Semillon My Way

Hunter Valley. Semillon. Not knowing much about either I jumped at the opportunity to taste a small lineup of Hunter Valley wines; not only Semillon, although it was the star. Little did I know that as part of the experience I would be taking down Semillon Oyster Shooters with the winemaker!

Big thank you’s for organizing and hosting the event go out to Iain Riggs (winemaker & co-owner) and the team at Brokenwood Wines, Joyce Hulm and the fine folks at Old Bridge Cellars, the staff at Towne Stove& Spirits and the leadership of the Boston Sommelier Society. We were very well taken care of!

Not knowing anything about the Hunter Region (best known as Hunter Valley), except that it is located in Australia, I asked Iain Riggs to explain a little bit about the region. The Hunter Valley is located north and west of Sydney and is considered warm and sub-tropical. I did some research after the event, finding that the Hunter Region is considered one of Australia’s warmest and wettest regions. Temperatures range from the mid 70’s (F) at the height of the growing season to just below 40 (F) in the winter. The region’s proximity to the coast is a key influence, allowing for the cooler air and moisture to be drawn in from the ocean. One of the region’s challenges is rainfall (the average at Brokenwood is 29 inches annually) which can come heavy in that sub-tropical way some of us might imagine. And most of it comes during harvest months, creating significant hazard. The relatively higher humidity of the region also creates disease stress, something Riggs noted as a particular challenge for the 2012 harvest.

( The Hunter Valley extends Northwest of Newcastle on the coast. 

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In 2012 Riggs completed his 42^nd harvest as a winemaker and his 30^th with Brokenwood Wines. When I quipped, “that’s a lot of us experience” his response was “yeah, it definitely is.” I asked how things had changed in 42 years working in the Australian wine industry and his response was less specific, yet no less telling. Riggs said, “wine works in cycles and I’ve seen quite a few of them.”  I didn’t get a chance to ask what the current cycle looked like, but we were gearing up to taste the first wine so a topic switch was reasonable.

Joyce Hulm from Old Bridge Cellars had set us up in the upstairs bar at Towne and proceeded to get the 2010 Semillon poured for everyone. I’ve had a couple Semillon’s from Australia before, but this was early on before I kept good track of what I was drinking so I have no useful recollection. I immediately pulled lots of lemon from the nose. The minerality and steeliness of the wine was also accessible in the nose. On the palate the wine married a bit of melon with the lemon and I found savory herbs hiding in the finish. There is some body here, but just a little bit to consider. In conversation with TJ & Scott comparisons to both Pinot Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc arose. The three of us kicked around the similarities and differences and considered the seafood pairing scenarios of each. Both are close but neither is a layup for me. Pinot Blanc is the closest, especially those that project a bit of creamy texture from neutral wood. Sauvignon Blanc is too grassy, green and the acidity is far too razor sharp for me to make the link. The finish of this wine is short (not to a fault) and all together the wine does not present as complex, rather very straightforward and VERY drinkable. The acidity is healthy, but not racing mad, and works very well as a palate cleansing function. This is a slam dunk for an aperitif or cocktail party wine. This and the other two Semillons we tasted next range in alcohol between 11 and 12 percent.

( Broken Wood Hunter Valley Semillon 2010. )

The next wine we tasted was the 2006 Oaky CreekSemillon. The reserve Semillon’s from Brokenwood are now released with six years of age. I anecdotally knew that good Semillon was age-worthy, but this was my first real test of that idea. The wine is creamy and herbal with restrained citrus and minerality compared to the first wine. The body is noticeably bigger and softer. Hints of lanolin made me think of Chenin Blanc. The mellowed acidity further enhanced the perception of body, but this is no flabby wine. This wine is also drinkable, but is a much different wine requiring different position than the first. Paired with seafood, lightly prepared white meats, some salads and steamed vegetables is where I would place it on the table.

(Iain Riggs tasting and discussing the nights' wines. )

Right about then the food arrived. Lobster pizza. A few moments later Riggs wandered over to where I was sitting and pulled up a chair. My immediate question was “how do you see your Semillons best paired with food.” Having already noted that I would expect seafood pairings to work, I was eyeing the lobster pizza. Riggs echoed this and as he was talking the raw bar consisting of oysters, prawns and lobster tails arrived. The flavors of the lobster on the pizza popped with the wine. The corn, honey, ricotta cheese layered on the thin crust all came together nicely.

( Lobster Pizza at Towne Stove. So good! )

Next up was the 2006 ILR (think winemaker's initials) Reserve Semillon. This specific wine was made from a single block in Oaky Creek vineyard, but the grape selection for this wine varies from year to year. The nose on this wine was the lightest of the three with more of a toasty, creamy shift. The wine tasted of lemon candy and lime curd, the texture and body helping to bring these flavors out, with only some of the minerality and herbal notes I found in the other wines. 

