Welcome to the continuation
of our new wine tasting series. We’re
going to explore the wonderful world of
wine – glass by glass. This series
will assist you in setting up your own
wine tastings. Whether you are a novice
or a seasoned wine aficionado, it’s
not enough to read about this stuff. To
truly appreciate and learn, you have to
get in there in taste. Hey, it’s
hard work, but somebody has to do it!
Chardonnay
Syrah/Shiraz
and Old World vs. New World
If you’ve heard all
the talk about wines being "oaky"
but not really sure if you’d know
an oak taste if it bit you on the nose
– this edition of Wine By The Glass
is for you. We’re going to use one
of the world’s most popular varietal
wines – Sauvignon Blanc – as
the basis for figuring this thing out.
France’s Loire Valley
is often used as the model for so-called
"Old World" style Sauvignon
Blanc wines. The two wine regions to know
here are Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume.
These regions are relatively cool in climate,
and the resulting fruit makes wines that
are tangy, tart, and grassy, with high
acidity and a laser sharp focus. They
are 100% Sauvignon Blanc – no blending
here. Most importantly for our purposes,
they are generally not oaky. This is because
these wines are made in either large stainless
steel tanks or oak vats that are so large
that they impart very little discernable
oak taste to the wines.
If that last sentence didn’t
make sense to you – think about it
for a second. A small oak barrel full
of wine will offer a higher ratio of wood
contact to the amount of wine in the barrel,
thus giving more wood aromas and tastes
to the wine. Very large oak tanks result
in a smaller percentage of the very large
quantity of wine that is in actual contact
with the wood, leading to very little
oaky character in the wine.
California Sauvignon Blanc
is a different story. First of all, many
California wineries call their wines Fume
Blanc, a name originally created by Robert
Mondavi for his oak-aged Sauvignon Blanc.
These days, most Fume Blancs are oak-aged,
but not necessarily all of them. Usually
you can take a look at the label to find
out!
California Sauvignon Blanc
fruit is generally richer and riper
than its Loire counterpart, primarily
because of the warmer California climate.
To complement this fuller-tasting grape,
many California winemakers age their Sauvignon
Blancs in oak barrels. Overall, these
wines are richer and more full-bodied
than Sancerre or Pouilly-Fume.
So what does the addition
of oak aging do for California Sauvignon
Blancs? In short, oak affects every aspect
of the wine. Oak barrel aging makes wine
colors deeper – the California Sauvignon
Blancs will generally be a much richer,
more golden hue than the Loire versions.
Oak makes the bouquet of a wine stronger.
The Loire Sauvignon Blancs will seem rather
closed – not a lot of scent there
at all compared to the California wine.
On the palate, oak makes wine feel fuller
in the mouth and taste stronger and richer.
If all that sounds like
the Loire Valley wines don’t smell
or taste like much – don’t believe
it. They are fantastic, clear, clean,
refreshing wines that are loaded with
zesty fruit flavor. But it’s true
– they are way different from their
American counterparts.
The best way to experience
the difference is to lineup a tasting
comparison. Here are a few to try:
Henri Bourgeois, Pascal
Cotat, Domaine Vacheron, Hippolyte Reverdy
Spottswoode, Simi, Caymus, Chateau St.
Jean, Ferrari-Carano
We've found that our guests really enjoy
the opportunity to "grade" the
wines. You can make it as casual or controlled
as you like. We tend to put out a pile
of our
tasting notes sheets and then encourage
our guests to take notes. Somewhere toward
the end of the evening -- or once everyone
has had time to taste the various wines
-- we like to have a little group discussion
of the favorites. It really is a lot of
fun to hear everyone's opinions of the
wines, and there are always some interesting
surprises.
The most important thing
is to have fun with your tasting party.
Branch out to wines that are new to you.
Don't worry about the results -- everyone
will have a great time participating in
the tasting. And be sure to let
us know which wines were the hit at
your party!
For details on our past
tasting party ideas - click
here.
