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Bulk Tasting?
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 9:07 pm
by AndrewCowley
Stupid question... when I see the 'Sunday' posts and people give tasting notes for wine after wine after wine... what are you actually doing here? Surely not drinking all those bottles of wine in one go. So are you opening wine from your cellar, pouring out and tasting a small glass, recorking / capping, returning to cellar etc... over and over again for each bottle?
I am curious as to how people do these tastings. I have a very mixed collection and would like to more easily sample what I've got without drinking whole bottles but does it in any way stuff up the partial bottles that are left over?
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 9:19 pm
by Alex F
AndrewCowley wrote:I have a very mixed collection and would like to more easily sample what I've got without drinking whole bottles but does it in any way stuff up the partial bottles that are left over?
Yes. Once open wine will be subject to oxidation and the flavour profile will change for the worse. There are various methods to getting around this, but I suspect they won't really help you if all you want to do is sample a small taste from your wines.
As to how you get to write so many notes at once, well how I do it is when I have enough bottles tasted I wait for the nearest Sunday thread and post them all, or if I go to a wine tasting and get to taste lots of wines...
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 9:31 pm
by dave vino
A lot of people are in the industry, they attend tastings, off-lines at restaurants, they invite friends over and instead of bringing beer, each person brings a wine, wine region trips etc, etc.
If you don't drink the wine within a couple of days it's usually past it.
Find some like minded people, organise a dinner (preferably a degustation so you have more than 3 courses), make a theme and show up for a night of varied tastings. If you get 6-7 people you end up getting a good glass out of each bottle and at the end of the night you've tasted 7 different wines and only imbibed one bottle in total.
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 10:44 pm
by Wayno
Yes, as above. Sometimes, the Sunday thread for me is a culmination of the week's wines, not just Friday and Saturday night, for example.
This could be, then: 1-2 bottles during the week, drinks/dinner(s) with friends on weekend (maybe up to 4-5 bottles, sometimes a lot more if organized drinkie/tasting session). Very quickly you have 6-7 bottles you've revved through in some capacity for the week. It's all a matter of lifestyle and I suspect mine is moderate compared to some! (Edit: Refer to ADAIR below)
Posted: Sat Jul 12, 2008 11:56 pm
by Daryl Douglas
Welcome Andrew!
Seems you've been lurking for a while. The above explanations should partly answer your questions.
I've not used the process myself but a frequently recommended method used to save wine for later is to pour half of a 750ml bottle into a 375ml bottle and seal it leaving as little air space as possible. Stored in the fridge, the wine should last for several weeks using this method and remain much as it was when the bottle was first opened. A further point that occurs to me is that if the original and the half-bottle are chilled in the fridge before this process is carried out, the saved wine may be fresher when drunk than if it were done at room temperature. The wine in the original chilled 750ml bottle can breathe as it sits on the bench warming up a bit.
I always drink a bottle of wine within a couple of days of opening and just use the original seal to re-seal what's left then pop it in the fridge.
What wines interest you? Just brief impressions are fine, we're not all in the industry nor all have the most sensitive of palates, the best descriptors for what we taste.
Cheers
daz
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2008 3:25 am
by Adair
As it seems that Ric is sleeping in this Sunday, I may as well post a few rambling about last nights’ wines here as I did not take any notes, opting to sit back and take in the food and company more. These wines were all tasted at a wine dinner (offline) and, no, I definitely did not drink all of the wines… I would not be typing this. These wines came from a cellar of a very generous fellow.
1981 Krug and 1982 Krug (Champagne, France) – Amorome, roast almonds, marzipan, brioche with butter - well aged Krug. The 1981 deep, rich and ready now. The 1982 with more acid and structure, maybe a hint less enjoyable now but a better wine with more age. 94-97/100 for both depending on your preferences.
1990 Zind Humbrecht Hengst Vendange Tardive Gewurztraminer (Alsace, France) – Pure, rich rose water and lychee nose although not as exotically perfumed and spicy as other Zinds I have tasted, with similar although not quite as intense front palate. Structure not as exciting for me, just not focused enough. A hint too alcoholic maybe. 92-94/100.
