Thai fruit wine, new name for all wines in Thailand to reduce tax ?

[crazygreg44]

i have started to drink the chinese made plum wine they sell at Tesco Lotus, a bottle for 180 Baht. The wine is very sweet, so I pimp it with some Schweppes Tonic water and boost the alcohol content with a shot of Absolut Vodka.  

 

Makes a perfect sundowner on the rocks and probably a nice alternative budget wise

 

I cannot be tempted to drink thai "fruit wines" but i guess one could give them the above treatment.  When in Thailand i don't buy the overpriced wines, yet stick to Gin Tonics or a good Scotch or Bourbon Whisky.  Sometimes I like to create 3-5 liters of splash, made from fruit juices and white MontClair wine, boost alcohol with either Gin or a good Vodka and try to be everybodies good guy . . .

[craigt3365]

1 hour ago, crazygreg44 said:

i have started to drink the chinese made plum wine they sell at Tesco Lotus, a bottle for 180 Baht. The wine is very sweet, so I pimp it with some Schweppes Tonic water and boost the alcohol content with a shot of Absolut Vodka.  

 

Makes a perfect sundowner on the rocks and probably a nice alternative budget wise

 

I cannot be tempted to drink thai "fruit wines" but i guess one could give them the above treatment.  When in Thailand i don't buy the overpriced wines, yet stick to Gin Tonics or a good Scotch or Bourbon Whisky.  Sometimes I like to create 3-5 liters of splash, made from fruit juices and white MontClair wine, boost alcohol with either Gin or a good Vodka and try to be everybodies good guy . . .

When we were in Spain a few years ago, they had a drink made from plonk with lemon soda added.  Called summer wine.  It was actually quite good.  So, we tried MontClair with Schweppes Manao as they don't really have the same type of lemon-lime soda here.  Not too bad.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinto_de_verano

 

[crazygreg44]

yeah that's what I am trying to say . . .. don't be shy to create some splashes and you will be surprised how many well tasting ones you can get from a fair budget.  Nobody needs to buy overpriced imported wines in Thailand.

[topt]

19 hours ago, xylophone said:

 

 

Then there is the winemaker's trick of adding wooden staves or bags of oak chips to the fermentation process to give the impression of oak in the finished wine, and this is usually done with the cheaper wines and one particular wine which can be found here which uses this technique (I believe) is the Taras wine from Australia which actually says on the bottle, "aged with oak" rather than, "aged in oak", which gives the game away.

 

 

Most of the lower end Chardonnay/blended white wines now seem to eschew oak and the Taras white available here explicitly states Unoaked or similar. There was a move away from that style some years ago but I do miss the very big chewy whites I used to get in the UK.

 

Unfortunately unless I suddenly come into vast riches (or move back) I have pretty much resigned myself to not drinking much wine, red or white, which, as one of my previous great passions is almost a reason to move......... However I just seem to end up drinking more beer............

[joeyg]

On 12/20/2016 at 0:41 PM, amjamj said:

 

 

True ! same for weed ! I had to quit here, too bad quality compared to back home !!

 

 

 

Isn't using "weed" illegal here?  I believe it is.  If you are caught couldn't you go to jail and be deported?  I'm glad to hear you quit using illegal drugs in Thailand.  Very good!!!

 

[xylophone]

58 minutes ago, topt said:

Most of the lower end Chardonnay/blended white wines now seem to eschew oak and the Taras white available here explicitly states Unoaked or similar. There was a move away from that style some years ago but I do miss the very big chewy whites I used to get in the UK.

Agree, and these things seem to go in phases.........I wasn't impressed with the white wines I tasted early on in my wine tasting experience because all that one could get in the UK was cheap French white wine which was abysmal and the ubiquitous "Liebfraumilch" or similar, so white wines weren't my forte.

