Day 3: New Zealand Whites and Many a red..
When it rains, it pours in Vancouver
(Disclaimer: I have always been very tentative to recommend wines. I believe everyone tastes wine differently and although we may agree on some, people taste differently. I am always learning more about tasting, and probably always will be. That said, this is an opinion blog so I will be providing a list at the end of this blog w/ some of my favorites. The * denotes my top fav’s here :)
Wow what a day, I must say after my first day I was feeling overwhelmed, that wasn’t the case today. Armed w/ a plan for my tastings, I ventured forth to the #VPIWF. (Thank you @kurtiskolt and my friend Erin for advice on planning.) As w/ yesterday, I cannot give justice to all the great wines I tasted, rest assured, I will publish tasting notes after I get home(and rest).
Vancouver Playhouse International trade tasting, day two. I put on my serious face and walked in the door. Starting things off with the whites, one region/varietal I’ve always loved, the New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. I had been tardy in my tasting on thurs, I had to be efficient and precise as I was running out of time.
New Zealand Sauv Blanc picks:
- Oyster Bay – Marlborough 2011
- Giesen – Marlborough 2010
- Marisco Vineyards – The Ned 2011
- Marico Vineyards – A sticky End(Sauvignon Blanc Dessert wine)
With that finished, I moved on to next and most exciting part of my tasting. Chilean Reds… I had planned ahead in some ways for this festival, I knew which regions I didn’t know, and Chile was one of them. This was going to be an education, experience, it turned out to be a lot of fun. A brief explanation of the festival area, there is rows upon rows of tables w/ every region of wine represented, but as the feature region this year there is a good 1/3 of the floor devoted to the Wines of Chile! My plan, to try as many as I could(spitting them all), though today I did bring a list. I started things off w/ a flight of Carmenere’s at the tasting bar. I noticed during my wanderings that some people were at the conference just to try one or two specific varietals, maybe I’ll find mine someday but for now I’m happy just trying them all.
I moved on from the tasting bar and started making my way through the tables. One thing that struck me as amazing was that I could taste wines from around the world, and here the story from the principals themselves. It was truly a humbling experience. It was really great to meet Sebastian Labbe from Carmen, Eduardo Hidalgo from Cousiño-Macul, Aida Toro from Viña Chocalan, Sergio Reyes from Chono, Edwardo from Tamaya and Marcelo Quinteros from Viña Tarapaca.
Chilean Red wine picks:
Concha Y Toro – Terrunyo Carmenere 2008
Concha y Toro – Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon 2008*
Viña Tarapaca – Tara Pakay 2008 Red Blend*
Viña Maipo – Carmenere/Syrah 2009
Viña Maipo – Syrah 2009*
Viña Maipo – Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Chocalan – Gran Reserva Blend
Chocalan – Gran Reserva Malbec(stunning)*
Lapostolle – Clos Apalta 2008
Viña Santa Rita – Casa Real Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
Concha y Toro Don Melchor
Well, that was a flight of great wines… I returned home to my hotel after the afternoon tasting to promptly fall asleep the moment I got home. I awoke an hour later realizing I had passed out and was missing out on more great wine tasting. As I rushed back to conference center, I realized that aching pain in my stomach was because I had forgot to eat today… I guess blogging does that to you. Ahh fun times, A&W to the rescue, a tried and true stomach calmer duo of mama burgers and I was off to the races.
Enter #VPIWF Gold pass room… This was classy. No line-up, I thought I was actually in the wrong place till I walked around the corner to a very quiet and casual group sitting in the room overlooking the HUGE line-up below. Below the people had been lining up for over an hour to get in early, I had already spent a lot of time down there, this time, I choose the quiet route…
I was greeted by three tables, International, Caubernet Sauvignon’s, and Wines of Chile. Opposite to that was a finger food bar w/ some very nice appys to pair w/ the wines. Cheeseburgers aside, I really enjoyed the braised mushrooms on flat bread. After that I dug right into the flight of Cabs!
Flight of Cab wine picks:
Mission Hill – Compendium
Robert Mondavi – Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
Freakshow – Cabernet Sauvignon(different)
Signorello Estate – Padrone 2008*
Chateau Haut-Bergey Pessac-Leognan 2008
Caymus Vineyards – Special Selection Cabernet Sauvignon 2009(milk chocolate goodness)*
A flight of Cabs
Caymus Vineyards - Special Selction Cabernet Saugivnon 2009
I took my leave at this point and headed downstairs to try the few Reds I had yet to sip. My goal was simple, Domaine De La Solitude from Châteauneuf-du-Pape. This for me was the treat of the night as I am a young wine sipper, I had not tasted a quality 2001 French wine ever. I tasted the 2009, 2001 Barberini, and 2001 Reserve Secrete. A treat all three, thank you for that great tasting.
Arriving back at the hotel, I felt a pain in my stomach, your still alive I thought? Well I guess I had been neglecting it.. Dinner of a hearty Cheddar burger from Moxies w/ fries and basil mayo(new hipster trend?). I paired this w/ my tried and true Hester Creek Cab Merlot…. It also paired great w/ the Bleach Anime I watched to put myself to sleep. (my teeth are not happy w/ me)
Thank you #VPIWF I had a blast, and there’s still one more day! Up tomorrow is the #BCpaired lunch and international tasting hall!
Hester Creek Cabernet Merlot
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