Month: January 2014

WSET Diploma

Bodegas Hidalgo “La Gitana” En Rama Manzanilla (flawed bottle)

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale gold, legs
Nose: clean, med intensity, developed, brine, almonds, hint dried citrus peel, hint meaty, citrus, hint vinegar
Mouth: dry, med+ body, med acid, low fortification, med+ flavour intensity, hint brine, almonds, cashews, hint meatiness, fleshy finish, med+ length
All in all: Apparently, a flawed bottle despite my original guess of very good quality. I obviously need to drink more sherry.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced Amontillado from Spain.
Is really: High-priced Manzanilla (En Rama) from Spain.

Bodegas Hidalgo "La Gitana" En Rama Manzanilla[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 2]

Flawed bottle, unfortunately (oxidized?). I definitely need to drink sherry more, because I hilariously thought that the wine was better than it was (which was flawed). I will shamelessly praise myself for guessing Amontillado, which apparently this wine seemed like.… read more

Quaffing

Monday afternoon in a bottle: 2012 Artero Macabeo Verdejo

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med- lemon, legs
Nose: clean, med- intensity, youthful, mineral, pear, citrus, hint orange, stone fruit, peach, white flowers, hint herbal
Mouth: dry, med body, med- acid, med alcohol, med flavour intensity, med length, mineral, pear, citrus, stone fruit, floral
All in all: Good quality: while the wine lacks in complexity and persistence, there is a balance and moderate intensity on the palate.

2012 Artero Macabeo VerdejoThis wine serves as a symbol of my half-assed sort of not really “New Year’s resolution” to try all the cheaper value wines in the store. It was also my house “emergency wine”, just in case I decided I wanted to drink today (which evidently I did), and it also served as my reward wine – so I had a goal of studying a certain amount of things (Which happened to be Champagne) before I was allowed to open the wine.… read more

Life · WSET Diploma

WSET Diploma – Section 2 – Week 1

Posted on by Josh

Jan 8-9, 2014

I’ve been putting off a life update for a while due to a whirlwind of busy with wads of procrastination stuffed in between. I’ve completed the WSET Diploma Unit 4 (Spirits) exam back in November which wasn’t too bad, but I’m less confident about the coursework assignment I handed in for Unit 1 (Business). It might be the case that I’m too unaware of how the global market works for me to have compiled my data and interpreted it sufficiently like an intelligent person, and we’ll see if a rewrite is needed. In any case, it’s done. I slaved for hours on that essay – and my printer, of course – ran out of ink the night before I handed it in.… read more

WSET Diploma

A woven Christmas sweater: Gonzalez Byass “Nutty Solera” Medium Sherry

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med amber, legs
Nose: clean, fully developed, pronounced intensity, grilled nuts, almonds, mushroom, fig, caramel, hint citrus and apple, earthy funk
Mouth: sweet, med+ body, med+ intensity, med- acid, high alcohol/fortification, grilled nuts, mushroom, bready, hint fruit, long length.
All in all: Very good quality: the wine has persistent and complex tertiary notes but lacks a touch of concentration and complexity. Drink now: not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Premium Madeira (made from Bual or Malmsey) from Portugal.
Is really: Mid-priced blended Sherry from Spain.

Gonzalez-Byass "Nutty Solera" Medium Sherry[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 1]

A big example of the whole price and preference thing not matching here, since out of the three wines in our blind fortified lineup, this was the wine I designated as the highest quality (though all three were agreed-upon as very good quality).… read more

WSET Diploma

The first of December: Graham’s 10 Year Old Tawny Port

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med+ tawny, legs
Nose: clean, fully developed, med+ intensity, dried red fruit, dried strawberry, dried cherry, prune, raisin, nuts, spice, white pepper, earth, hint mushroom, fig, dried flowers
Mouth: sweet, med+ body, med acid, high alcohol/fortification, med+ length, med+ flavour intensity, earth, mushroom, dried red fruit, dried strawberry, dried cherry, nuts, raisin, low and fine-grained tannin
All in all: Very good quality: the wine is intense, complex, and persistent, but could have benefitted from slightly more tertiary complexity. Drink now: not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced Banyuls from France.
Is really: High-priced Port from Portugal, 10 Years Old.

