Intermediate Wine Course

2012

Copyright © Brian Jamieson

Tricia Christmas

&

Brian Jamieson

Course aims

• To build on your experience of assessing, understanding and enjoying the wines of the world.

• To increase your confidence when selecting and offering wines.

• To have good fun!

Introductions

• Name• Any favourite or memorable wine?

Course outline

Sessions1. Wines & winemaking

2. Sth Australia

3. Spain

4. California & Oregon

5. Viognier

6. Vertical tastings

Structure of each session

• Some theory and information• DVD clips• Practical tasting

Wines & winemaking: Today’s plan

1. Grapes

2. Wine making

3. Wine tasting

4. Global wine production

5. Food & wine

6. Seven wines to taste

1. Chablis, Les Champs Blancs, Pascal Bouchard, AOC, 2010

• Burgundy’s northern outpost• Chardonnay• Unoaked; fermented and matured in

stainless steel– Colour: Light– Aroma: Citrus fruits (subdued), melon ...– Palate: Fruity, citrusy, slight creaminess ....

• Fruit/acid balance?• Residual sugar?

Chablis

Grapes & Winemaking

Tricia Christmas

Grape species and varieties• European Vitis vinifera

– Wine-making variety– Native to Europe; now universal

• American Vitis labrusca – Native to Nth America; doesn’t make

palatable wine– Rootstocks saved European wine production

in late-19th century Phylloxera epidemic; V. labrusca resistant to the Phylloxera weevil or nematode

Grape varieties

Any others?

What’s in a grape?

Simplified wine making!White Red

• Sorting • De-stemming • Crushing• Fermentation• Filtration• Blending• Fining• Maturation• Bottling/labelling

How is quality & variety introduced? In Vineyard Post-harvest

• Grape variety• Geology & soil• Climate• Aspect; slope• Culture (pruning,

training of vines, etc)• Weather at harvest• Time of harvest

(residual sugar levels)

Wine tasting

1. Sight Eyes

2. Aroma Nose

3. Palate(taste) Mouth

1: Sight - Eyes

• Clarity• Colour

– rim– body; density of colour

• Suggestions of– production method – steel (pale) or oak

(darker whites)– age of wine– grape variety

1: Sight – Age of wine

2. Aroma - Nose

• Fresh - Proceed• Any mustiness – REJECT

– One bottle in 20 corked– Including screwcaps!– Try the cork first for mustiness

• Aromas?

Types of Aromas

• Primary: – Grapes and terroir

• Secondary: – Fermentation products

• Tertiary: – Products of maturing and ageing

Essential wine aromas

• Fruity:– Citrus, lychees, red & black berries....

• Floral:– Rose, violet, acacia, honey....

• Vegetal:– Mushroom, pepper, pine, grass, vanilla....

• Animal:– Leather, musk, butter...

• Roasted:– Chocolate, smoke, roasted nuts....

Aroma exercise: 1

• Pear– 10

• Raspberry– 13

• Butter– 47

Aroma exercise: 2

• Aroma 1– Lemon

• Aroma 12– Strawberry

• Aroma 30– Green pepper