dlb@druca.UUCP (Dave Bauer) (01/15/84)
RESULTS OF BLIND CABERNET TASTING
I recently participated in a tasting in Boulder CO involving six wines.
The tasting method was to bag the wines and number the bags 1 - 6. The
identity of the wines was known in advance, but not which wine was contained
in which bag. The six wines available were:
1979 Ridge, York Creek, Napa Valley, Cabernet, 13.8% alc, $11.40
1979 Durney, Carmel Valley, Monterey, Cabernet, 13.3% alc, $12.83
1980 Beaulieu Vineyards, Rutherford, Napa, Cabernet, 12.5%, $7.86
1978 Simi, Alexander Valley, Sonoma, Cabernet, 13.5% alc, $5.69
1976 Hill-Smith, Barossa Valley (Australia), Shiraz, 13.0% alc, $3.65
1980 M. Marion, "California", Cabernet, 12.5% alc, $3.99
Results of the tasting follow:
Wine Group Rank My Rank
------------------ ---------- --------
1979 Ridge York Creek 1 2
1979 Durney Carmel Valley 2.5 1
1980 BV Rutherford 2.5 4
1976 Hill-Smith 4 3
1980 M. Marion 5 5
1978 Simi 6 6
My Comments:
The Ridge and Durney, in my opinion, clearly outclassed the other four wines.
The Ridge had a medium red color and appeared to be well filtered,
contrary to the label's claim that the wine was unfined. The nose was
fruity, with a hint of green pepper. The wine was heavy-bodied, with the
most tannin of the six selections. It dried the mouth and left a furry
feeling behind the teeth. It had a classic Cabernet flavor, but not
as much fruit in the taste as might have been expected from the wine's smell.
It had a good acid balance and clearly begged for a few years of bottle age.
The Durney was medium to dark ruby in color and had a lot of particulate
in suspension; a third of a glass was close to opaque. The wine had a
full fruity nose with some black pepper overtones. Also full bodied,
the wine had fat legs and some drying early on the tongue from its good
tannin levels. In short, the Durney was a big wine with good fruit flavors
that would benefit by additional cellaring for 3 to 5 years.
The Beaulieu Vineyards Rutherford was the favorite of those at the tasting
who don't enjoy a highly tannic wine. Highly filtered, it had a light
ruby color and a lot of green pepper in the nose. The wine was completely
dry and medium bodied. I found the acid level to be a bit high, and the
flavor to be too tart for my taste. Although full flavored, I didn't find
the complexity that was present in the Durney, Ridge, or Hill-Smith.
The Hill-Smith was easily distinguishable both by its brown bottle
showing through the top of the bag and by its uncharacteristic nose
and flavor. The wine was a dark red with the slighted hint of brick color,
and was well filtered. The wine was medium bodied, completely dry, but
with a high acid level that produced a slight tingle. There was good fruit
in the flavor, but marred by a hint of lemon, and a slight metallic sensation
in the finish. This was a wine that people either liked a lot or didn't
care for at all.
The M. Marion was a clear, medium red color and had a peppery nose.
It was fruity and tart but light bodied, and seemed watery compared to
the other wines.
The Simi was the big disappointment of the evening, ranked last by the
group as a whole, and last on my personal list as well. Being from a good
vintage year (78), we all had high hopes for this wine. The color was
very light ruby with a hint of orange, and it appeared light and watery.
The nose was dominated by green pepper. The wine was medium bodied and
leggy, but had a very sour flavor that for me completely ruined the wine.
_
|_| Dave Bauer
| | AT&T Information Systems Laboratories
/ \ Denver Colorado USA
| |
|vin| 11900 N. Pecos St, Denver CO 80233
| | (303) 538-4304
| |
|___| (hogpc, allegra, rabbit, inuxc, ihnp4)!druca!dlbdlb@druca.UUCP (01/30/84)
.
