1. No bias, No bullsh*t!
Yea, yea... Don't judge a book by it's cover, we've all heard that one before but what about judging a wine by the bottle? I agree, sometimes tasting wines from larger-scale wineries may seem unexciting— or uncool.
We all do it.
Chase certain wines, "LOVE" cult-like producers, pretend to like something because it's "hip" or even obnoxiously blurt out, "Ew, I don't like that". I always walked around saying "I do NOT like chardonnay" which I came to later understand that was my own bias and it may be true that I don't like a majority of Chardonnays because of A,B and C, I do like some, like this one here!
Blind tasting wines is a sensory experience which will open the door to less judgment and more discovery. I am super stubborn sometimes but I've learned that when it comes to wine tasting going in with an open-mind is the key to discovering some pretty fantastic sips. I agree, but that's just silly thinking. You HAVE to forget about the label, what you heard or think you tasted and pay attention to the wine and by blind tasting, it forces you to unequivocally JUST DO IT.
2. You have to think...
Ummmm, well, for me tasting can be tricky because sometimes if I just don't get that aroma of raspberry or watermelon juice that the host is referring too, oh and with bright acidity, perfect with......... like what?
Instead I feel forced to conclude "Whatever she said" just to move it along. There have been times where I am left completely intimidated because I have no idea what the heck I am sipping or what that puckering sensation means but went along with it because I felt dumb asking.
Blind tasting allows you to taste at ease using your senses at your own pace and yes, I even created a glossary of wine terms for you to reference when you need a quick reminder about what the heck "acidity" means?!
3. The sometimes "boring" part actually becomes FUN!
The object of tasting is primarily to identify the core features of a wine like the grape variety(s), region, vintage/age, and/or quality which then creates a formula as to why this wine looks and tastes the way it does.
Ok, so what?
I can't say I always understand or care about the significance of a weather pattern during the winter of 2017, snooze fest.
Blind tasting a wine purely through the acts of seeing, smelling and tasting the wine in the glass encourages me to articulate these features on my own, challenging the senses... and then, on my own resorting to google, asking "Were there any uncommon weather patterns that happened in 2017?"
4. Blind Tasting is not just for the pros, instead it makes you 'feel' like one.
What is seen as a sport among wine geeks, a way of testing the abilities of wine students or an assessment by wine professionals, I can’t help but think—What about the rest of us?
Blind tasting can be a good time for both the novice and pro because it can be as in depth as the taster wants. For an experienced taster, deciphering the year can be pretty satisfying whereas identifying a wine as a Pinot Noir from California, for me, is a slam dunk! Woot Woot!!
I get soooooo excited when I try a wine and am able to articulate the grape varietal and the region it came from. Go on, tell me you wouldn't pat yourself on the back for that one?!
5. You'll actually learn a little something too!
Did you know the most famous blind tasting of all time was the 1976 Judgment of Paris?
During this historic tasting, judges from France, Britain and the U.S. deemed a California Chardonnay better than bottles from Burgundy, which at the time was unheard of. Also, deemed a California Cabernet Sauvignon better than the finest Bordeaux blends, say what?!
This became front-page news!!
What does this mean? Well, these "judges" learned a thing or two about what they actually liked and that California was producing quality wine you could be excited about. Let be honest, if the identities of those wines weren't concealed that day, those California wines would not have been given a chance let alone become a world famous wine region.
Ok, there you have it, My TOP 5 Reasons why you should be blind tasting wine, do you agree?
Anything I am missing here? Comment below.
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