 

Fast forward to landing in New Zealand and tasting some oaked Chardonnay which for me was a revelation although I didn't like the Fume Blanc (oaked sauvignon blanc) and this particular style of Chardonnay became my favourite whenever I did buy/taste a white wine...... that is until in the late 1980s the heavily oaked style became the in-thing. One wine in particular from Morton estate, the Black Label Chardonnay, was heavily oaked and although at first I took to it, after a while I just couldn't stand the stuff and I tasted some that I had bought a few years earlier, say six or seven years after purchase, and it was not good IMO; like drinking wine where the fruit had disappeared and the oak became prominent, it was almost like drinking liquid oak!!!!

 

Before I left NZ, I did take a liking to some Kim Crawford Chardonnays which were un-oaked, and those which had undergone a part malolactic fermentation, and apart from that I really don't drink it these days, with red being my favourite tipple (as mentioned to Jai Dee in a previous post) and the occasional beer on a night out on the town.

 

Agree with you about your point on the price of wines over here, and to me it makes no sense, hence my previous post about searching out wine sales and mispriced wines, with which I've had some success. Keep hunting and you will find some.

 

PS. My mention of the Taras wine and using oak staves or chips was in relation to their red.

[abab]

10 hours ago, crazygreg44 said:

yeah that's what I am trying to say . . .. don't be shy to create some splashes and you will be surprised how many well tasting ones you can get from a fair budget.  Nobody needs to buy overpriced imported wines in Thailand.

 

 

People with real taste needs it !

 

I do not drink any sweet shiiite when I eat, like most educated people do !

 

 

[chickenslegs]

3 hours ago, abab said:

 

 

People with real taste needs it !

 

I do not drink any sweet shiiite when I eat, like most educated people do !

 

 

Well, whatever it is that you're drinking certainly does not improve your manners.

[mogandave]

When we were in Spain a few years ago, they had a drink made from plonk with lemon soda added.  Called summer wine.  It was actually quite good.  So, we tried MontClair with Schweppes Manao as they don't really have the same type of lemon-lime soda here.  Not too bad.
 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tinto_de_verano
 

Are not Sprite and 7-Up both lemon-lime?

[craigt3365]

8 hours ago, mogandave said:

 

Are not Sprite and 7-Up both lemon-lime?

Not quite the same.  But definitely OK!

 

http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Wine-Spritzer

[superal]

12 hours ago, mogandave said:

On 24/02/2017 at 6:09 AM, craigt3365 said:

When we were in Spain a few years ago, they had a drink made from plonk with lemon soda added.  Called summer wine.  It was actually quite good.  So, we tried MontClair with Schweppes Manao as they don't really have the same type of lemon-lime soda here.  Not too bad.
 

Are not Sprite and 7-Up both lemon-lime?

 

Have you ever heard of a drink called   calimocho or kalimotxo . Made from cheap red wine and cola , equal parts served chilled and enjoyed in Spain , supposed to be very refreshing and popular .

[rooinekrsa]

On 18/02/2017 at 6:50 PM, William C F Pierce said:

I wound not trust it. I have tried an Australian wine from the Big C supermarket at 169 Baht a bottle. It tasted perfect. The only Thai drink I trust is Chang beer knowing it has won the top prize at 2 European beer festivals.

Judges were all piss ed 

[BlackJack]

As of the 16th of Sept 2017 there will be no category for fruit wine

the excise will go up - a lot.

 

Soon there will be a museum showing various casks of wine that used to be sold in Thailand.

[mogandave]

As of the 16th of Sept 2017 there will be no category for fruit wine
the excise will go up - a lot.
 
Soon there will be a museum showing various casks of wine that used to be sold in Thailand.

Don't buy it.

[Speedo1968]

Some years ago I took some rose apples from Malaysia back to the UK , added a little tea and made a very nice  but high alcohol content wine.    At least I knew what was in the bottle.

[Crossy]

On 24/02/2017 at 9:56 PM, mogandave said:

Are not Sprite and 7-Up both lemon-lime?

Snow White thought 7-Up was a fizzy drink ...

 

Getting my coat and hat.

