The Tasting Season is Upon Us!

It’s that time of year again when the calendar is full of trade tastings and other wine related events. I just received my forms for the 2006 Indiana State Fair Wine Competition. This is one of the largest wine competitions in the United States and I have been privileged to be a judge for the last 6 years. It’s a great opportunity to taste wines from all over the world and to talk with other “wine people”. Last year we tasted almost 3700 wines from more than 17 different countries. I’m looking forward to this year’s competition.
This past Monday I attended the National Wine & Spirirts Spring Wine Trade Tasting at The Montage which is a beautiful catering facility in Castleton, Indiana. Lots of great wine and great food. I found a few things for my wine list at OAKLEYS bistro and got the chance to see some old friends. One of the wineries that I really enjoyed was Cherry Hill. The winery is located in the Willamette Valley in Oregon; home to some of the best Pinot Noir in the continental U.S.. I chose the Papillon Pinot Noir. The label sports a picture of the winery owner’s dog, Daisy.
Mike Sweeney, the winery owner was there to pour and talk about his wines. It’s one of the greatest things about these trade tastings. You get first hand information about the weather, the crop, the blending techniques, etc. for a specific vintage. As I have said many times before, I love the family owned and operated wineries. When they put their name on the label, they must be proud of what’s in the bottle.
Another new discovery was the Forefathers wines. This is part of the Goldschmidt Vineyards owned by Nick Goldschmidt, executive winemaker for Allied Domecq. The Forefathers wines are, in essence, the best of the best. They have a Sauvignon Blanc from a 19 acre block of vineyards in Marlborough, New Zealand. This is one of the most highly regarded regions for that particular varietal. The other wines are a Shiraz from a 15 acre vineyard in Maclaren Vale, Australia and a Cabernet Sauvignon from a 5.5 acre plot in the Alexander Valley in Napa, California. We had a chance to have John Helfrick, director of sales and marketing for Goldschmidt Vineyards and Forefathers in the restaurant for a wine tasting with our guests. Thanks, John!
Next on the calendar is the Pinnacle “New Wineries” tasting at the end of this month. The tasting is to be held at the Indianapolis Yacht Club. I’m looking forward to this one. Hopefully, I’ll find some new favorites.
Bottom Line:
Research in the wine world means taste, taste, taste and then taste some more!

L. Cunningham
A Woman on Wine