Tasting “Inside Out”

Wine tastings are virtually always structured to fit one of two models. The first involves “nailing the wine” by focusing on the liquid in the glass, and through rigorous observation and examination, arriving at an objective assessment of the wine. This empirical technique is designed to describe wine purely in terms of the properties perceived by the senses. The advantage of such an approach is that the taster is not swayed by preconceptions. The disadvantage is that one tastes without context.

Alternatively, you can establish a context and set the scene for the wine tasting by discussing, for example, the individual regions in which the wines are produced and outlining all the microclimatic, cultural and vinicultural factors that give rise to the styles of the respective wines.

The inverse of these traditional compressed approaches is a more freewheeling style. Here the wine is a catalyst for wide-ranging discussion rather than an end in itself. As we taste we may be swept up in the moment: questions are asked, digressions occur, anecdotes are spun, ideas emerge, comparisons are woven. The truth of the wine here lives in the experience of the moment and in what the participants of the tasting individually contribute to that experience. It has a serendipitous dynamic wholly unlike the other tasting models.

I prefer the chaotic spontaneity of these happy-go-lucky tastings because the scenery always seems to be changing. It keeps me fresh, because, rather than revisiting old territory and going through the motions, you can constantly bounce ideas off people and generate new momentum.

Here’s an example of an aleatory tasting. I’ve adopted a kind of shorthand notation to mirror the kinetic, stream-of-consciousness approach adopted. It’s a paradigm of digressive narrative; in fact you have to imagine something more tortuous with questions and interventions punctuating the spiel!

Deviating from the Txac…

Txacoli or Chacoli – the Basque spelling versus the Castilian. We have grown to associate this wine with the Basque country and people. Biscay, Viscaya, Basque tongue sounds elemental. The Basques are a proud people with a deep sense of their history. Mark Kurlansky’s The Basque History of the World rewrites history, as we thought we knew it, from the Basque point of view.

The vineyards are located on the northern strip of coast between San Sebastian and Bilbao Hondarrabi Xuri & Beltza, the grapes of the region. Green wines for a green climate (echo of Andrew Marvell’s The Garden). Or even more appropriate…

Verde que te quiero verde,
Verde viento. Verde ramas

Green I love you green. Green wind. Green branches.

Federico García Lorca

The wine is true to the identity of the region, true to the proximity of the sea (salty wine), true to the uncritical mood that you cultivate whilst quaffing it. It is charismatic on its own terms. If Txacoli were an instrument it would be a reedy flute or a penny whistle. Vineyards in Guetaria, the home of the largest Txacoli DO, are cut into the cliffs overlooking the Atlantic. The prismatic effect of sunlight shining through droplets of sea spray generated by the breakers at the base of the cliffs. This is the brine-scented terroir of Txacoli; this is a wine of the sea.

Txacoli appears to be the house (or default) white wine of all bars in the Basque country. The art of pouring or “spuming” Txacoli into beakers from a great height to create the extra effervescence. The drama of wine. Wafting the bottle like a censer; there is something sacramental about the pouring of Txacoli. The rules of pinxtos bars. Smoking in bars in San Sebastian (smoking the hams!) The philosophy of pinxtos eating –imaginative, daring and fun. Could we make it work in this country?

A happy wine demonstrating the virtue of simplicity. Flavours: green apple, crunch of acidity. Light in alcohol. Increasingly popularity reflects movement away from rich full-bodied wines towards more functional, pleasurable, quaffable wines. Look at increased sales of Muscadet, Picpoul de Pinet and similar wines of the sea. Food? Cantabrian anchovies, stuffed green olives, mackerel, sardines, croquettes, grilled chorizo. A frivolous wine, which doesn’t ask questions. The idea that wine does or does not travel; our experience coloured by our mood which is determined by sun, sea and relaxation. The more minimalist the wine the truer it is; the winemaking technique does not get in the way of why the wine exists. Without the picture of the vineyards and the rugged coastline in our minds and without the flavour of the Basque cuisine on our taste buds the wine means less, but we are getting there. As we travel more often to wine-producing region our connection with the wines naturally strengthens; the associations become clearer. When wine tastings can activate these memories and associations, then they help to make the wine to become something more than a product in a glass bottle.