Any wine drinkers out there?

[lebkuchen]

What's the deal with the US wine culture? In Europe, the only thing people need to know is if it's dry or half dry, and it will usually say so on the label, especially in Germany: trochen oder halb trochen. On US menus it's difficult to figure out if the wine is dry or half dry unless you sit at the bar and beg the bartender to let you taste a few before making the selection (and they were happy to do so). There's no way I'm going to pay $10 a .2 ltr for lousy wine.

Here's a typical US menu describing a particular wine:

Deeply concentrated and rich, our Reserve Shiraz reveals great fruit intensity. The old vines produce the blackberry, boysenberry, and plum aromas and flavors characteristic of classic Shiraz from the Barossa. The toasty oak is not shy, but is well-integrated, offering notes of mocha and coffee. On the palate, the wine is full and round with a lingering finish. This wine may be enjoyed now with apropriate foods, yet will become even more alluring with time.

Question: So, is this wine dry or half dry?

[yellowdogintexas]

1. that is why I like German Wine! nt

[yewberry]

2. Dry or half dry?

Shiraz is the Australian name for the French syrah grape. Probably more likely to draw from French wine tradition, so it's pretty unlikely they'll use German nomenclature.

(Shiraz is usually fruity and not terribly dry, but not sweet.)

[Kali]

3. its a shiraz - it's probably half

but yeah my German friend (who got me started learning a little about wine) finds the descriptions pretyy ludicrous.

and then the prices for US wine IN the US - :eyes: