Wine tasting is hard work
2002-03-06 @ 11:52 a.m.
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I went to a wine tasting yesterday evening. It was a tasting that we (the store where I work) were hosting along with the distributor and the importer. So it was more about working than tasting, although tasting is also working for me (I know, you're jealous). This particular tasting was of Burgundy, specifically the 2000 vintage of Bouchard Pere et Fils, both red and white. The importer set up the tasting with red wines first. That was unusual for most of us, but he explained that white Burgundy is so acidic that it can ruin your palate for the reds.
I've been studying Burgundy lately, actually reading books about it, so I was paying close attention to the tasting. We sell a lot of Burgundy at our store because we lucked onto a local wine group who are specifically interested in Burgundies, and who have lots of money. My boss, though he doesn't look or act the part, is an expert of sorts on Burgundy. He has spent some time there and has drunk a lot of the stuff, and he reads the wine mags (especially the ones that will help him sell the stuff) obsessively. So these guys with money trust his judgment, as they should. Since we sell so much and I have the opportunity to learn from him about one of the most complex wine regions of the world, I've been studying. Oh yeah, I was supposed to go on a trip to Burgundy this month with a different importer who canceled at the last minute. It still may happen in the future, but nothing is certain.
So last night I was feeling really strong in my wine experience, remembering some of the stuff I've been reading and really paying close attention to what we were tasting. Most of the people there were serious about Burgundy (sometimes a little too serious) so we could talk about what we were tasting and compare notes. And they actually asked my opinion. I felt sorta like a wine professional, which , I guess, is what I am.
But then there are the times when I feel like a total fake. Like when one newcomer to the group asked me about how to tell how well a wine will age, or how long it will last. I kinda know the answer to that. I could probably make a reasonable guess based on tasting a wine, but I'm standing at a table with other people who've been doing this longer than I have and trying to answer this question simply and quietly, because I'm not really confident in my answer. It's really a fairly complicated issue, but you want to give an answer of some kind. So I did my best and no one laughed at me.
I got home about an hour later than I had planned, and Badsnake had to pick me up at the train station (long story) missing part of Buffy in the process (I felt bad about that). But overall I had a good evening and learned some stuff. I think my boss was happy with my interest in the tasting and my willingness to stay longer than we had planned.
Thursday I have another Burgundy tasting to go to (Jadot 2000 Burgundies and 2002 barrel samples), this time at one of the most swank clubs in town. It's one of those places that you have to get asked to be a member, the kinda place that if they knew anything about me they'd never let me in the door. My boss, who never wears anything but Hawaiian shirts and jeans, has to wear a jacket. I'll wear a skirt or slacks. I will be there mostly to play hostess and get a chance to taste barrel samples (never done that). Also, its an earlier tasting so it will be over by the time I would be getting off work anyway so it will be less of an intrusion in my away-from-work life. But this time I'll drive (we spit - yesterday I spit out wine that cost $150 a bottle).
Today there is a tasting in midtown which is a relief because most of these things happen in Buckhead or OTP (outside the perimeter), areas I don't usually hang out. Midtown is my stomping ground. But the tasting today is being put on by a local distributor that specializes in mediocre, overpriced California wines (there are many California wines that I like, but there are many, many of the mass marketed, inoffensive-but-nothing-to-get-excited-about and overpriced variety). Going to the tasting (on my day off) could be interesting or could be a waste of time. I'll decide later.
Lots of people (mostly customers) hear about our multiple daily tastings in the store with distributor's sales reps and trade tastings at local hotels and restaurants and say things like: "I want your job" or "Must be rough." Well, you may like the idea of my job, but most of you don't want to work for the money I get (or deal with my boss's frequent temper tantrums). And sometimes tasting a whole day of crappy wine (there is such a thing - lots of it) with maybe only one or two wines of interest in the mix or traveling to an unfamiliar part of town through lousy traffic and paying to park just to taste a room full of uninteresting wine that you will never care to sell (much less buy to drink yourself) can be rough.
Then there are the days like yesterday when I get to enjoy some good wines, learn something new and feel confident about my ability (mostly), that I really enjoy my job.
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