( Raw Bar at Towne Stove. If I have to! )

I’m not much for oysters on the half shell, but Riggs suggested a shooter whereby the Semillon was poured over the oyster while in the shell and that it be shot like that. With that encouragement I walked the walk. Pretty good. I don’t mind the brininess of oysters, but I did find that the 2006 ILR with its restrained acidity was slower to clean up the trail of the oyster than I am used to. I shot a second one with the 2010 Semillon and got the affect I was familiar with. That would be my recommended pairing from these wines for folks who like a quick and clean exit from oysters. The 2006 ILR Reserve wine was delightful with lobster tail and prawns. The flavors in both meats were readily accessible and were gently cradled by the creamy notes in the wine. Almost like having a little butter where there was in fact none.

Back to the age-worthiness. While we were talking Riggs said I should consider coming back to this very wine in five and then another ten years. He said they would still be lively and equally enjoyable the same way they were tonight. I asked him what an unusual pairing for an aged Semillon might be and he suggested lemon meringue pie. Both being acidic, he feels that the wine can stand up to the sweetness in the pie so long as it is tart and not overly sweet. I think that the creaminess in the wine and the texture and flavors in the crust would be worthy matches as well. Exceptional!

I then asked what he looks for in the reserve wines in order to the select them. Overall they are selected for their purity, balance and acidity, a primary indicator of the ability to take age. The desired results when the wines are aged is that stay balanced, the nest can offer up lime juice and talc. In describing the acidity he used what he said was a specific Aussie winemaking phrase, “line in length”. Clarifying the phrase, he said this is the “acid drive” in a wine. A young wine that has a line of acid right through it that is also in balance from beginning to end is said to have “line in length”. Such young wines are great young and have the potential to go on to be great aged wines as well.

( Brokenwood Shiraz. )

We finished the tasting with a migration to Shiraz. First up was the 2009 Hunter Valley Shiraz. I really liked this wine. It is dry and doesn’t all try to be juicy or meaty like some Aussir Shiraz is known for. Bountiful red and purple fruits play in the dry tannins and moderate acidity. There are vectors of spice and smoke, but not jarring or out of balance and the alcohol clocks in at 14%. The moderate finish contains some savory herbal or leafy note.

The final wine was the Graveyard 2007 Shiraz. This wine is made from grapes harvested from an mid-20^th century vineyard now producing Brokenwood’s flagship red. As Hulm was pouring the wine she explained that in Australia the Brokenwood Graveyard Shiraz is considered the third best Australian wine only two steps down from Penfolds Grange. Wow, that is esteemed company! That said, this wine isn’t quite as expensive as Grange, but not by much. I don’t punish wine on price, but it does mean I will not have many future occasions to savor those higher price point wines that I enjoy at tastings.

The nose on the 2007 Graveyard is earthy with lots of red fruits. Just from the nose you know this is a bigger wine. And it definitely is, but I still feel is shows some restraint in the pantheon of Aussie Shiraz. Bold and spicy this wine definitely makes you stop and consider it. There is no doubt this is a wooded and aged wine, but again it is balanced and not at all hot. At 13.5% ABV is is bold, juicy, but not hot. The wine is not bone dry and has plenty of tannins to hold the structure of it together.

( Short rib pizza at Towne Stove. )

With the BBQ short rib pizza I preferred the 2009 Hunter Valley Shiraz. It is friendlier to food in my opinion, its austerity and restrained weight being more versatile, and I feel these attributes also  mean it can span a broader range of palates with or without food.

So what did I learn? Semillon is really great with seafood, but it presents much more opportunity than that. The right white wines, good Semillon in this case, can in fact be aged for several years before release and not miss a beat in the glass. When a winemaker says “you going to do an oyster shooter?”, unless you are allergic, you follow their lead and do it. Warm growing regions can produce wines with reasonable levels of alcohol that are still balanced overall. I had forgotten how much I enjoy well-made wines from Australia.

The title of this post could have also been “show me the way” and afterwards I could have happily asked "do you feel like we do?" Big thanks to Peter Frampton and Frampton Comes Alive for being the soundtrack to my late summer 

Cheers!

Jason

Flavor Immersion - A Wine Tasting Secret

Everyone wants to be a better wine taster.

Swirl some wine around a bit. Look at it. What is the color and clarity of the wine? Smell it. Really smell it. Get your nose into that glass! What aromas do you detect? Taste it. What are the flavors? Does it coat your tongue? How much acidity is there and how sweet (or not) is it. Does it feel furry (tannins) on your tongue? How long do the flavors last, e.g. how long is the finish? And then share your thoughts with your friends across the table. That is all there is to wine tasting. Anybody can do this for fun or professionally. Practice and experience is the key to getting better at it.

