January Feature

Wine critics play up the exclusivity of them, Bordeaux prices are set by them and wineries are finally tapping them as another marketing tool. Barrel tastings are one of the most romanticized aspects of the wine industry, and one of the hardest to learn.
How does tasting the wine in barrel, or in a stainless steel tank for that matter, relate to the finished, bottled product? It’s a bit like looking at your kid, and accurately predicting what they’ll be like in two, three, ten or twenty years- the margin of error goes up the further out you go. In the event you’re ever offered the chance to participate in a barrel tasting, so sign up to take one of the organized tastings, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1- The barrel you’re tasting out of is likely to be blended with several other barrels to make up a winery release- the common size barrel, 59 U.S. gallons, holds about 290 bottles of wine plus or minus (sediment, air, etc). That’s slightly under 25 cases. Not many wineries can afford to deal in such small quantities, and not many do because of the amount of labor and hassle to product yield is not viable. So what you’re tasting should be recognizable in the final product, though there will be other components that came from other barrels.

2- Each barrel will have a unique effect the wine. Coopers, Wine Makers and Cellar Masters the world over will tell you this- even though two barrels came from the same Cooperage, they may impart slightly different qualities to the wines aged in them.

3- The wine you’ll be tasting has a lot more tannin in it when straight out of the barrel than it will later when from a bottle. Give the wine a minute of swirling to open up.

4- Pay attention to the cellar and wine temperature- chances are if you’re on an organized tour, the winery will have taken a lot of effort to make sure that the wines they’re presenting to you are at the best temperature to show them off in the best way possible.

5- Take notes, record everything you can about the wine and then taste the wine after it’s been bottled and take notes then too. Compare the sets of notes, and you’ll begin to see what the barrel aging part of a wines life gives to it.

Last spring, I had the chance to visit Guy Drew Vineyards in southwestern Colorado and try some of his wines from the barrel- and from stainless steel tanks. Following the tasting notes are links to Guy’s winery, and some other resources on barrel tastings and tours.

2005 Chardonnay
Tasted from a stainless steel tank; the wine was being settled for bottling. Oaked, Estate grown fruit. Aromas of pineapple, musk and yeast. Smooth on palate, with a buttery finish, nice tropical fruit flavors in the middle.

2006 Chardonnay
Also tasted from a steel tank during the settling process, the fruit was purchased from a vineyard the Grand Junction/ Palisades area (Western Slope) of Colorado. Unoaked, with a nice focus on the fruit aspects of the chardonnay grape. Good viscosity in the mouth, shows mango hints/ guava and white peach. Clover. Very round in the mouth. Fermented at 47˚ f.

2006 Pinot Noir
From young vines, about five years old- purchased fruit from a grower in Montezuma County. Strong cherry and chokecherry flavors. Still very young, with grapey aromas but with a good depth of flavors. Tasted from a French Oak barrel, not bottled yet to my knowledge. Earth and dark berry fruit flavors at the finish. Look for this when it’s released.

2005 Guy Drew Vineyards Chardonnay $11
Montezuma County, Colorado, USA 13% abv Screw Cap
The nose opens with musky fruit aromas with hints of marshy soil. Pineapple and creamy butter notes develop, framed by just a hint of minerals. The butter notes come through on the palate along with some French oak character (subtle smoke and vanilla) before the pineapple, pear and papaya fruit show. Nice mid-length finish with a mellow acidity holding all the flavors in harmony. Pair with grilled chicken, oysters or young goat’s milk cheeses.

2006 Guy Drew Vineyards Chardonnay $11
Colorado, USA 14.2% abv Cork Finish
Apple and pear in the nose, comes off almost like a riesling with all of the peach and honeysuckle aromas. Shows best slightly warmer than you’d normally serve a chardonnay; green apple flavors come out in the glass with a mouth-filling viscosity. Mango and peach flavors, with a slight floral undercurrent. Pair with roasted pork and apples or spicy dishes. Medium-length finish that leaves a tinge of sweetness on the palate.

Guy Drew Vineyards www.guydrewvineyards.com

Sonoma County Barrel Tasting www.scbarreltasting.com/

Match Vineyards; Wine Makers’ Notes on Barrel Tasting http://www.matchvineyards.com/movabletype/archives/2006/03/barrel_tasting_2.html