Articles – Page 4 – Colin Harkness on Wine

Some Amusing Wine Judging Tales!

ON BEING A WINE JUDGE

PART TWO

Good Heavens – how nice to be appreciated! Since Part One of ‘On Being a Wine Judge’ I’ve received a good number of comments from friends, clients and readers who’ve wished me well, and this despite my assuring all that I wasn’t, honestly, playing the sympathy card! Thank you all!

Yes, my days as a Wine Judge are now behind me, because of some health issues, problems which, given the current pandemic, pale into insignificance. So, I’m being very positive, with various projects on the go or simply paused until we can get through this thing. I’ve moved on.

However, as I said in Part One, being a Wine Judge was such a blast and there are a number of stories I can tell about my experiences, as well as explaining a little about how it all happens. Hence, Part Two.

The previous article finished with me mentioning the minibus ride home from the International Wine & Spirits Competition judging HQ at the Dunsfold aerodrome where we chatted about the morning’s events and wines, of course. We also chatted about our friends and fellow judges – their comments, favourite wines etc, all very positive and supportive, as well as being funny and entertaining too.

On one occasion I mentioned that one of the most esteemed amongst had been my table partner that day. It was quite an honour to be in the same room as this chap, let alone be able to sit next to him, a world acknowledged expert and author of several books about his specialist wine subject as well as being a famed barrister, a QC no less!

Our friend, I should point out, also has what must be called a rather ‘far back’ accent – speaking exemplary Queen’s English in what, not only a dumb Northerner like me would call, a very posh accent indeed! And it was this accent that added to the weight of his comments about wine, and the humour he so often employed.

When asked by the Chair to comment about a particular wine, he had us all entertained for a few minutes telling us, and remember this was in his ‘frightfully far back’ accent, that ‘ the wine had reminded him rather of a Mills and Boon novel, where the main protagonist, a dreadful cad, had left the library in a terrible, blazing anger, having doled out a verbal battering to the beautiful, delicate heroine, leaving the reader with a appallingly bad taste in the mouth’ – or words to that effect! We couldn’t carry on for a few minutes as we were laughing so much! Brilliant!

However, another judge in the minibus had a tale to top that, about the same revered gentleman. Her experience was that once she’d been on the panel with our friend and, bearing in mind his accent and his QC status, when again asked to describe a wine and why he’d given it such a low score he’d said that it rather unfortunately had reminded him of the time he’d last sent a man to the gallows! Strewth – I told you being a wine judge was entertaining!

So, how did the judging actually take place?

Having arrived promptly for a 10:00 AM start were sent to one of the three IWSC’s three tasting rooms. There would be perhaps 6 to 9 of us, one of whom had been elected Chair. One who would have the ectra responsibility of working the computer to enter and compute the scores (never ever me, incidentally and thankfully!) and one who would be the phone link with the service rooms where the wines were kept in perfect conditions before being very professionally served to us panellists.

We would have pens, notepaper, instructions, a list of the wines which would give only details such as ‘Rioja, Tempranillo based, years 2015 – 2017’ for example, and the rules. To the side of each table there would be a spittoon for each judge – believe me no matter how great the wines, judging 60 – 80 of them meant you had to spit!

To start, we would be served two glasses of completely unrelated wines – so if judging on the Spanish Panel, as I almost exclusively did, we might be served a Muller Thurgau from Germany and a Californian Shiraz. We’d be asked to taste and score each, give the scores in and then discuss any disparities. The idea being to see if we were all ‘on the same page’ so to speak. The Chair had the final say and we were left to adjust our scoring with this in mind.

Wines would be served in ‘flights’ of perhaps four, even up to 20, all similar in style. Again, I can tell you, judging 20 Crianza Ribera del Duero all from the same year, for example, all displaying, at fist at least, very similar taste and aroma characteristics is not at all easy! There would be bread and water to freshen the palate and at the halftime break there would be sliced cucumber to freshen up even more.

Also, interestingly considering the generally accepted order in which wines should be tasted, we did it the ‘wrong way round’. We tasted reds first, then rosés, sparklers and whites, finally with red dessert wines coming before white ones. The reason – well, if tasting lots of white wines first the acidity can damage the palate a little, spoiling ability to judge further. Makes sense – and bear in mind the IWSC is one of the World’s three leading international wine competitions!

