In future posts, I will be looking at resources that I have been using to learn more about wine.
This includes looking at other good wine blogs and websites, wine books, and wine courses.
In this post, I am looking at what I consider to be one the best ways to learn about wine, which is to go to tastings organised by professional wine tasting organisations.
Living in Yorkshire, I have gone to one of these organised by the Yorkshire Wine School, and can highly recommend them. I have picked up a few useful tips about wine.
For example, that one should fill the wine glass up to the widest part of the glass. This is to allow most amount of surface area to let the wine breathe more. And to allow a ‘funnel effect’ in the glass to smell the wine better.
So I booked again. Initially, I only booked one course of an 8 week course. This was on French wines of the Bordeaux, Rhone and South of France regions. Very kindly, they offered me to do the complete course at a later date, and deduct cost of this evening. (I was booked with trips abroad, so could not have done all 8 weeks).
Not in Yorkshire? No problem, check out local wines schools near you at www.localwineschool.com.
Yorkshire Wine School provided sheets with information about each wine. There was a lot of very good informative texts about the wines, which I have included here. Followed by my own comments and some from others in the class. Notice how much better and more descriptive their text is compared to mine. I hope to learn not just how to ‘taste’ wine, but also how to ‘describe’ wine.
1. Good ordinary claret
- Bordeaux AC 2016
- Waitrose £5.89
A merlot dominated blend with soft raspberry and plum notes on the nose. The wine has a strong acidity on the palate, with a slightly green or herbaceous quality. The finish is pleasantly soft, without any strong tannins. The flavours fade quite quickly, they do not linger or display much complexity. This Bordeaux is fruit driven, soft and subtle and made for relatively easy drinking, perhaps to match with simple food such as sausage dishes.
Yorkshire Wine School
Strong aroma. Others said ‘plum’ and ‘oaky’. For taste, everybody thought it was a bit too acidic.
Paul
2. Chateau Grand Faurie La Rose
- Saint Emillion Grand Cru
- Bordeaux 2014
- Majestic Wines £21.99
This merlot led Bordeaux red from one of the finest producers in St Emillion is opulently fleshy with ripe, juicy raspberry, red cherry and strawberry flavours. On the palate there is a streak of charred oak, vanilla and toast which adds a spine of spiciness to an otherwise plummy fruit-bomb style wine. There is a soft, gum-sticking smoothness from the ripe tannins, tightly knitted in to the body of the wine. A natural food wine, pair it with braised lamb shank and mustard mash, or try it with lamb cutlets off the barbeque, with a tangy salsa verde dressing – delicious.
Yorkshire Wine School
Aroma less acidic than 1, fruitier. Taste still a little bit acidic at first, but then better on the second taste, and thought it quite smooth. According to YWS, 2014 was a good year.
Paul
3. Caronne St Gemme AC
- Bordeaux 2014
- Majestic Wines £16.99
By contrast, this claret comes from the ‘Left Bank’ or the other side of the Gironde estuary, and gives us the textbook characteristics of cabernet sauvignon (rather than merlot). On the nose it is dark, spicy and plump with blackcurrant fruit and a touch of oaky sweet spice. On the palate the wine is more decisively tannic than wine number two, the acidity of the wine is more notable on the finish as well. The firmer, more mouth-drying structure in this wine would certainly stand up to chewier food: grilled lamb, or beef, or hard cheeses for example.
Yorkshire Wine School
Darker colour, and aroma stronger than 2. Taste, quite intense, black fruit.
Paul
We then had some quite strong hard cheese. I cannot remember the name of it, but we all then tasted the wine again after tasting some cheese. And the wine definitely tasted better than before the cheese. (Posts on wine and food pairings coming soon). But still not as smooth as 2.
4. Duc de Mornay, Picpoul de Pinet
- Coteaux du Languedoc 2016
- Latitude Wines £8.50
Picpoul is a local specialism in the South of France around the Languedoc area, utilising sites close to the coast. The grape variety retains its acidity and gives bracing green apple flavours wiith a herbaceous, grassy undertone. The wine is crisp, fresh and clean with lime citrus character which matches really well to salty foods such as olives.
Yorkshire Wine School
The only white in this evening tastings, so hard to compare with the others.
Paul
Aroma, fresh apple flavours, nice. As described by YWS, ‘crisp, fresh and clean’. However not as good compared to my two favourite Muscadet Sevre et Maines, which I buy for just €4.99 which, despite the lower value of the pound, is still half the price as this one.
5. Boutinot La Cote Sauvage, Cairanne
- Cotes Du Rhone Village (Southern Rhone) 2015
- Latitude £14.50
This is the classic Southern Rhone blend, dominated by Grenache plus a touch of Syrah, which is found throughout south west France. The Grenache gives wines which are juicy with a strawberry fruit, slightly jammy, with soft tannins and a medium acidity. Grenache has a tendency to ripen quite fully and thus give high alcohol wines. These wines are definitely suitable for drinking without food, but work well with a range of meat dishes – so possibly perfect BBQ wine!
Yorkshire Wine School
Nice deep colour, and musky rich aroma. Taste is still a bit sharp acidic. Definitely better with cheese.
Paul
6. Yves Cuilleron
- Les Vignes d’a Cote Syrah, (Northern Rhone)
- Once up a Vine £15.75
Northern Rhone Syrah is often elegant, with a medium body and soft tannins, much lighter than Australian versions of the grape (usually called Shiraz). The flavours are predominantly plum and blackberry fruit with a light peppery and earthy quality. There is a hint of sweet spice, like liquorice or clove, but it doesn’t have the same intense aroma that many Australian examples have. Excellent with hard cheeses and grilled lamb dishes. Definitely a wine which seems more rounded when drunk with food.
Yorkshire Wine School
Nicest smell of all the wines. A darker taste. I liked this, but a few of the others did not.
Paul
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