[mogandave]

Some years ago I took some rose apples from Malaysia back to the UK , added a little tea and made a very nice  but high alcohol content wine.    At least I knew what was in the bottle.

but?

[bleble]

Hello,

 

Have you noticed that since the tax increases we find more and more fruit wines cheaper than before ? Makro and Lotus have some for 199 thb !

 

One more evidence that in this world of cheaters wine sellersalso are some of them !

 

I am wondering if there is any REAL wine for less than 500 thb / bottle in Thailand ? Any idea ?

 

Thanks.

[craigt3365]

6 hours ago, bleble said:

I am wondering if there is any REAL wine for less than 500 thb / bottle in Thailand ? Any idea ?

 

Thanks.

I've yet to see a decent bottle available for under 500B.  650B is about the cheapest "good" wine I've found.  Back home, that bottle would be about 200B.

[xylophone]

8 hours ago, bleble said:

Hello,

 

Have you noticed that since the tax increases we find more and more fruit wines cheaper than before ? Makro and Lotus have some for 199 thb !

 

One more evidence that in this world of cheaters wine sellersalso are some of them !

 

I am wondering if there is any REAL wine for less than 500 thb / bottle in Thailand ? Any idea ?

 

Thanks.

Try an Aussie wine, Barwang, The Wall Shiraz or Cab Sauvignon at 499 baht a bottle and not a bad drinker.

[xylophone]

2 hours ago, xylophone said:

Try an Aussie wine, Barwang, The Wall Shiraz or Cab Sauvignon at 499 baht a bottle and not a bad drinker.

Forgot to mention that I have seen some Chilean wines around at the 460 baht mark..........just a case of seeking them out.

[superal]

20 hours ago, xylophone said:

Try an Aussie wine, Barwang, The Wall Shiraz or Cab Sauvignon at 499 baht a bottle and not a bad drinker.

Available where / which outlet ?

[xylophone]

5 hours ago, superal said:

Available where / which outlet ?

Have seen it in Big C and Villa Market.

[bleble]

Funny that after tax increase fruit wine is cheaper ?

 

This 199 thb Charles Strong is acceptable for people used to drink sht montclair and acceptable marysol.

https://www.vivino.com/wineries/charles-strong/wines/central-ranges-reserve-classic-bin-991-9999

 

I find this Charles strong even better than Marysol.

 

Of course it's not real wine, but enough to get drunk with 1 bottle !

[joeyg]

On 12/13/2017 at 5:09 AM, superal said:

Available where / which outlet ?

Here in Pattaya Best has a very good selection, best prices.  Villa market has a huge selection usually premium prices but you can find deals.  Food land Near Tuc Com  Pattaya Tai has a pretty big selection too.

[roger101]

I must have funny taste buds because I mix Soda Water and Mont Clair Red (50/50) and find it a perfectly acceptable taste. Like

[xylophone]

1 hour ago, roger101 said:

I must have funny taste buds because I mix Soda Water and Mont Clair Red (50/50) and find it a perfectly acceptable taste. Like

Each to their own..........

[superal]

1 hour ago, roger101 said:

I must have funny taste buds because I mix Soda Water and Mont Clair Red (50/50) and find it a perfectly acceptable taste. Like

I hear that red wine / cola ,   half / half mix is a popular drink in some European countries 

[xylophone]

5 minutes ago, superal said:

I hear that red wine / cola ,   half / half mix is a popular drink in some European countries 

Fruit juice and wine with ice and other additions are quite common (e.g. Sangria in Spain) and can be quite refreshing at lunch in a hot climate.

 

The worst example I saw was a small group of Russians, in a top class restaurant,  buy a bottle of Chateau Mouton Rothschild and mix coca cola with it, because according to them, "it was a bit dry/bitter". Considering this is rated as one of the finest wines in the world, I did wonder at their taste and more importantly their knowledge!

[roger101]

2 hours ago, superal said:

I hear that red wine / cola ,   half / half mix is a popular drink in some European countries 

I'll have to try that. Mind you it will be Diet coke.