Please listen to www.valleyfm.es tomorrow, Sat 4^th April at 12:00 hrs – it’s my wine programme! I’m talking about demystifying some ‘wine talk’, I’ll be tasting a fortified wine as well as tasting and giving details of the fantastic Valley FM Wine of the Week, made by a local producer. Plus, as always, some really great music, including a local artist as well!

colin@colinharknessonwine.com Twitter @colinonwine Facebook Colin Harkness www.colinharknessonwine.com

Some reflections on being a Wine Judge – part one

ON BEING A WINE JUDGE

Regretfully, I’ve just tendered my resignation from the Spanish Wine Judging Panel of the International Wine & Spirits Competition, the IWSC, held annually, now in London, having moved recently from Guildford. This would have been my 9^th consecutive year in such a position, although ill health kept me from attending in 2019.

And it’s ill health at play again, forcing me to resign, not only from this, one of the world’s three most prestigious international wine competitions, but from all others too, international and national in Spain as well! To say I’m rather sad about it, is something of an understatement – and some! However, given the current pandemic, from which we are all suffering, I agree, of course, that there are far worse things in life! So, this is not a feeble attempt to play the sympathy card.

Rather, it is an opportunity to explain to Cork Talk readers, what it is to be a National and International Wine Judge, with examples from some of the highlights of my judging tenure. It’s been a blast!

I made my wine judging debut in 2011, in Galicia, North West Spain, and to be specific in the small, centuries old seaside town of Cambados, in the Denominación de Origen Rías Baixas. Readers will know, of course, that this DO is the natural home of that famous white wine grape variety, Albariño! It was, of course, this wonderful variety that we were going to be judging.

The organisers kindly acceded to my request for my lovely wife to come along for the ride too. Whilst my fellow judges and I were working, Claire was able to relax in the opulence of the Cambados Parador (highly recommended btw), where we were staying (expenses paid, I should add) and where, in one of the conference rooms, the judging took place.

Claire was also able to join us for the social activities built into the weekend – which included dining chez Michelin starred restaurants; a magnificent catamaran trip into the bay, tasting all the seafood dishes known to man, partnered, of course, by all the Rías Baixas Albariños know to man too; plus a glorious garden party where the medal winners were presented, to a huge gathering, including the President of the Comunidad and other politicians, as well as the glitterati of NW Spain!

My Spanish wasn’t so good in those days (it’s not brilliant now) and, although proud to be the first ever foreigner to be asked judge, it was something of a baptism of fire. However, the wine did the talking, far more eloquently than I managed! We were judging the 2010 vintage, and there was a large entry. Plus, of course, the number of Albariño wines we tasted on the catamaran and in the restaurants at lunches and dinner. All, of course, white Albariño. It was a truly wonderful experience – but I have to say, that by the time Sunday evening came, and we’d just arrived in nearby Santiago de Compostella, we probably could have killed for a glass of red!

I must have done something right as I was co-opted onto a Decanter Magazine panel later in the year, judging, as it happened the 2007 vintage of DO Rioja – red wines all! And being quoted a couple of times in that world famous magazine!

The following year I was invited to Guildford to ‘trial’ (now there’s an appropriate word!) as a judge for the IWSC. This was not so much of a step up in prestige, but more a mounting of the whole ladder! If I hadn’t passed the fairly stringent testing I would have been sent packing, back to Spain and relative anonymity, after kicking my heels for a few days waiting for the return flight I’d booked – perhaps too positively?

Fortunately I found myself sitting in one of the three judging rooms, with seven or eight fellow, though far more illustrious, and experienced judges, than me, the new kid on the panel, judging, as it happened Spanish as well as Portuguese wines.

I didn’t look back – until day!

Each of the times I judged in Guildford I was struck by how fortunate I was to be in the same room as such luminaries – Masters of Wine, Cape Wine Masters, Master Sommeliers, Wine Buyers for major supermarkets, Wine Makers, Winery Owners, Wine Media folk and so on! I was always nervous, the more so when, on occasion (too many occasions for my liking!) the computer happened to have selected me to read out my scores first, before the others on the panel. Imagine if I’d given a wine, say 64, and the others had rated it in the 80s and above! Firstly, you begin to doubt your ability, then it’s made worse by your being asked to justify your score, as opposed to those of your fellows! Strewth – it was a worry!

Fortunately there weren’t many times at all when there was such a disparity, and over the years I realised that this can in fact happen to all of us, even those above. Stressful though it was, I really enjoyed these sessions, as well as the chat over lunch afterwards, where the best wines that each panel had tasted were served to accompany the gourmet dishes bought in. The minibus journey back to Guildford (the actual judging rooms were about 25 minutes out of the town, in fact at the same aerodrome as was used by Jeremy Clarkson et al when filming Top Gear!) was always interesting as well.

