Tricky Tastings and Sticky Fingers - WSET 3.2

Today's class started out in a very hectic manner, especially for a recently semi-retired guy.

I had two wonderful clients for a wine tour that I was guiding (my part time job which actually uses some of my wine knowledge) and we ended up going a bit late. By the time I dropped them off, dropped the van off and scooted over to BCIT, it was 6:10pm. Why was that a big deal? Lynne, our instructor, is now holding a study session for the first half hour of every class where she puts questions on the board and we try to write down the answer - closed book - and that starts at 6pm sharp!

As it turned out, I had time to answer the questions - except for one.  It was, "Name the seven wine faults and odours that they produce".  I could name 'cork taint or TCA' (smells like damp cardboard) and 'volatile acidity' (smells like nail polish remover or vinegar) but that was about it. Of course, there was also Brettanomyces (smells meaty or like a bandaid), Reduction (rotten eggs), Out of Condition (stale), Oxidation (dried fruit), and Sulphurt Dioxide (acrid, sharp smell).

Then we went over all the things to do with growing vines including grafting, planting, crossing, and what the vines need (heat, sunlight, CO2, water and nutrients) as well as other things in the growing environment. We also looked at all the parts of the vine and how to prune wine vines - which got a bit complicated - especially as I don't really know how to prune a tomato plant or even flowers!

We talked about the different climates; Continental (biggest difference between hot and cold months, generally cooler temperatures overall - think - the Okanagan), Maritime (low difference between hot and cold months, generally cool to moderate temperatures overall - think Bordeaux or coast of California) and Mediterranean (low difference between hot and cold months, generally hotter temperatures overall - think Southern Rhone or Chile).

It was a lot of information to take in but, luckily, it builds on knowledge that I already have from WSET 2.

For tastings, I sat with Owen again and we had some new people including an English woman, Sarah, who was very nice - although at one point I thought her glasses were mine and I accidentally stole them. We'll see how friendly she is next week after the 'sticky fingers' glasses incident....

There were eight wines for this class. Most were the same wine grape with more subtle differences. One side benefit from WSET 2 - I now realize that I can tell most of the grape varietals from taste! Great party trick....

The first pair were two Chardonnay wines - one was higher quality than the other but both were from the same company. I always struggle with Chardonnay, I think because I'm not overly fond of it and, when I do drink it, prefer the oaky, slightly sweet version rather than the steely, mineral wine that is so valued.

The first was a 2015 Jean Marc Brocard Chablis ($42). I felt it had stone fruits on the nose, tropical fruit on the palate, but wasn't a very balanced or complex wine with a medium finish and medium plus intensity. It was rated as ready to drink now.

The second was a 2011 Jean Marc Brocard Grand Cru Chablis ($120). It had grapefruit and lemon peel on the nose and lemon and creaminess (from lees stirring) on the palate. It also had some oak. Overall, it was balanced, had a long finish and was complex so was rated as very good. It was also rated ready to drink. Grand Cru wines in Chablis are the best wines to be had.

I faired better on the second pair. This time we were looking at the same grape from the same country but one was grown on a flat area (where there's not the best drainage and sunlight is not as strong) while the better one was grown on the a steep slope with excellent sunshine.

First up was the 'bunny wine' - a 2016 Rudolf Müller Riesling from Pfalz, Germany ($17). This was a merely acceptable wine with some simple flavours and tastes of honey, pear and lime. It had a short length, was not all that intense and was not complex - the flavours that were there were fairly balanced. Drink it now!

The second Riesling was a 2011 J. J. Prüm Bernkasteler Badstube Auslese ($92). This glorious wine was both delicate and strong at the same time. The Germans have a sweetness system called the Pradikat and an Auslese wine is a fairly sweet wine - but not cloying at all. It would be a nice match for cheese, Asian food (especially Thai or Chinese) and dessert. There were lots of wonderful aromas (mineral, grapefruit, lemon peel, honey) and tastes and this wine was outstanding! You can drink this wine now but it will only get better with age!

The next two wines were supposed to be a comparison between a cool climate and a warm climate but in one of those 'mwa mwa mwaaaa" moments, the second wine had cork taint! We did have to taste it (yuck) and it was the cheaper one that was made in the warm climate (California) but that's all I got on it so I won't give any more information about that wine.

The cooler climate wine was a 2013 Olivier Leflaive Volnay Pinot Noir ($92) from Burgundy (Volnay is near Pommard in the Cote d"Or and has struggled in the past few years from grapes being wiped out due to hail). This pale garnet wine was full of red fruit and was high in acidity - so much so that I thought it seemed a bit astringent. Perhaps it needed some age? It was a good wine overall as it had good length and complexity.

