Sylvain and I don’t pretend to be wine snobs. We know the basics: drink whites slightly chilled, make sure that the reds breathe before you drink, store the bottles out of the sun and on their sides (to keep the cork sealed well). However, this past weekend we were able to host a wonderfully fun wine tasting evening with friends. We purchased/provided 6 bottles of wine: Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon (Known as the big six grapes). They ranged in price from $8 to $30. We bagged them and labeled them A thru F. We all tasted, shared our thoughts, scored the wines and nibbled on cheeses and charcuterie in between. So the overall group results from our first wine tasting party is as follows (ranking from highest to lowest):
[1] Cabernet Sauvignon, Los Vascos, Chile
[2] Merlot, Christian Moueix, France
[3] Riesling, Langwerth Von Simmern, Germany
[4] Pinot Noir, Robert Stemmler, Carneros
[5] Sauvignon Blanc, Kirkham Peak Marlborough, New Zealand
[6] Chardonnay, Oxford Landing, Australia
Of course we ended the evening with friendly (no money) and not so friendly (money involved) games of poker.