We’d be perhaps 14 people, different nationalities, qualifications and experiences, but all with a passion for wine in common. I’m going to miss it!

I think I’ll make this Part One – of ‘On Being a Wine Judge’. There are few funny stories to tell, as well as the actually manner by which these judging sessions are conducted, sometimes including a member of the legal profession presiding over the event to ensure no foul play!

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Vins Abadal

Plà De Bages . . . . one of the smallest DOs in Spain . . . . also one of the newest . . .

DO PLÀ DE BAGES

In wine terms, whenever Cataluña is mentioned we all probably think Cava first. These days, certainly if you’ve been reading Cork Talk over the last few years, we may also think other sparkling wines. However Cataluña certainly isn’t just about Fizz.

At my last count (things change so quickly in such a dynamic wine scene), there were eleven different Denominaciónes de Origen, extra to DO Cava. Spanish wine lovers will probably think straight away of Penedés and Priorat – well done, but that’s still nine more to go.

One of the, not forgotten, as this presumes knowing it beforehand, specific areas of production, DOs, is Plà De Bages and, in common with others, we’d be making a mistake if we ignored it. It’s one of the smallest DOs in Spain, covering about 500 hectares (that’s about 500 rugby pitches!). It’s also one of the newest as it was only officially founded in 1997.

I visited the Plà de Bages stand at the Barcelona Wine Week in February – part of my plan to get around as many of the smaller, less well known areas of production, and I’m very pleased I did. Time is always at a premium at these huge wine events, so I didn’t visit many of the producers, proudly displaying their wares.

Abadal was the bodega that took my eye and I met Ramon Roqueta Segalés, who took me through several wines. http://abadal.net/

The indigenous white wine variety of the area is Picapoll, and Abadal were the first to show their faith in the variety by making a crisp white wine made from 100% Picapoll. The wisdom of their decision can be seen from the fact that other producers are now doing likewise.

It’s had four months on its lees, giving body and a slight creaminess to the wine, to go along with the baked apple and slightly under ripe pineapple skin fruit. Very fresh, wonderful with salads and fish/shellfish, and with an added bonus of a little complexity too.

A very good start – but the second white I tasted, wow what a wine! Abadal Nuat has the simplest of labels, telling a lie to the complexity and sheer delight of the wine inside the bottle! Again Picapoll features highly but there is the addition of Macabeo, another fixture of the Cataluña wine scene. The Picapoll vines have seen 68 summers, therefore produce few bunches per vine, but oh how rich they are!

Eight months on lees make a significant contribution to the depth of flavour and complexity, with a lovely creamy mouthfeel, yet retaining a fresh acidity. Top class winemaking here!

Ok, so the above vines are pretty old, but relative youngsters compared to the 90+ years of the Mandó variety which make the first red wine I tasted, Abadal Mandó! This is a variety which was becoming extinct, saved largely by the Abadal bodega, and now grown in other areas as well. It’s a variety which is slow to ripen and can handle extreme heat well. It is therefore a vine which will be able to take on many of the problems associated with climate change. As such, it’s stock will increase over the coming years!

I noted its light colour, a surprise, given the vines’ great age – and my lack of experience with the variety. Looking in the glass a little like a Pinot Noir, or a Gredos Garnacha. There is a touch of liquorice on the nose, more leafy blackberry than blackcurrant, with mountain herb notes and an extra aroma that I couldn’t put my finger on, until it was suggested to me – that from a wild carob tree. The wine has been aged, 40% in oak and 60% in clay amphora. It really is a lovely red wine, to which I will return!

I also really liked Abadal Matís 2017. Made with Mandó, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot it has a far darker colour than the above. On the nose there is some blackberry fruit mixing very nicely with sage, thyme and a faint rosemary aroma too, as well as eucalyptus and a little trodden undergrowth. The 10 months I French oak have added depth and a very faint vanilla.

Matís has a long finish and it is going to go well with game, steak and meat dishes.

So, friendly readers – I urge you to look into the DOs of Cataluña generally, and particularly to Plà de Bages and, of course the wines of Abadal!

colin@colinharknessonwine.com www.valleyfm.es

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FUNKY & WILD IN CÁDIZ!

