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2002
Michael Palij MW ran another series of four exciting Masterclasses at Wolfson College, Oxford on the following topics:
Tuesday 05 March: Principles of Blind Tasting (Red Wine) (£20)
Tuesday 30 April: The Bordeaux Blend (£17.50)
Tuesday 8 October: Terroir (£18.50)
Tuesday 12 November: Madeira (£25.00)
Principles of Blind Tasting (Red Wine): This event proved to be our most popular Masterclass in 2001 so we re-ran it with specific attention to red wine. Under investigation were the key aspects of blind tasting which can help home in on a wine’s identity and which help to underpin tasting skills, even when the wine’s identity is known.
The Bordeaux Blend: We were fortunate to enlist the support of Chilean producer, Valdivieso, and their UK importer, Bibendum, who contributed wines for this event. Valdivieso is one of the few producers who bottle a pure expression of each of the three Bordeaux varieties and these provided us with the building blocks for what proved to be an enjoyable evening of mixing and matching. Our aim was to replicate the great Bordeaux blends and, of course, we had a few bottles of the real thing on hand just for comparison.
Terroir: It is a standing joke in the wine trade that ‘Terroir’ is French justification for charging twice as much for their wines. How do we define terroir? Is the concept of terroir still relevant in an age of international brands and in light of recent scientific developments? Perhaps the most relevant question, however, is if notions of terroir can be applied to countries other than France. We looked at classic examples of wines from well-established terroirs alongside some of the new pretenders. There was some lively debate!
Madeira: Madeira, the island vineyard, holds a special place in the UK’s wine drinking affections. Berry Brothers have retailed its wines for more than 300 years, Pitt governed under its influence and wine lovers continue to be fascinated by its indestructible character. We commenced with an examination of the four principal styles before exploring classic vintage Madeira from 1964, 1954 and 1950. The tasting closed with a rare opportunity to taste a mature Malmsey from the 1933 vintage.
2001
Oxford-based Master of Wine Michael Palij ran a series of four fascinating Masterclasses on the following topics at Wolfson College, Oxford:
Tuesday 24 April: Principles of Blind Tasting (£20)
Tuesday 22 May: Wine Aromas (£17.50)
Tuesday 2 October: Wine Faults (£15.00)
Tuesday 13 November: The Sherries of Gonzalez Byass (£17.50)
Principles of Blind Tasting: Effective blind tasting is much more than just luck and dinner party entertainment; it plays a critical role in wine selection. As the saying goes, “One look at the label is worth twenty years in the trade”. In this masterclass the key aspects of blind tasting were looked at which can help home in on a wine’s identity and which help to underpin tasting skills even when the identity of the wine is known.
Wine Aromas: This was the first, and perhaps only, tasting to be conducted without any wine! The language of wine can prove intimidating as finding le mot juste is never easy. We can thank the French, however, for having found the perfect aide-mémoire. Le Nez du Vin is the first of its kind, a sensory laboratory kit comprising more than fifty different aromatic essences which was used to help fix a wide range of aromas in our wine memories.
Wine Faults: Rotten eggs, vinegar and glue are certainly not the language of wine, or at least they ought not to be! Recent research indicates that up to 5% of wines suffer from a taint of some description. Using laboratory preparations of the eight most common maladies, we “doctored” bottles of the same wine to allow a comparative tasting against a control sample. This gave the chance to pin down what a “corked” bottle is really like, as well as other things which can easily spoil our enjoyment.
The sherries of Gonzalez Byass: GB, as it is affectionately known, is one of the oldest sherry houses and the only Grande Marque which remains entirely under family control. Michael is their International Winemaking consultant and has worked with the Gonzalez family for more than three years. Their full range including reserve soleras, the very rare 1964 Vintage Oloroso, and the Millenium Cuvée were tasted.
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