The final two wines were both the same blend.

Courtesy Shopify

The first was a good wine. It was a 2015 Grand Bateau (made by Chateau Beychevelle - although you can't tell from their website) Merlot blend from Bordeaux ($24). There was some red fruit on the nose, high acid, medium tannins, and medium body. Not a terrible wine but not overly balanced or complex.

The second was much better. It was a 2010 Chateau Bonalgue from Pomerol ($115). It was complex with red currants, green pepper, coffee, leather, black cherry, vanilla, plum, chocolate and fig flavours and aromas. Do I need to say more than it was COMPLEX? I had a struggle telling what grape this one was, but then we were told it was a Bordeaux blend. Most of the class thought it was from the Left Bank (Cab Sauv dominant) but I could tell it was a Merlot based, velvety Right Bank wine. Also, I had had a Left Bank style wine from Township 7 just a couple days previous and remembered the difference!

I am enjoying the course very much (especially the wine tastings) and look forward to next week's class!

Wine Tips From the Master - WSET Class 1 - Part 2

After a brief break (checking to make sure I hadn't spit Riesling down my shirt), the owner of Fine Vintage, James Cluer, Master of Wine, spoke to our group. He is an interesting speaker and I would be happy to have him as a teacher in a future course.

He talked about a few things but what stuck with me were his tips - and here they are:

• concentrate - really concentrate - on the first smell you have of the wine
• "two sips and you're out" - by the time you get to the third sip, your palate has become used to the wine and you will start to miss flavours
• move the wine up and down your mouth, and rub your tongue across the roof of your mouth to check for tannins

Then we started tasting some reds......

The first was purply and pale (I thought it was deep but realized that if you can see the page underneath on a piece of paper, it's pale). It was light in intensity and had lots of red fruits in it. It was high in acidity and had a short to medium finish. I also tasted tannins - but that was an error. The problem is that when you have had white wine and it is still on the palate, even a mild red wine will taste of tannins. "First red wine of the day, you will taste tannins."

This wine was a Bouchard Aîné and Fils  Beaujoulais from France which is made from the Gamay Noir grape. it was a 2015 that goes for $14. 

The wine we compared it to was actually garnet (sort of an orangey red colour) and was pale ( I was wrong again). Although the nose tasted of red fruit, once I tasted it, black fruits like cherry and baked prunes seemed to show up. It was high in tannins (blew the Beaujolais away) and high in acidity and was really full bodied. It had a long finish and was a very good wine. 

This was a Comm G.B. Burlotto Barolo - made from the Nebbiolo grape from Italy and was a 2011 - and came in at $86. 

Comparing the two, the Barolo was wonderful but would be more difficult to pair - it would need to go with a steak or some game. The Beaujolais, on the other hand, would pair with many things including some fish, chicken, pork, pasta and pizza! 

The next two wines were the same type of wine but differed rather slightly in quality!

The first was a clear, rather simple wine with some nice red fruit taste but with a rather short finish. This was a Chartron La Fleur Bordeaux from the Right Bank - so, it was merlot based. There was nothing wrong with it, it was just a bit simple - and so was the price, $14. Sorry, but I couldn't find a link for this winery.

Then we had a bottle of liquid gold. It was a Chateau Bonalgue Pomerol from 2010, also from the Right Bank of Bordeaux. This was a wine with colour so deep that it was difficult to tell what colour it actually was. It, too, was a merlot blend, It had a pronounced nose and tasted of black fruit, tobacco, and high tannins. It was far more complex than the other Bordeaux and had a great long finish.  This wine was one that I would love to drink regularly - unfortunately, I don't think I can afford the $115 a bottle price!

Our final wine of the night was a Sauternes - and it was a wine like I had never had before! This is because it had "nobel rot"! Noble rot or Botrytis is a fungus that causes grapes to partially dry out like raisins which lets them be very sweet. It was a clear wine with a pronounced nose (mushrooms, nectarine), sweet taste, and high acidity (I'm realizing that every wine that is sweet also has high acidity to keep it in balance).  It was suggested that this would be a great wine to have with something spicy. 

The wine was a 2003 Sauternes from La Chapelle LaFaurie-Peyrague and, although not quite my cup of tea (or cup of wine) I did appreciate the age and nice flavours the wine had. This was $33 for a half sized bottle.

Overall, my first class was great - I learned some new things about wine tasting and wine pairings but the real excitement for me was the 9 wine tastings. That is apparently something that only Fine Vintage does - extended numbers of wine tastings each class. The other thing they do is extend all of the classes from two hours to three hours - and I think that is a brilliant idea. Can't wait until next week!