I was recently involved in the British Columbia Chilean Thematic and found parts of the event very refreshing. It was refreshing because the people attending the event were willing to ask questions about the wine no mater how simple the answer. You have to remember when you go to a wine tasting that the people pouring the wine are a great source of knowledge and love to share it with anyone willing to enquire about wine. It's like a free lesson in wine. My father used to say there are no stupid questions if you don't know the answer and he was right.
I liked the people that would ask, "what is the difference between a Merlot and a Cabernet?" And I would tell them a merlot is a softer, fleshier wine that matures earlier. They are generally produced to be consumed immediately and have plum and cherry flavours. A Cabernet Sauvignon has more tannins and acids that give it a stronger flavour. Most Cabernet wines have a black current flavour and are blended with a small percentage of Merlot or Cabernet Franc to soften the wine while allowing it to maintain its Cabernet flavour.
The new but very old grape varietal being announced on wine labels is Carmenere. Many people asked why they had never seen it before. Carmenere used to be labelled Merlot. It is an ancient merlot vine brought to Chile from France but it has its own distinctions than a typical merlot. The grapes hang on the vines longer and the leaves get a copper tinge. The flavour is stronger than a typical Merlot and many people trying it in a blind tasting think it is a Cabernet Sauvignon. Because of the discrepancy between it and a typical Merlot, Carmenere is finally receiving its own distinction on the labels.
One woman asked, "how can I tell the age of a glass of red wine just looking at it." "This is easy," I said. "Just look at the top outside rim of the wine in your glass. The colour will go from cherry to red to brick to brown as it ages."
I was happy I had people to talk to that were enjoying themselves and learning. The goal of the wine industry is an educated public. What the they don't want is people pretending they know something and not asking questions because they are to proud or scared. So my suggestion is, start asking all the questions you can think of when out at wine tastings even if you feel it is a silly question, hopefully you will only have to ask it once.
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