Graham's 10 Year Old Tawny Port[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 1]

Port is an interesting thing. It’s one of those things I’ve fallen in love with upon first high-quality angelic sip, but there’s really no one to open subsequent bottles with, and that much sugar in one sitting sounds like a recipe of caloric disaster.… read more

WSET Diploma

The pawn that reaches the end of the chess board: Blandy’s “Duke of Clarence” Rich Madeira

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear med brown, legs
Nose: clean, fully developed, med+ intensity, soy, caramel, nuts, dried citrus, brown sugar, almond, toffee, cola, molasses, leather, spices, cloves
Mouth: sweet, med+ acid, high alcohol/fortification, med+ body, med+ flavour intensity, butter, nuts, caramel, soy, dried citrus, brown sugar, toffee, almond, med+ length
All in all: Very good quality: the wine is complex, concentrated, and persistent, though could have benefitted from a better alcohol balance. Drink now: not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced medium-dry Sherry from Spain.
Is really: High-priced sweet Madeira from Portugal.

Blandy's "Duke of Clarence" Rich Madeira[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 1]

I honestly do not remember the last time I’ve formally tried a Madeira. It must have been maybe back in the WSET Advanced days, which was literally over a year ago.… read more

WSET Diploma

A quick and messy party: NV Veuve du Vernay Brut

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med lemon-green, bubbles noted
Nose: clean, med intensity, youthful, candied pear, banana, bubble gum, confection, apple, slight unripe/vegetal character
Mouth: dry, aggressive mousse, med acid, med- body, med+ flavour intensity, med- alcohol, confectionary, candied pear, banana, mineral, short length
All in all: Acceptable quality: though the wine has intense aromas and flavours, the sparkling wine lacks persistence, complexity, and acid to balance the sweeter fruit. Drink now: not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Inexpensive tank method Non-Vintage sparkling wine from France.
Is really: Inexpensive tank method Non-Vintage sparkling wine from France.

NV Veuve du Vernay Brut[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 1]

The rows of sub-15 French sparkling at the BCL always intrigue me but I’m always too afraid to commit to what might be a bottle of sad, but it goes down faster anyways.… read more

WSET Diploma

Bastille – “Pompeii”: NV Charles Heidsieck Champagne Brut Réserve

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med lemon, bubbles noted
Nose: clean, med+ intensity, developing, baked apple, yeast, pear, autolytic, biscuit, brioche, nuts, mineral, honey, mushroom
Mouth: dry, creamy mousse, med+ acid, med+ body, med+ flavour intensity, med alcohol, baked apple, mineral, biscuit, ripe citrus, pear, med+ length
All in all: Very good quality: the sparkling wine has an intense and complex nose with lots of autolytic character. The wine is also quite balanced, though slightly less so with the alcohol. Drink now: not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Premium Non-Vintage Champagne from France.
Is really: Premium Non-Vintage Champagne from France.

NV Charles Heidsieck Champagne Brut Réserve[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 1]

Yes – what you see in that picture isn’t actually condensation, it’s actually a small puddle of human tears.… read more

WSET Diploma

Kaolin – “Partons Vite”: NV Bailly Lapierre Crémant de Bourgogne Réserve Brut

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale lemon-green, bubbles noted
Nose: clean, youthful, med intensity, green apple, mineral, white flowers, pear, citrus, flint, hint autolysis, white bread
Mouth: dry, med+ acid, med- alcohol, med- body, med+ flavour intensity, flint, apple, pear, mineral, hint autolysis, floral, med length, creamy mousse
All in all: Good quality: the moderately complex sparkling wine is balanced, but could benefit from more concentration and persistence. Drink now; not suitable for ageing. 
Identity Guess: Mid-priced Non-Vintage Crémant de Bourgogne from France.
Is really: Mid-priced Non-Vintage Crémant de Bourgogne from France.

NV Bailly Lapierre Crémant de Bourgogne Réserve Brut

[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 2 – Week 1]

Crémant is practically the poor man’s Champagne – the French sparkling is made in the traditional method, with permitted grapes depending on the region.… read more

Quaffing

Hey Ocean! – “Bicycle”: 2011 Pierre Sparr “Charisma” Pinot Gris

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale gold, legs
Nose: clean, med+ intensity, youthful, mineral, stone fruit, peach, apricot, creaminess, red apple, flint, mango, musky/smoky, (malolactic?)
Mouth: dry (to off-dry), med+ body, med acid, med finish, med+ flavour intensity, med+ alcohol, stone fruit, smoke, oiliness, peach, apricot, creamy, ripe apple, flint, peach pith
All in all: Good quality: the wine has decent balance with the typical slight oiliness of Alsatian Pinot Gris and the whisper of residual sugar – but the wine lacks a bit of complexity. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.

2011 Pierre Sparr "Charisma" Pinot GrisSo much for cutting down on alcohol for the new year. I’ve allocated a sort of strict alcohol budget for myself, but I’m already trying to find loopholes. I spent more than I should have on spirits last fall because of the diploma exam in November, and I still have so many leftovers.… read more