Reported by Donald Cumming (with notes from Penny Napke)
Fifteen of the curious joined Robert White to see what really constituted a benchmark in wine tasting. Commonly understood to the measurement by which all others are compared, he wanted to explore the notion that there are many newer regions in the world which believe their conditions are such that they can meet or exceed the quality and characteristics of these benchmark wines. Robert had assembled two fights of a single varietal each and a third flight that was advertised to be a blend, but was he wasn’t divulging any details on the night in question.
The first flight comprised four white wines. Of the three flights this one provided the greatest variety in aroma, taste, and other characteristics and gave a broad sweep of Sauvignon Blanc styles and diversity. He kicked off with Cathedral Cellars Sauvignon Blanc from South Africa which had all the hay, honey, petrol, herbaceous, and lemony flavours that one expects, but had a white pithy bitterness. The second was a very pale yellow/white and was characterized by stone fruits, lemon, and a peanut taste. Very fresh and bright. Mistaken to be the benchmark by some, it was in fact from the Napa Valley, Raymond Cellars 2004. The third was a much darker straw yellow that would suggest an older more oxidized wine. Toasty, yellow plum fruits with decent minerality. Surprise! This was a Sancerre and the benchmark wine. Finally a New Zealand Kim Crawford Marlborough that was a great example of that country’s very characteristic Sauvignon Blanc, with quince, papaya, sweet gooseberry, and the usual herbaceous nose. The room was divided over the Raymond Vineyard and the Crawford, followed by the benchmark Sancerre, and finally the Cathedral Cellars.
Then on to fight number two comprising four remarkably similar Pinot Noir wines that delivered a very clear winner. The first had all the “brett”, mushroom, and earthiness that you expect from a Pinot. Bright and crisp acid. The high expectation from the nose was not delivered on the palate. The Tinhorn Creek is perhaps a sign of great things to come from B.C. and the Okanagan Valley. Next, from Governor’s Bay in New Zealand comes a wine made exclusively for the Canadian market. Only in Canada, eh - pity! With a chemical bouquet, was judged to be “OK” and received no support in the voting. Number three had notes of strawberry, earth, must, beetroot, and smoke, and good tannins, but had some astringency. This benchmark “Signature” Bourgogne did not live up to expectations but it had excellent structure compared to the others. Finally the Carneros Valley Clos du Val Wine Company Pinot was filled with cherry and raspberry and exhibited well balanced acid and tannins. It was the smoothest of the flight and it took home 12 of the 15 votes—the clear winner.
Robert really scored with a great choice of theme—Rhône Rangers, the GSM club. First up were the goats from Fairview, South Africa with the Goats do Roam. Jammy, tobacco, mushroom, a bit burnt rubber and smoky. Next a simple one-dimensional wine that never the less did evoke reactions of dark berries, dried fruit, stewed plums—the Red Truck 2004 from Cline Cellars in California. In benchmark position, number three delivered a complex smooth wine filled with, blackberries, elderberry, as well as a big alcohol (14.5%) nose—Cairanne 2004 from Domaine des Coteaux de Travers. The last wine of the evening was judged, only half jokingly, to be the “Australian Benchmark”. Blackberries, mushrooms, leather, strawberries, white pepper, well balanced, good tannins came from the Torbeck Old Vines Grenache-Shiraz-Mourvedre, 2004. The last three split the choice of favorites about equally.
This was a really great tasting that provoked and lead tasters to ask—what is a benchmark? None of the benchmarks finished first. Who’s benchmark is it, anyway? Changing tastes and the emergence of the styles of the new world are really challenging the established order. Robert selected wines that, more or less, were within the same price range, although a higher price did deliver a better wine. Phew! The price/performance ratio may be a real factor here. Really good Sancerre and Bourgogne need to be in the C$50 and greater range. Perhaps we can look forward to price and performance based tasting in the future. How about it Robert?
Flight 1
- Sauvignon Blanc, 2005, Cathedral Cellars, South Africa 662718 $14.95
- ‘Reserve’ Sauvignon Blanc, 2004, Raymond Vineyard & Cellar, Napa Valley 686683 $17.95
- ‘La Chatellenie’, 2004, Joseph Mellot, Sancerre, France 525154 $22.95
- Sauvignon Blanc, 2005, Kim Crawford, New Zealand 975672 $19.95
Flight 2
- Pinot Noir, 2003, Tinhorn Creek, Okanagan Valley 530709 $16.95
- Pinot Noir 2004, Governors Bay, New Zealand 656405 $18.95
- ‘Signature’ Bourgogne, 2004, Champy Pere & Cie., Burgundy, France 1149 $19.95
- Pinot Noir, 2004, Clos du Val Wine Company, California 3384 $27.95
Flight 3
- Goats do Roam, 2005, Fairview Wines, South Africa 718940 $12.95
- ‘Red Truck’ 2004, Cline Cellars, USA 693903 $14.95
- Cairanne, 2004, Domaine des Coteaux de Travers, France 626648 $17.95
- ‘Old Vines’ Grenache-Shiraz-Mourvedre, 2004, Torbreck, Australia 10223 $19.95
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The National Capital Sommelier Guild strongly supports moderate and responsible consumption of wine and spirits. Guild dinner events allow a designated driver to attend at a reduced price. The designated driver will not be served alcohol. Guild tasting events provide and encourage the use of spit buckets.