On Nov 10th some-more than 130 booze lovers, from neophytes to professionals, got together during a home of Palate Press Publisher David Honig and his wife, Robyn Pauker, for a Fourth Annual Palate Press Grand Tasting. They tasted some-more than 200 wines from around a world, scoring their favorites, that were tasted after to collect winners of a Best of Show and Gold Medal awards.
Palate Press‘ IT Department during work
The Fourth Annual Palate Press Grand Tasting starts months before a tangible event. Wineries contention samples for a contest.* In a weeks before a eventuality a tough work of blind-wrapping a wines, numbering them, entering them into spreadsheets to keep lane of them, and formulating a smart-phone app for scoring begins. Palate Press tasked a IT Department, also famous as Joshua Honig, a Publisher’s 10-year aged son, to assistance with many of these jobs.
The Palate Press Grand Tasting is a booze foe in reverse. Most booze tastings start with a jury of professionals to collect a wines they like best, wines they hold “good enough” to be in a show. Winners are picked, too, by a veteran jury. Sometimes consumers are invited to ambience a wines, yet they don’t get a voice in picking winners and losers. Consumers, though, are unequivocally a ones picking winners and losers daily, any time they collect a bottle off a shelf and take it to a check-out counter.
In a Palate Press Grand Tasting booze lovers act as a jury. They scored some-more than 200 wines on a five-star basis. Every booze was blind-bagged and labeled by varietal or blend. The wines were laid out on 6 large tables and guest were giveaway to collect any booze they wanted. They scored live on a smart-phone application. All a wines were tasted with food, hors d’oeuvres from Jacquie’s Gourmet Catering in Indianapolis.
In a integrate of weeks after a Grand Tasting a highest-scoring wines were re-tasted for final judging and awarding of Best of Show and Gold Medals.
Kendra Connover, left, and Colleen Powers, right, with their winning potion and a magnum of McKinlay Pinot Noir 2008.
The dusk began with a guest picking adult their glasses. Everybody was invited to adorn their eyeglasses with wet-erase markers to keep lane f them by a evening. Some people usually wrote their names, yet other attempted to win a magnum of McKinlay Pinot Noir, 2008. There were several illusory entries, yet by a time a leader was comparison some of a artists were no longer in attendance.
It was an engaging evening, display several trends.
First, people talk. The best bottles were dull early. “You’ve got to ambience Number 16,” people pronounced to any other. They had no thought it was a 2009 Rodney Strong Symmetry. They usually knew a favourite it. They picked a ringers, too. An aged 2004 Smoking Loon Cabernet was hardly overwhelmed as people warned off their friends and neighbors as they reached for Bottle #171.
Foil-wrapped red wines, prepared for tasting.
Second, and discordant to what many wags claim, people unequivocally do collect aloft labelled wines when tasting them blind. Of a tip 10 wines as picked by guests, 4 cost some-more than $50, 3 some-more cost some-more than $25, and usually one was reduction than $15.
Third, people did not preference one sold varietal or mix over others. The tip 10 wines enclosed dual Chardonnays, on Cabernet Sauvignon, dual red blends, a Sauvignon Blanc, a Reisling, a Grüner Veltliner, and a Port blend.
By a time a Fourth Annual Palate Press Grand Tasting was finished we went by 205 bottles of wine, some-more than 500 hors d’oeuvres, 14 cases of glasses, and half a bottle of red booze mark remover.
Originally, Palate Press dictated to give out dual Best of Show awards, one for white and one for red. After a Fourth Annual Palate Press Grand Tasting and a successive judging, though, we contingency extend 4 Best of Show awards, one for white, one for red, one for fortified/dessert wines, and one some-more for Best Bargain. Twenty-nine bullion medals were awarded, all for wines that scored 90 points or some-more in successive reviews by Palate Press reviewers.
Best of Show – Red
2009 Rodney Strong Symmetry
The 2009 Rodney Strong Symmetry is a Meritage, an American booze done from classical Bordeaux grapes. It is done adult of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Malbec, 6% Merlot, and 1% Cabernet Franc, all comparison from Rodney Strong’s Alexander Valley bank vineyards. It spends 22 months in French oak. Winemakers are Rick Sayre, Tom Klein (vintner), and David Ramey (consultant).
This is really young, aggressive, packet and black currant over black cherry. Tannins are aggressive, acids high. This shows good promise, yet it is really young. Hide it in a attic for during slightest 5 years. If we can’t wait, span it with a really good streaked ribeye. Highly Recommended (93).
Best of Show – White
2009 Newton Unfiltered Chardonnay
The 2009 Newton Unfiltered Chardonnay is fermented with 100% furious leavening from Newton’s Carneros vineyards. It is unfiltered, and spends 16 months in French Oak, 30% new. Chris Millard is a winemaker.
The nose is rich, charity adult baked apple, burnt butter, and vanilla. The mouth-feel is equally rich, soft, smooth, and a small viscous. Baked apple, pear, and a hold of lemon liking lead on a palate. Butter shows on a mid-palate. This is a soft, abounding booze with poison good in balance. Drink with pressed flounder. Highly Recommended (93).
Best of Show – Fortified/Dessert
V Sattui 1998 Vintage Port
V. Sattui’s Vintage Port is done from classical Portuguese varietals, Tinta Cão, Souzão and Touriga Nacional. This booze combined a biggest hum of a evening. “Did we ambience that Port?,” one chairman asked a next, and doubt rolled by a crowd. Soon it was empty, with people clamoring for more. The booze was creatively blended and fermented by winemaker Rick Rosenbrand. Brooks Painter, V. Sattui’s winemaker given 2005, was obliged for a final aging and bottling.
The booze went so quick (and Palate Press did not have a second bottle) that usually a flitting tasting was possible. That one ambience and a hum in a room fit a award, yet minute records were not possible.
Best of Show – Bargain Wine
2010 CalNaturale Chardonnay
The 2010 CalNaturale Chardonnay is done from 100% organically grown Mendocino chardonnay grapes. It comes in .5L and 1L Tetra Paks. For a Palate Press Grand Tasting we poured booze from a Tetra Pak into a bottle, afterwards blind-wrapped it. Guests tasting a booze but meaningful it didn’t come from a bottle didn’t proceed it with any bias, and it was one of a tip 10 wines in a initial scoring. Heather Pyle is a winemaker.
The nose is abounding with aromas of baked apples and easily toasted oak. Soft on a palate, with a well-spoken mouth feel, flavors are some-more spicy than a nose. Leading with pears and cake crust, it moves fast on a mid-palate to Granny Smith apples, toast, and vanilla. The finish falls off comparatively quickly. Drink with duck salad on a summer picnic. Recommended (88).
Gold Medal Winners
Wines were awarded Gold Medals formed on reviews by guest and reviews by Palate Press reviewers. The following wines were highly-rated by booze lovers and booze professionals, afterwards again by Palate Press. The Gold Medal winners are posted in alphabetical order.
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To see all a wines rated dual stars of some-more by guest greatfully go HERE. Wines with scores of reduction than dual stars are not posted. Not any booze was tasted by Palate Press before to a uncover and low scores might be due to flaws. Negative scores for wines that are corked, or were shop-worn in shipping, should not be published but a double-check by a publication.
For a list of wines by blind tasting number, greatfully go HERE.
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*Submission fees for a Fourth Annual Palate Press Grand Tasting were used to partially defray costs for catering and judging.
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