Thursday, December 15, 2005

Buying blind
Just yesterday I experienced one of those difficult wine buying scenarios at work. I was sent out with the brief to buy a bottle of red at around $80-100 for an important client because “she drinks red”.

So I knew two things that I considered pertinent to the purchase – she was a she and she drank red. Price not really an issue unless I was going to fork out for some Grange. My questions of whether she was a wine buff, a wine connoisseur or at all knowledgeable received no answers so I wandered down to our local merchants to see what I could find.

I had in mind what I didn’t want – a gutsy, full bodied wine with cheek-numbing tannins that needed to be cellared before it could be enjoyed. But it still had to be good just in case she was the said connoisseur.

I didn’t realise the veritable mine field this choice involved. If our very important client knew nothing about wine then it would be good to choose a well known brand – you can brag to friends and still pretend you’re an expert. But if she was really an expert, she might think the branded choice a cop-out – or worse, one of those hyped-up and hence disappointing wines.

By the time I reached the shop I had decided on the style I wanted – something with structure, but fruity with a smooth finish. It didn’t have to be a “light” wine, just well balanced and elegant.

I was offered the choice of some pinots at first: two well known ones from New Zealand and two lesser known ones from Australia – Yeringberg and Domaine A. I have since read about Domaine A and wouldn’t mind having a taste but as I wasn’t invited to the lunch with this very important client, I had to stay focused and not get distracted by other tantalising possibilities.

What truly won me over in the end was the wine merchant’s ability to sell, but sincerely so. I chose the Yeringberg label which is not the pinot I mentioned previously but a cabernet blend incorporating some merlot and malbec among others. He told me it was one of his all time favourite wines – described as “feminine” and although smooth, he assured me it had plenty flavour.

So, mission accomplished apart from the fact I never got a glass not being important enough yet to wine and dine our important clients. However, if I keep working on my office status as wine buff, I’m figuring an opportunity will come around sooner or later. Besides, every office needs the authoritative alcoholic.

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Christmas servings and seasonal confusion

I thought I’d kick off my first blog piece on our recent early Christmas dinner festivities. I’ve noticed at this time of year that trying to buy wine becomes a mine field of confusion, special deals and “what to drink at your Christmas dinner” self-help guides.

So, it was my Dad who sent me out with his member’s card to buy the booze but luckily I’ve discovered that if you read enough about wine throughout the year, you’re less likely to be distracted by the boxed gift set editions strategically stacked in tripping distance of the cellar door.

Despite this, I still chose wines I hadn’t tried before. On the white wine front I grabbed a bottle of Brown Brothers’ Pinot Grigio and was well satisfied with the result. For a white, it has a lovely dusty quality to it, balanced by a sweetness - my sister had more than one glass which is a good sign of its versatility as she normally guzzles those lolly, pre-mixed drinks. This is a great value wine for its class – it was quietly sophisticated and certainly gives some of the international pinot grigios a run for their money.

I was disappointed when my Dad cracked open his own bottle of red, a shiraz viognier, taking this to be a sign that I hadn’t chosen well. I’m still not sold on this variety, preferring my shiraz straight-up – I love the body and pepper of this wine and am sometimes disappointed by the softer combination. I feel wine makers are erring on the side of being sexy for the market and are innovating to chase sales. The words of a purist, perhaps?

So, I turned to Yering Station’s Mr Frog pinot noir which was a very surprising wine for this variety. Pinots can be hard to negotiate at times, being either successful or very disappointing. This wine was interesting for its tannic structure as a pinot. The fruit was still there, but I wasn’t expecting the feel of the wine in the mouth – this was a pinot with body.

I have to say, thought, that still one of the best pinots I’ve had comes from Wine Point, a shop specialising in clean skin wines. Their 2T Mornington Peninsula pinot noir is incredibly balanced, perhaps owing to the fact that the grapes are sourced from differing vineyards. Apparently it’s sold so well that the team at Wine Point are putting in a special order for more. From memory it sells at around A$20, dissipating the fallacy that clean skin wines are cheaper. Still, with a lovely smoothness and delicate structure, combined with great flavour, it’s worth it to know that it’s a pinot noir that can be relied on.