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- generalken - 06-21-2004
I've hooked up with an owner of a local liquor store and he is helping me set up a wine tasting through one of his distributors.
This will be my first tasting and my gust list at a maximum will be 12 people. I haven't suggested yet what type of wines I would like to have. Right now I'm just trying to get the thing set up. I'm under the impression that this will not be a turn-key operation. I'm not sure what I have to provide besides the obvious; a place, seating, etc...
One of the purposes of this tasting is to promote wine in our tiny part of the country. More beer drinkers than wine drinkers here. "Not that there is anything wrong with beer drinkers." This part of Texas lacks in some aspects of "culture"
Any suggestions or tips for my event?
[This message has been edited by generalken (edited 06-21-2004).]
[This message has been edited by generalken (edited 06-21-2004).]
- Innkeeper - 06-21-2004
Recommend six wines (one or two bottles each depending on how much tasting the twelve will do). Three whites and three reds, one each of each that is light, medium, and full bodied. If either a white or a red is a dessert wine, serve it last. Have bread for sure. Also cheeses, meats, and veggies. Nothing too strong as to take away the wine flavors. You should have a container for dumping or spitting as you may allow.
- Brom - 06-23-2004
Maybe one of the obvious things you know about but didn't note in your post is glasses.
One can taste from plastic, but tres gauche, eh?
Clear unadorned wine glasses. At least a dozen - best to have a few spares.
You should have several containers for spitting or disposing of wines ("3 buckets - No waiting!") and at least four pitchers of water, for rinsing not only the mouth but the glasses.
I would forget meat and veggies and stick with cheese and bread. Many popular crudite veggies don't go that well with wine anyway.
I think 6-8 bottles will be plenty, especially if you are introducing wine to these people. Simple math - 6 bottles among 12 people is a half-bottle each. Plenty to drink for the 150 pounders of the world. Maybe get one extra bottle of one of the whites & one of the reds for the partiers.
Do you know how much you will pour for tasting purposes? I mean each glass?
It is very simple, but there is a fair amount to it, to have it come off well.
- generalken - 06-23-2004
I'm under the impression that the distributor will be the one doing the pouring.
Since this is our first wine tasting, the crowd on the guest list is one that I know very well and all have some (we know what we like) knowledge of wines. We're all novices.
I guess that I need to find out from the distributor what all that I need to furnish. Thankyou for those tips.
What kind of cheeses breads do you recommend? Myself and all of my guests all drink cabs., shiraze and merlots. Should we introduce any whites at this tasting?
- Brom - 06-23-2004
Depending on the distributor, you will of course be limited in what you are tasting to what they are selling.
Talk to whoever is running the event - I have to assume if you are supplying the space, table and chairs, you are supplying everything else.
This sounds like a moderated tasting. Am I correct? In that case keep foods very simple. (The industry maxim is "sell on cheese, buy on bread") In a moderated or 'teaching' tasting use only crackers or bread and serve some cheeses after. Brie (not too ripe), Manchego, Cheddar.
- californiagirl - 06-23-2004
I agree with IK. Let me take it a step further. Taken right from one of IK's most recommended reading, "Great Wines made Simple".
Whites- Go with 4 and include a bubbly! So, possibly: Champagne, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay.
Reds- Pinot Noir, Cabernet or Merlot, Zinfandel and a port-style for the end.
As for the cheeses- I would also try a hard cheese like parmesan. You'll be pleasantly surprised.
- Innkeeper - 06-23-2004
Thanks CG, and I think that Brom had some very valid points too.
- generalken - 06-24-2004
Thank all of you for our comments and tips. I'll keep you posted.
- oldworld - 06-30-2004
Try to rent glasses, or get the distributer to provide them. You'll need quite a few. You don't necessarily need a new glass for each wine, but you'll need a fresh glass for every time you have a strong flavor in a wine and don't want it to linger into the next sample.
For example: following Californiagirl's suggestion of Andrea Immer's tasting, you could taste out the champagne, riesling (new glass or rinse) chardonnay (NGoR), Sauvignon Blanc -then (NGoR)Pinot Noir, (NGoR)Merlot, (NGoR) Zin or Cabernet Sauvignon (whichever's bigger, with a NGoR in between).
When you're new to tasting wine, it's important to start with the fresh flavor of each wine. If you can't do multiple glasses (I know I wouldn't want to wash them!), buy one large bottle of a mild white such as trebbiano, and pass it around for people to rinse their glasses with it between wines. It's better than water, which has more chemicals to affect flavor.
I hope you have a great time tasting!
P.S. I was born and raised in Texas, and I'm pretty excited about the Hill Country as a wine region.
P.P.S. I always end tastings with Moscato, it's incredibly refreshing and low in alcohol too.
- Brom - 07-01-2004
"buy one large bottle of a mild white such as trebbiano, and pass it around for people to rinse their glasses with it between wines. It's better than water, which has more chemicals to affect flavor."
Come now.
You think water rinsing affects the flavor of the next wine more than a wine rinse? You must have used either mighty weak trebbiano or mighty bad water.
Do you wash your glasses in wine?