Once you get past the basic process above you inevitably run into the issue of trying to name the aromas and flavors. This is truly where it gets hard for two reasons. First, the aromas and flavors are jumbled together and secondly, some are very similar. The more specific you get with picking them apart and identifying them, the more adept you can be at determining the type of wine and origin when tasting it blind. While most people don’t do this, professional wine tasters, sommeliers, reviewers and hard core wine aficionados do. It is fun to do without a specific reason and when you consider the increase in power of your senses it brings, you are getting something for it beyond the tasty wine. I am studying to become a sommelier (wine service professional) and wine educator so I have to learn how to get good at this. How’s it going you ask? Well, good but frustrating. It is fun but some attempts are more fun and rewarding than others!

How do you get better with recalling and identifying aromas and flavors? You immerse yourself in them. Look at the source, smell it, rub it between your fingers, taste it, let it linger on your tongue so you can pick up the subtleties. I will close with two examples that you can use as a guide.

Cut Grass

The aroma of cut grass is described as found several styles of white wine, Sauvignon Blanc being the common one. Most likely we all remember what this smells like because we have either cut our own lawns or walked by a freshly cut one and got a strong whiff of it. Fresh cut grass has a strong and interesting aroma, similar to that of field greens you might find in a salad or fresh herbs.

Different grasses will have varying aromas all of which hover around the central pungent moist sweetness for the lack of a better description. When summer comes and you are out cutting the grass, grab a pile of it and sit down in front of it. Try not to get the stuff you just fertilized yesterday though. Take deep breaths through your nose. Roll some of between your fingers. Take a strong smell of it. Do you get more specific aromas? You are now ready to recall those aromas in wines that have them as part of their bouquet.

Lemon

Lemon serves three purposes in sensory evaluation for me. It has strong aromas, specific flavors and acidity, all of which can be found in different combinations in some white wines. That grassy Sauvignon Blanc might have some of this as well, or a nice Chenin Blanc will have the lemon and none or only a little of the grass. With lemon you should do a couple different things to experience it. I am going to do this right now and write my feedback down live. I am using Meyer lemons which are slightly different than your regular lemons, which is more typical in wine. Take the whole clean lemon and smell it. Because lemon is used in many household cleaners you might immediately think of clean aromas. Sensible, but remember the lemon is the source.

For more intense aromas, zest some of the rind. Ahhh, that is the lemon we all know and love. Roll some between your fingers and draw in a good sniff. More intense, it fills the space around your nose. The aroma of lemon is like a primary color, there is no mistaking it and it can be used so many ways. Now for the taste. Take a small slice of lemon and compress it between your tongue and front teeth. Suck on it a little. What do you get? You get sour, acid and just a hint of sweet. That acidity is going to do something else, clean your palate. I just took a swig of coffee after the lemon, and wow my coffee taste more intense! That is because the lemon tweaked your taste buds to be on alert. I hit the lemon again and voila, the coffee flavors are gone. Do you think after doing this you will recognize the aroma and flavor of lemon in wine? I bet you will.

You can apply this concept to fruit, vegetables, chocolate, dried fruits, meats, cheese, tobacco, leather and earth; all of which show up as aromas and/or flavors in different styles of wine. All you are doing getting better and recalling them with limited hints of their essence in your glass of wine. Who knows how good you could get at doing this. Deciding what wine, or beer, you like afterward might get even more interesting!

Cheers!

Jason

Improving Your Wine Tasting Process & Skills

The enjoyment of wine (both everyday AND fine selections) can be markedly improved with changes in how your experience it. Most wine drinkers will at least have a sense that there is some sort of “process” to tasting wine. Maybe you swirl it around, smell it, take small sips, and consider what your senses are telling you. But what is really being sought here? To become truly accomplished at this you need two things, a good process from which to glean useful indicators and lots of experience. And I mean lots; think hundreds of hours.

I don’t have the hours or the breadth of varieties behind me to be an expert, and my process has been fairly simple to date. I aspire for more though. A few years ago I took several wine tasting and sensory evaluation classes that helped me develop an approach using the Four S’s, see, sniff, sip and summarize. Using this approach I am now confident to step up to a glass of wine looking for indicators of age, varietal, origin, oaking and other stylistic elements using my senses. I have used this process quite a bit and try to experience every glass of wine, beer and cider I come across in this way.

This past week I attended my first, and what will hopefully be a monthly occasion, tasting group with the Boston Sommelier Society. I plan to sit for the introductory class and exam in 2011 and I am sure I need to study the world’s wine regions more, but I also need to amp up my tasting skills. My goals for joining the group are to experience new wines, improve my tasting skills and network with a group of people who are also passionate about wine. It didn’t take more than a few minutes for me to determine that my goals would be accomplished with this choice. My comfort level rose immediately and I sat down to listen, learn and experience.
The tasting process they use in these sessions includes elements that are just what I need to take my skills to a next level. I thought I would share a few of the elements and my impressions of they will help me. Undoubtedly if you are also interested in improving your wine experiences there should be something here for you too.

