During the weekend trip to the lakehouse, I decided to put together a double blind tasting for everybody. I wanted to find 4 wines that had similar characteristics that could be compared. The wines that we chose were:
A) '05 Archery Summit Winery Premier Cuvee
B) '05 Cristom Mt. Jeffersom Cuvee
C) '05 Sokol Blosser Estate Cuvee
D) '05 Lachini Estate
Each of the wines were 2005 vintage Pinot Noirs, with three of the four being cuvees. it was really interesting to see how differently the 6 people ranked the wines differently.
Rankings:
1st: AABCDB
2nd: BDCBAC
3rd: CCDACA
4th: DBADBD
No clear winner (or best) of the night. All the wines scored the same (giving 4 points for 1st, 3 for 2nd, 2 for 3rd, 1 for 4th), with the exception of the Cristom. That one had a funk to it that turned many of the tasters off (as shown with the 3 4th-place votes). The interesting thing is that no two people ranked the wines the same way, and that the one that a few people didn't like as much (Cristom), it was still ranked as both 1st and 2nd by two of the tasters.
Being able to taste these wines in this way was really insightful, as it eliminated any bias or preconceived notions the taster's might've had, and let the wines speak for themselves. The success of this tasting has be planning other blinds tastings already.
Some of the tasting notes written down during the tasting:
Lachini: red fruit, bits of blackberry, hints of charcoal, good mouthfeel, decent finish, earthy, smokey
SB: red fruit, hints of pepper, short & flat finish, light on palate, dies
ASW: the most tannic of the wines, almost chewy, fruit was hidden behind the level of tannins, would like to see this wine in another 8 years.
Cristom: A funk that turned a few off, but was interesting to others, good mouthfeel and balance
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8 comments:
I particularly like lachini among all. It has a nice mouth feel and is quite balance. Also, its flavour of blackberry is something you should go for. If you combine wine with something else like meat, BBQ, cigarettes or cigars, its aroma can be increased. I generally buy cigar whenever I go for wine.
Great blog theme. The younger wine drinkers are the future. I work for a winery in Southern Oregon and they let me do a pretty insane video blog: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFl-lEixA9A . Ifn' you ar eever in Medford, Oregon, I'll give you a tour.
Hi!
It is too bad you aren't blogging as much. I really like your concept. I am currently blogging about my adventures in Oregon wine country and thought you'd enjoy it.
http://www.projectdownpour.blogspot.com
It is extremely interesting for me to read that blog. Thanks for it. I like such themes and everything connected to them. I would like to read more soon.
Hey are you a professional journalist? This article is very well written, as compared to most other blogs i saw today….
anyhow thanks for the good read!
West Hills Wine Blog,
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John,
That was a good post and nice format for the tasting. I am surprised that the Cristom did not show better but that is the beauty of blind tasting. Good to see next gen critics. My brother and I are next gen winemakers making a very small Willamette Valley Pinot Noir project named Coattails. www.coattailswine.com
Salud
Jared Etzel
It was rather interesting for me to read the blog. Thanks for it. I like such topics and everything that is connected to this matter. I definitely want to read more soon.
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