To send us off into the arms of Summer, our June tasting treated us to a range of Mediterranean Whites. Wines to sip with tapas, snacks and barbecue for the Summer months.
Our guide this month was none other than Larry Goldstein whom members of TVC will recognise as being one of the longest-serving members of the club. And tonight, he was putting all those years of quality tasting and wine-buying to good use by leading us through eight wines. These eight wines are connected only by their being made with white grapes and their geography: the Mediterranean. Different grapes, different terroirs and different wine-making methods, but all from Greece, Italy, Croatia, Spain, France and Portugal.
As a Big Fan of white wines (in all their many guises), I am always looking for something new and interesting to complete my dinner table during the hot days and warm evenings in Toronto. And it was a perfect opportunity to taste a bunch of different white wines side-by-side! Something that is nigh-on impossible to do by oneself; exploring which of these interesting wines might be my new favourite. I loved the challenge of figuring out whether I could pick out the one Spanish out of the pack, and whether I'd be able to tell the difference between a Greek $58 wine and the Italian bargain wine at $16.95.
Larry is a fan of wines from Greece and has visited many times so gave us some unique background knowledge on the two Santorini wines from Estate Argyros Assyritiko that were hidden in the eight little tasting bottles in front of us.
Did you know for example that due to the heat and dryness of the climate in Greece the grapes are grown in these 'baskets' to protect the grapes from the intense heat. Whilst in Spain, the Albariño grapes are suspended from Pergola trellis systems to ensure that the grapes survive the damp conditions and resist both mold and rot.
I'm sure each member attending this evening got to find out something new about their likes and dislikes with this range of wines. The scores at the end of the night (see below), with the Group and Guest agreeing to almost the exact same order of wines was the great surprise of the evening: an "unusual unanimity" as summed up by one of the members. (Apparently I was not so conforming as I only agreed with the Group and Guest on one of the Greek wines being in my Top 3. I'm a cheap date it seems as my favourite turned out to be the cheapest wine on the table!)
Here are the full scores from the evening:
Until September then, have a superb wine-filled Summer! Perhaps we'll all pick up a few bottles that we've not tried before, or grapes that are new to us, as we continue exploring wine until we meet again.