ulysses Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 here is the review: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,23...2161916,00.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe H Posted June 18, 2006 Share Posted June 18, 2006 (edited) I went to a Spanish wine tasting along with about 150 others at the Madison hotel last Saturday evening. I tasted about 100 reds in a two hour period of time. For the first 90 minutes I swallowed very little, doing my best to spit out as much as possible. In the last 30 minutes I had probably narrowed my choices down to 8 or 10 wines, then 4 or 5 with these last being swallowed. I was reasonably loaded when I left. As I type this, because I bought futures, I have no confirmation that all four of the wines that I bought a case each of where, in fact, my best choices. Of the 96 that I did not buy I am fairly certain that at least 50 of them were not as good for the price and "for my taste" with the result that my judgment was accurate for them. Still, I am certain that I made some mistakes. Nobody went out of business because of a mistake of mine, nobody made a fortune because of a mistake of mine. I do feel that I identified several very good wines for the money or for my purposes. But there were probably a number of wines equally worthy that for whatever reason I did not recognize. As much as I am interested in Robert Parker's opinions I wonder if he, at times, feels the way that I did a week after a massive tasting. As much as I trust my own judgment and taste I am still not infallible. I believe that many could, within reason, pick out their favorite wines as I did. But to assign a score to each of the 100+ wines based only on several tastes which are spit out is a stretch for me. I use Parker and the Wine Spectator as a "guide" just as a trusted sommelier or wine consultant or salesman. I am certain that the evolution of his power has been a result of his politics as well as his taste. In fact I am certain that the former in combination with timing and luck played the greatest roles. For what it's worth: 2004 Clos Figueras ($51) and 2004 Font de la Figuera ($22) were each outstanding at their price points as was 2004 Leva Daniel ($26). Dollar for dollar the wine of the event, for me, was 2003 Tinto Pesquera, already superior to any other Pesquera that I've ever tasted. This is a $22 future which drank like a $60+ wine. My priority was a wine or two in the $20-25 range and in the $50 and under range (as futures). Several wines ranged to $100+ per bottle but I did not consider them. The vast majority fit into the above two price points. Edited June 18, 2006 by Joe H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjsadler Posted June 20, 2006 Share Posted June 20, 2006 I read "The Emperor of Wine" the other month. No matter of what you think of Robert Parker, it's an entertaining read. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now