If I was asked to name a winery that best illustrates the diversity and dynamism of the Spanish wine scene in 2020, at this moment I’d probably opt for Bodega de Forlong

BODEGA DE FORLONG

VINO DE LA TIERRA DE CÁDIZ

When visiting Cádiz, Andalucia, it’s best not to mention Sir Francis Drake! Whilst initiating a surprise attack on the Spanish Armada moored in the bay, itself apparently poised to set sail to attack England, in April 1587, our Frank decided to nick a few butts of the local wine, known today as Sherry. In fact 3,000 butts, with each containing about 500 litres of the fortified wine that was about to take Elizabethan England by storm!

Nowadays Spain and the UK have a far better relationship, with a great history of trading Sherry, rather than stealing it, and of course the Sherry producers around the Cádiz area still make an excellent product. So, in a region where Sherry is queen, readers may think it odd to start a winery there that makes, well, anything and everything but Sherry!

If I was asked to name a winery that best illustrates the diversity and dynamism of the Spanish wine scene in 2020, at this moment I’d probably opt for Bodega de Forlong! Tasting my way around the eleven whacky labelled samples on show at the Forlong stand at the recent Barcelona Wine Week was a voyage of sheer pleasure, rather better than those mentioned above! www.forlong.hermesinteractiva.com/vinos/

This winery, operating out of nearby Puerto de Santa María, makes sparkling wine, white, rosado, red and orange wine – by a number of different and innovative methods. As such it is a microcosmic glimpse of what’s taking place in happening Spain right now. Fascinating – but how good are the wines?

The first wine I tasted was a fizz, made by the Ancestral Method, as the name suggests, the oldest method by which sparkling wine is made, pre-dating, in fact, Dom Pérignon’s sterling efforts. The Ancestral Method is wholly different in that there is no second fermentation. Grape juice is fermented as if making normal still wine, however, before the fermentation finishes, the wine is gently filtered to remove any impurities and then placed in bottle and sealed. This initial, as yet unfinished fermentation then continues in the bottle. The bubbles are of course trapped and Sparkling Wine is the result!

For me, wines made by the Ancestral Method have more in common with Prosecco than Cava and Champagne, in terms of their presence on the palate – I’m not referring here to the slightly sweeter style of Prosecco. Forlong Burbuja is made with the Palomino variety and is dry, with a touch of bitterness on the finish.

Bodega Forlong is also making Orange wine. Regular readers will know that so called Orange Wines are best referred to as Skin Contact wine, wines which are made from white wine varieties whose juice is left with the skins, as in red wine making. The resulting wines often have an orange colour, and some wonderful flavours and aromas!

Forlong have two, by differing methods. I liked the 100% Palomino skin contact wine which is also left in old Oloroso Sherry barrels for a year. It has lovely balance with some mandarin zest on the nose, and a good mouthfeel.

Even better, for me, was their Palomino which was placed in contact, not with their own skins but with those of the Pedrom Jimenez variety, for 25 days – a revelation! Full, complex with subtle nuances, big flavour and a slight bitterness making this wine perfect for pairing with a multitude of different dishes, certainly not only fish and seafood!

More traditional is their 100% Palomino dry white wine which has been fermented and aged in French oak on its lees for 12 months. Butter pastry on the nose with orchard fruit and blanched nuts on the palate.

Palomino reigns at Forlong – and the next wine I tasted also shows how innovative this winery can be, with super results. Here the Palomino is harvested and left in the sunshine for two day to dry out a little. They are then pressed and the juice is fermented in Sherry casks under the flor that develops naturally, as in Sherry production. It’s then left alone, without the addition of any alcohol (as happens in Sherry, it being a fortified wine) for over two years. On the plate the wine is Sherry-esque in flavour and style, though, different too!

It’s only March I know, but so far my favourite Rosado this year is Forlong’s! Made with 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Tintilla de Rota (another new variety to me!). It has presence on the palate, as well as finesse. A long finish, excellent rosé wine!

Red wise, it was difficult to decide on my favourite, with five to choose from and little space left in this column! All the wines were made in such interesting ways and all had their attributes – wines to drink now and on their own, through to those which needed some more time, and those which are perfect with food!

My favourite red might have been Forlong Assemblage 2017 whose Merlot, Tintilla de Rota and Syrah blend had spent 6 months in Anfora and 12 in French oak, which is drinking very well right now, but also with time on its side.

Or it may have been their Forlong Tintilla, made with 100% Tintilla de Rota which was fermented and aged in Anfora for 6 months and then aged in French oak for a further year. This wine is a super dinner wine, to accompany light and hearty meaty dishes, as it combines elegance with power. There’s a lovely fragrance on the nose – floral, forest blackberry fruity and leafy with some vanilla and a little cedar wood.

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