This is a reposting of the results of a Cabernet Sauvignon tasting in
which I recently participated. My apologies to those who have already
seen this, but it apparently got gobbled up in the news distribution
chain soon after I posted it. Friends at other sites tell me they never
saw it.
--dave bauer AT&T Information Systems, Denver druca!dlb
RESULTS OF BLIND CABERNET TASTING
I recently participated in a tasting in Boulder CO involving six wines.
The tasting method was to bag the wines and number the bags 1 - 6. The
identity of the wines was known in advance, but not which wine was contained
in which bag. The six wines available were:
1979 Ridge, York Creek, Napa Valley, Cabernet, 13.8% alc, $11.40
1979 Durney, Carmel Valley, Monterey, Cabernet, 13.3% alc, $12.83
1980 Beaulieu Vineyards, Rutherford, Napa, Cabernet, 12.5%, $7.86
1978 Simi, Alexander Valley, Sonoma, Cabernet, 13.5% alc, $5.69
1976 Hill-Smith, Barossa Valley (Australia), Shiraz, 13.0% alc, $3.65
1980 M. Marion, "California", Cabernet, 12.5% alc, $3.99
Results of the tasting follow:
Wine Group Rank My Rank
------------------ ---------- --------
1979 Ridge York Creek 1 2
1979 Durney Carmel Valley 2.5 1
1980 BV Rutherford 2.5 4
1976 Hill-Smith 4 3
1980 M. Marion 5 5
1978 Simi 6 6
My Comments:
The Ridge and Durney, in my opinion, clearly outclassed the other four wines.
The Ridge had a medium red color and appeared to be well filtered,
contrary to the label's claim that the wine was unfined. The nose was
fruity, with a hint of green pepper. The wine was heavy-bodied, with the
most tannin of the six selections. It dried the mouth and left a furry
feeling behind the teeth. It had a classic Cabernet flavor, but not
as much fruit in the taste as might have been expected from the wine's smell.
It had a good acid balance and clearly begged for a few years of bottle age.
The Durney was medium to dark ruby in color and had a lot of particulate
in suspension; a third of a glass was close to opaque. The wine had a
full fruity nose with some black pepper overtones. Also full bodied,
the wine had fat legs and some drying early on the tongue from its good
tannin levels. In short, the Durney was a big wine with good fruit flavors
that would benefit by additional cellaring for 3 to 5 years.
The Beaulieu Vineyards Rutherford was the favorite of those at the tasting
who don't enjoy a highly tannic wine. Highly filtered, it had a light
ruby color and a lot of green pepper in the nose. The wine was completely
dry and medium bodied. I found the acid level to be a bit high, and the
flavor to be too tart for my taste. Although full flavored, I didn't find
the complexity that was present in the Durney, Ridge, or Hill-Smith.
The Hill-Smith was easily distinguishable both by its brown bottle
showing through the top of the bag and by its uncharacteristic nose
and flavor. The wine was a dark red with the slighted hint of brick color,
and was well filtered. The wine was medium bodied, completely dry, but
with a high acid level that produced a slight tingle. There was good fruit
in the flavor, but marred by a hint of lemon, and a slight metallic sensation
in the finish. This was a wine that people either liked a lot or didn't
care for at all.
The M. Marion was a clear, medium red color and had a peppery nose.
It was fruity and tart but light bodied, and seemed watery compared to
the other wines.
The Simi was the big disappointment of the evening, ranked last by the
group as a whole, and last on my personal list as well. Being from a good
vintage year (78), we all had high hopes for this wine. The color was
very light ruby with a hint of orange, and it appeared light and watery.
The nose was dominated by green pepper. The wine was medium bodied and
leggy, but had a very sour flavor that for me completely ruined the wine.
_
|_| Dave Bauer
| | AT&T Information Systems Laboratories
/ \ Denver Colorado USA
| |
|vin| 11900 N. Pecos St, Denver CO 80233
| | (303) 538-4304
| |
|___| (hogpc, allegra, rabbit, inuxc, ihnp4)!druca!dlb