1965 Lindemans Hunter River Burgundy Bin 3110 (Classic Release) – More “Hunter†than my last bottle in 2003, with much leather, liquorice and red berry, but the structure was similar to my memory of 2003, particularly after breathing – long, elegantly powerful, slightly chalky but supple. 97-99/100. (I rated the bottle back in 2003 a point more)
1953 Faiveley “Les St.Georges†Nuits-St-Georges (Red Burgundy, France) – Light bodied and remarkable. Primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary, quinary, senary, septenary, octonary, nonary, denary, duodenary and vigenary flavours from cherry, meats, forest floor, mulch to tropicals and pineapple. Super fine, expansive and very fresh and alive. 95-100/100.
1990 Leroy Clos de Vougeot (Red Burgundy, France) – Not as masculine as this producer is known for, probably due to the wonders of bottle age, but all the better. Flavour and defined, silty structure from front to back. Still mostly charmingly primary with red fruits, complexity building. 97-100/100.
1966 Chateau Palmer (Margeaux, Bordeaux) – Exceptional front to back. Would guess 1980s. Being critical, back could be more focussed, which is the only reason it is a little below some other wines here. 96-98/100.
1975 Chateau Lafleur (Pomerol, Bordeaux) – The wine that showed the most greatness to me tonight. Unfortunately it was "corked"! However, the wall of the finest tannins from the middle palate was extraordinary. At least 98/100, and 99-100/100 from me... which some might find intriguing given it was corked. I hope I taste a TCA free bottle of this sometime in my life.
1990 Le Pin (Pomerol, Bordeaux) – Some thought this TCA affected as well, as I did for a while. It was probably the “weedy†Cabernet Franc. Again sensational structure. Is all Pomeral like this or only the ones that cost more than $1,500 (which would be a bargain for this particular wine)? 95-97/100.
1990 Gaja “Sori Tilden†Barbarossa (Italy) – Greatest Italian wine I have tasted. Totally clean and/yet beautifully varietal. Without the iodine and dry, bony tannins that typically puts off even the greatest bottles of Barolo or Barbaresco, although the tannins were still very prominent, they were ripe and defined. Still with a hazy of menthol and much meatiness, but all in place. 97-100/100.
1990 Lindemans 150th Anniversary Cabernet Sauvignon Magnum – Harmonious and excellent example of aged Australian Cabernet, although it had a Penfolds feel to it with some formic acid, and maybe the 15% American oak. 93/100.
1982 Grange – Excellent Grange. Next. 93-97/100.
1928 Marc Bredif Vouvray (Loire Valley, France) – Yes, simply amazing for 80 years, especially its gold colour (not dark gold), but at least 20 years past its best. Much oxidative characters just allowing the honey, pear, apple and spice to shine through, but wishy-washy on the back. 90/100.
1981 Jakob Gerhardt Niersteiner Trockenbeerenauslese (Burgenland, Austria) – Much darker than the Vouvray but also much more life. Packed with sweet goodies, Crème Brûlée with fired crispy top comes to mind, but with powerful acid backbone. 96-98/100.
1968 D'Oliveira Boal Madeira – Australian Muscat/Tokay-like characters with more restraint, and with powerful acidity giving a citrus finish as well as ensuring decades of life. Extraordinary wine. 97-99/100.
Yes, this was a quite an extraordinary night. I will read what I wrote tomorrow and I will go to bed now.
Adair
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2008 9:31 am
by Grant
Adair wrote:As it seems that Ric is sleeping in this Sunday, I may as well post a few rambling about last nights’ wines here as I did not take any notes, opting to sit back and take in the food and company more. These wines were all tasted at a wine dinner (offline) and, no, I definitely did not drink all of the wines… I would not be typing this. These wines came from a cellar of a very generous fellow.
1981 Krug and 1982 Krug (Champagne, France) – Amorome, roast almonds, marzipan, brioche with butter - well aged Krug. The 1981 deep, rich and ready now. The 1982 with more acid and structure, maybe a hint less enjoyable now but a better wine with more age. 94-97/100 for both depending on your preferences.
