Why It's Fun to Taste Wine Blind
Too many people are concerned with what wine should taste like.
That’s really nonsense. The only way to do it is to trust your taste buds. Focus on color, smell, and taste. If you like it, it’s good.
Blind tasting is a great way to strip away the noise. Your preconceptions can’t influence your perceptions. It’s just you and the wine.
Our friends Alisa and Ken hosted a Syrah blind tasting last night. There were four wines served. The wines were a variety of vintages and each came from a different region. And, they all sold for different prices.
Based on these factors, which wine do you think would be the best?
Vintage
2005
2009 (2 wines)
2012
Region
Languedoc-Roussillon (France)
Napa (CA)
Ramona (CA)
Santa Ynez (CA)
Price
$8
$28
$36
$40
So, which wine was the winner?
You might be tempted to guess the winner was a 2005 Syrah that came from France and cost $40. You’d be wrong.
The French wine actually cost $8. It was a 2012. And, it was the group’s least favorite. (Although, everyone enjoyed all the wines to varying degrees.)
The winner? A 2009 Syrah from Ramona that cost $28!
Here’s the line-up:
Sorry it's blurry. The camera had downed a few glasses when it took the picture.
Left to right:
2005 Mayo Family Winery Page-Nord Vineyard Syrah ($40)
2009 Andrew Murray McGinley Vineyard Syrah ($36)
2012 Level Syrah ($8)
2009 Edwards Ramona Valley Syrah ($28)
The Edwards Syrah was a clear winner. The Andrew Murray and Mayo Family Winery were tied for second while the Leval was a clear fourth place pick.
One fun surprise for Sally and I -- we were familiar with two of the wines. We visited Edwards on our inaugural trip to Ramona. We'd been to Andrew Murray twice, including one funny experience when we unexpectedly ran into Alisa and Ken in the tasting room!
The night proved that blind tasting can be a lot of fun. And, you never know how you’ll feel about a wine until you taste it!
