have attempted to 'create a brand' rather than sell on quality - as such there is firstly the high tax, but also a very high initial markup price where they seem to believe that people will value something if it a higher price (and some do)...   

 

The Thai wines in Thailand are so heavily over priced for what they are. 

 

That said, I was in New Zealand and expected to find Cloudy Bay there for significantly cheaper that I find it elsewhere... Its actually cheaper in the UK because NZ are protecting their image and prices locally. 

Edited December 10, 2023 by richard_smith237

[Negita43]

2 hours ago, metisdead said:

Posts with photos of bottles of wine have been removed.

Off topic I know but this reminds me of the other Thai censorship - when you watch a film shown by Thai TV and someone is smoking - the censors blur it out which in my opinion only emphasises that nasty habit more!

[richard_smith237]

Just now, Negita43 said:

Off topic I know but this reminds me of the other Thai censorship - when you watch a film shown by Thai TV and someone is smoking - the censors blur it out which in my opinion only emphasises that nasty habit more!

 

The 'Streisand effect'...   Trying to hide something and making it more noticeable. Thai authorities are experts at this. 

[giddyup]

Thank god my taste buds peak at 399 baht.