1990 Zind Humbrecht Hengst Vendange Tardive Gewurztraminer (Alsace, France) – Pure, rich rose water and lychee nose although not as exotically perfumed and spicy as other Zinds I have tasted, with similar although not quite as intense front palate. Structure not as exciting for me, just not focused enough. A hint too alcoholic maybe. 91-92/100.
1965 Lindemans Hunter River Burgundy Bin 3110 (Classic Release) – More “Hunter†than my last bottle in 2003, with much leather, liquorice and red berry, but the structure was similar to my memory of 2003, particularly after breathing – long, elegantly powerful, slightly chalky but supple. 97-99/100.
1953 Faiveley “Les St.Georges†Nuits-St-Georges (Red Burgundy, France) – Light bodied and remarkable. Primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary, quinary, senary, septenary, octonary, nonary, denary, duodenary and vigenary flavours from cherry, meats, forest floor, mulch to tropicals and pineapple. Super fine, expansive and very fresh and alive. 90-100/100.
1990 Leroy Clos de Vougeot (Red Burgundy, France) – Not as masculine as this producer is known for, probably due to the wonders of bottle age, but all the better. Flavour and defined, silty structure from front to back. Still mostly charmingly primary with red fruits, complexity building. 97-99/100.
1966 Chateau Palmer (Margeaux, Bordeaux) – Exceptional front to back. Would guess 80s. Being critical, back could be more focussed… need some reason to not give this a perfect score. 96-99/100.
1975 Chateau Lafleur (Pomerol, Bordeaux) – The wine that showed the most greatness to me tonight. Unfortunately it was corked. However, the wall of the finest tannins from the middle palate was extraordinary. At least 98/100, and 99/100 from me. I hope I taste a TCA free bottle of this sometime in my life.
1990 Le Pin (Pomerol, Bordeaux) – Some thought this TCA affected as well, as I did for a while. It was probably the “weedy†Cabernet Franc. Again sensational structure. Is all Pomeral like this or only the ones that cost more than $1,500 (which would be a bargain for this particular wine)? 95-97/100.
1990 Gaja “Sori Tilden†Barbarossa (Italy) – Greatest Italian wine I have tasted. Totally clean and/yet beautifully varietal. Without the iodine and dry, bony tannins that typically puts off even the greatest bottles of Barolo or Barbaresco, although the tannins were still very prominent, they were ripe and defined. Still with a hazy of menthol and much meatiness, but all in place. 96-99/100.
1990 Lindemans 150th Anniversary Cabernet Sauvignon Magnum – Harmonious and excellent example of aged Australian Cabernet, although it had a Penfolds feel to it with some formic acid, and maybe the 15% American oak. 93/100.
1982 Grange – Excellent Grange. Next. 93-98/100
1928 Marc Bredif Vouvray (Loire Valley, France) – Yes, simply amazing for 80 years, especially its gold colour (not dark gold), but at least 20 years past its best. Much oxidative characters just allowing the honey, pear, apple and spice to shine through, but wishy-washy on the back. 90/100.
1981 Jakob Gerhardt Niersteiner Trockenbeerenauslese (Burgenland, Austria) – Much darker than the Vouvray but also much more life. Packed with sweet goodies, Crème Brûlée with fired crispy top comes to mind, but with powerful acid backbone. 96-98/100.
1968 D'Oliveira Boal Madeira – Australian Muscat/Tokay-like characters with more restraint, and with powerful acidity giving a citrus finish as well as ensuring decades of life. Extraordinary wine. 97-99/100.
Yes, this was a quite an extraordinary night. I will read what I wrote tomorrow and I will go to bed now.
Adair
'Blimey...just a regulation Saturday night at your place?...Nice work.
Posted: Sun Jul 13, 2008 11:04 am
by TORB
Blood hell Adair, even I am not "normally" up at 3.24 am!
Were you having an early night?
Nice line up of wines.