Well, I’m not doing so great in my Blind Ambition Tour. I think I’ve accurately guessed 4, maybe 5 and missed at least 10. Its hard, not that I thought it wouldn’t be. I think my biggest mistake was not making a cheat sheet of common characteristics in varietals. I just don’t remember all of them. I have a large book, which is comprehensive, but I can’t easily take that with me everywhere. So, in hopes of having more of a successful end to the tour than the beginning, I have started to compile a list of such common aromas and flavors of varietals that I can put on my pda. Here’s a couple. Wish me luck!
Petit Verdot
Fruit: vinous, black fruits, blackberry
Floral: (none)
Spice: pencil shavings, molasses, tar
Herbal: weeds, nettles
Terroir: leather
Oak (light): vanilla, coconut, sweet wood
Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, tar
Bottle Age: cedar, cigar box
Zinfandel
Fruit: raspberry, blackberry, boysenberry, cranberry, black cherry, (jammy can be used with all)
Herbal: briar, licorice, nettle
Spice: cinnamon, black pepper
Carbonic Maceration: tutti-frutti, candy, bubblegum
Oak (light): vanilla, coconut, sweet wood
Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, tar
Bottle Age: musk, mushroom, earth, leather cedar, cigar box
Cabernet Franc
Fruit: raspberry, cherry, plum, strawberry
Floral: violet
Herbal: bell pepper, stems
Oak (light): vanilla, coconut, sweet wood
Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, tar
Bottle Age: musk, mushroom, earth, cedar, cigar box
Petit Verdot
Fruit: vinous, black fruits, blackberry
Floral: (none)
Spice: pencil shavings, molasses, tar
Herbal: weeds, nettles
Terroir: leather
Oak (light): vanilla, coconut, sweet wood
Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, tar
Bottle Age: cedar, cigar box
Zinfandel
Fruit: raspberry, blackberry, boysenberry, cranberry, black cherry, (jammy can be used with all)
Herbal: briar, licorice, nettle
Spice: cinnamon, black pepper
Carbonic Maceration: tutti-frutti, candy, bubblegum
Oak (light): vanilla, coconut, sweet wood
Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, tar
Bottle Age: musk, mushroom, earth, leather cedar, cigar box
Cabernet Franc
Fruit: raspberry, cherry, plum, strawberry
Floral: violet
Herbal: bell pepper, stems
Oak (light): vanilla, coconut, sweet wood
Oak (heavy): oak, smoke, toast, tar
Bottle Age: musk, mushroom, earth, cedar, cigar box
2 comments:
Interesting...however, I often get a lot of the things the mention in lots of other wines too, like bell pepper in Merlot or Cab. I'm sure you'll do great though. I bet you'll peg at least one of tonight's wines.
Some of the scents overlap, I didn't want the post to be 3 pages long, so I only posted a few.
Thanks again for humoring me and not making fun of me when I get stuff wrong. :)
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