Being an ”expert” always leaves room for new things to learn. My understanding from group members is that I am the only participant who makes their own wine. That perspective is a new element for the group with exciting potential. I shared a bottle of my Petit Verdot made in early 2010 with the group. It was recognized as a young, varietally correct example that likely had aging potential. The remarks about the fruitiness and clarity were delivered with enthusiasm. These ardent tasters with many more hours of experience than I, were genuinely excited to try something a little different than the usual. I couldn’t have been more joyful.

The tasting process is broken down into three sections, Appearance, Nose and Palate/Flavor/Structure. During the progression of the six wines we tasted there were also two final sections, Initial Conclusions and Final Conclusion. The wines are tasted blind so developing your senses in each of the first three categories above is essential. The conclusion sections are made fun by using a hangman concept where one taster in each round is not allowed to use anything but the information provided from the other tasters to try to hone in on the varietal and source of the wine. That taster has to provide conclusions without having looked at, smelled or tasted the wine. This really stretches your sensory muscles. Just what I needed! Coming to the wrong conclusions in this way as I gain experience will be so useful to help me navigate the aromas, flavors and breadth of styles I might encounter. Getting it right here and there will be a nice bump, but I need the hard lessons so I have to be realistic!

In the Appearance category the one item I wasn’t familiar with was Rim Variation. I asked for some help on what the process was and how what you see should be read. As an aside, one should be careful what they ask for with this group. The information can come at you like a fire hose! Ian was sitting to my right and showed me how to put a few ounces of wine in a clean glass and tip the glass forward (mouth away from you) to enough of an angle that you can see the variation in colors from the outer rim into the center. What you are seeing is the difference in the density of the wine from the center to the edge. You can glean a sense of age here, with older wines typically showing a graduation of hues between the center to the rim and younger wines being more consistent in color. The other metrics in the category are Clarity, Brightness, Color (both red and white), Gas or Sediment and Viscosity/Staining. Each of these has a scale which can be something like low/medium/high or in the case of Brightness, dull/hazy/bright/day bright/star bright/brilliant. Learning to perceive each of these degrees on the scale will take some time. (The value in being able to recognize these as these typically present in wines that are well made versus not or by style is quite clear.)

In the Nose category I found everything familiar except for Age Assessment. I had a sense of what might be sought after here but I didn’t think had ever considered assessing the age solely based on the aromas. As I listened to Marilyn, Roz, Jo-Ann, Ron and Ian discuss the nose of the wines in this way I realized I had thought about this more than I had realized. Your nose can give you a sense of the level of integration of the aromas. A wine that is developed should have a balance here and wines past their peak should give the sense that their aromas break down quickly. Obvious flaws can be picked up by your nose as well, but that is a different metric. A note that can’t be stressed enough. If you want to experience the aromas of a wine you have to get your nose in the glass. I have often seen people afraid to stick their nose into a glass of wine. What are you afraid of? You don’t look foolish. To the experienced you will look like someone who is trying to use their senses to learn something about the wine they are about to drink.

I’ll consider the last category and the fun of developing conclusions in a future post. For now I will summarize my experiences and share a few of the surprises during the tasting.

Overall I left feeling much less anxious than when I arrived. Flat out, I was sure what to expect. I didn’t know anyone, I didn’t know much about the potential backgrounds of the participants and I felt like it was likely I had a lot less experience than the folks I would be meeting. I met people who run wine shops, work at distributors, some who are primarily educators with many of them doing some of that only part time. Sound like me. I definitely am on the lower end of the spectrum of experience but when everyone shows up with a desire to learn that really doesn’t mean much.

One of the wines that befuddled all of us turned out to be the Beringer Private Reserve 2008 Chardonnay. None of us could really place it. It had flavors of cooked pear, it was off-dry and had aromas of spices. An oaked Chardonnay wasn’t out first guess. This selection will likely run you about $40. It was enjoyable but I would stop short of a recommendation. It didn’t blow me away.

The wine that did blow me away was also the one we all honed in on right away. A 2005 Spatlese Riesling from the Rheingau. The fruit, flower and spice aromas were bursting out of the glass. It was off-dry (as it should be) with flavors of fruit blossoms and honey. We all enjoyed tasting and considering this one!

I hope I have included tips here that will help you the next time you step up to a glass of wine to try. I truly believe you can increase your enjoyment taking the short time to consider the wine before you get back to your socializing, eating or whatever the wine is an accompaniment for.

As I attend future meetings I will share more tips, wines worthy of a taste and events that might be going on where you can flex your wine tasting skills.

Cheers!

--Jason