A single glass per taster can do (w/ spares as noted above). Each should be rinsing the mouth with water from their glass anyway, so a little extra water, rinse the glass with it and into the spit bucket.
Concerning the tasting order, considering that by far the vast majority of Rieslings available in the US are not dry finished, I would advise against tasting that varietal second in a mixed group of whites. Anyway, this is something the leader of the tasting will decide.
- oldworld - 07-01-2004
Most cities add chlorine to the water for purification purposes. It is a chemical, it is detectable, and it will change the aroma of the wine in your glass. Perhaps you've just not picked up on this in your tasting experiences?
I, of course, do not wash my glasses with wine, but I do not use detergent either. Why add unwanted chemicals?
- Thomas - 07-02-2004
I agree with oldworld about the chlorine. That is why I always use filtered water to rinse--or wine.
I don't drink city water because of all the chlorine.
[This message has been edited by foodie (edited 07-02-2004).]
- Brom - 07-02-2004
"filtered water to rinse--or wine."
You actually rinse your glasses with wine?
I don't know - it seems counterproductive.
When I use a decanter, all that is in it is wine. No lips touch it of course. So when I wash it, I want to get the wine out of it. Some questions - Do you clean glasses or a decanter to remove residual wine from the vessel? Will using wine remove all wine residue from the decanter? Why do it at all? By filling a decanter with wine, then pouring it out, aren't you getting your rinse?
Maybe you have bad water in your neighborhoods. Certainly chlorine is just not detectable by smell in my tap water.
- Thomas - 07-02-2004
Brom, don't know how long you have lived in Philadelphia, but you can get used to a smell in water over time. Since I used to use it to clean tanks and the winery, and since I do not have it in my water, I can spot chlorine a mile away when I travel.
As for rinsing: yes, in the business we do rinse out the old wine with the wine that we are about to taste.
At a formal tasting--rinsing is necessary, in my view, and if you don't have filtered water then you should use wine. But I don't think rinsing is necessary at a party.
- Brom - 07-02-2004
If you get used to it, then it won't effect your sensation of the following drink will it? One is used to it, it is not bothersome or intrusive.
It is similar to the argument that smokers cannot "really" taste wine, even tho' many professional tasters and winemen, including the legendary "El Nariz" (the Nose) of Domecq, smoked.
If you can smell chlorinated water "a mile away" it must be a constant source of aggravation, since over 98% of public water in the US is treated with chlorine. Must be like living in a laundrey.
Not being in the business, my experience with moderated and 'open' wine tastings is limited to merely dozens of events. Water has been used to rinse both the palate and glasses at all.
My main point is that I should think it undisputed (and indisputable) that wine has stronger flavors and aromas than water, tap or not. Until your most recent post, no one had broached the idea of rinsing with the "next wine to be tasted", but rather the suggestion was made to rinse with cheap Italian white wine. I continue to assert that this is not only unnecessary, but poor practice.
I also question, in certain circumstances, the practice of rinsing with the next wine to be tasted. How much wine will a dozen tasters be throwing away as rinse water?
Some tasters hesitate before spitting Lafite; I imagine they might not approve of using it as a rinsing agent.
- wondersofwine - 07-02-2004
The proprietor of my usual wine shop discourages rinsing with tap water for some of the reasons Foodie cited, but will sometimes provided filtered bottled water for rinsing. I'm not as particular and have rinsed with tap water on occasion (not frequently).
- Thomas - 07-02-2004
Brom,
When we rinse with the next wine we put a small amount in one glass, swirl and then pour it into the next and the next and the next.
As to not smelling chlorine, that does not mean it isn't there, and when it is added to wine it changes the wine, for the worse, not the better.
As for my aggravation with chlorine--yes, it is a constant source of same to me. Is that a problem for you?
You are again displaying a complete inability to discuss a situation and are slowly entering into confrontational mode. Just accept a few things from someone who is a wine professional. Tell me what you do for a living and I will accept that you have some expertise in it--really I will!
- oldworld - 07-02-2004
Thanks Foodie for your support. I'm brand new to this board and I simply wanted to help generalken with his/her tasting. I did not expect to be put so immediantly on the defensive.
To clarify: I admit that I am in "the business". I taste 60+ wines a week on average (sounds fun, but can really be a chore some weeks). When I meet with vendors, we usually rinse our glasses with the next wine to be tasted-or "pass a rinse" (as Foodie explained) if the wine is in short supply.
However, when in an organized tasting situation where many people will be involved, I never use the wine we're tasting to rinse glasses because it's too important to waste. That's why I use a wine like Trebbiano/Ugni Blanc. It's cheap, no chemicals, and no dilute of flavor for the wines that follow.
When you're new to tasting, it's important to have as pure a sample of the wine you're tasting as possible. It's best to avoid outside chemical influences.
To generalken: please don't let this nit-picking disuade you from having a great tasting. The most important thing to remember is that wine is meant to be enjoyed, not revered. Have fun!
- Thomas - 07-03-2004
Amen to that last comment, oldworld!
What do you do in the business?
- oldworld - 07-03-2004
I used to buy for restaurants, but now I run a small wine dept. for a chain store.
You work for a winery? What do you do there?