A couple of weeks ago I was at loose ends after work and decided to head to a rose tasting at Club Cafe sponsored by Boston Wine Tasters . It was free, there were twenty wines to choose from, and I love rose, so it was an easy decision. I took the approach that I have just christened "strategic snobbery"; I aimed to try the more expensive wines so I would know whether or not to purchase them in the future. As for the less expensive ones, I'm willing to take a gamble and just grab a bottle in the store without having tried it before. I also avoided the few names that I recognized and knew I could easily find in most any wine shop. And thus, my epic tasting began.
Number 1 was Pink Gold from the Hundred Acre Winery , which has flakes of 24 karat gold gently floating about in it. Pretty, but smacks of gimickry to me. I did not write much about it except "I don't love this. Too bitter?" which indeed, I think it was. At $24.99 I would expect a bit more balance. Next!
Number 2: Taittinger Prestige Rose, which retails for about $69.99. Now we're talking. It was mostly dry with a touch of sweetness - strawberry was my main tasting note. But alas, I found myself not wanting to finish my glass. It was a classic case of a wine's reputation preceeding it: I thought to myself, "oooh, ahhh, Taittinger, must be good!" before I had actually tasted it. And in the end I thought it was merely ok. Thankfully, I have realized that it is acceptable not to like a revered wine. That's what learning about wine is all about: figuring out your palate and what appeals to you personally.
Number 3 was Monkey Bay Rose. Now, I will admit that I harbored a bit of prejudice in this case, as I've had their Sauvignon Blanc before and just didn't dig it. My exact notes are as follows: "What is wong with me tonight? Not particularly enjoying this. Crikey, where are the spit buckets? I had legitimately wanted to try all 20 wines but I am not sure how feasible that is. No aroma. Ok - touch of sourness & bitterness. Fruity. Medium long finish. Eh."
Let us take a break for a moment and describe the general proceedings. I had been to Club Cafe once before at around 1 am, and it was amusing to be there without Madonna pounding from the speakers. But I would have welcomed some dance music instead of the elevatorish jazz song that was literally on repeat for two hours. Because there was so much ground to cover, I decided to be hermitlike and focus solely on investigating the wines rather than networking. But as I discovered, older and presumably single gentlemen are on the lookout at these things, and I found myself having quite a few random conversations. Maybe it was my green pumps? Eventually I found myself studiously avoiding any eye contact whatsoever as the waters were getting treacherous. Then again, if you are single, head to the next wine tasting near you!
Having struck out on the first three wines of the evening, I was beginning to lose faith. However, I had a pleasant surprise waiting for me with wine Number 4: Wild Rock - Vin Gris, Pino Noir Rose. This one sells for about $18 per bottle and it is worth it. I thought it was very crisp, almost mouth puckering, with some minerality and also plenty of fruit. Yum.
Number 5: Chateau d'Aqueria - Tavel Rose. I had just gotten my pour when the third older gentleman of the evening decided to have a chat with me. David and I covered an impressive range of topics: swing dancing, wedding crashing, and Senator Craig's bathroom mishap. All the while, I was drinking this wine and thinking how good it was. I could not exactly take notes as I was in the middle of a conversation, so later on I scribbled "Quite good, but was talking with David the whole time". This one will obviously have to get a second taste, but I can pretty confidently declare it the evening's winner.
And with that, I will sign off for now. Rose Marathon Part 2 is forthcoming.
It was also interesting to be there alone, as I was in a prime position to observe the crowd and I could really concentrate on the wines I tasted. (Though it is often more helpful to discuss impressions with others). I tried ten in total and was pleased with some of them, and revolted by a couple of others. I made sure to try the Taittinger Prestige Rose early on in case it ran out (approximate retail value $69.99), as I do not often drink bottles that expensive. I am sorry to say I did not even want to finish my taste. But another wine suffered a worse fate with my rankings: the Banfi Rosa Regale Brachetto d'Acqui. Ugh. Now, a brachetto can be a delightful beverage. It's supposed to be a sparkling red with a touch of sweetness. This was horrendous and wow, I just checked the price and it's approximately $24 per bottle. To me, it was just sickly sweet and I actually had a bartender dump it out for me.
My top pick of the evening was
A few critiques: there was no water readily available (you had to ask for it). And some wine tasting etiquette: don't crowd the table when your glass is already full! People need to get in there! An interesting mix: mostly groups of ladies (single?) and gay chaps.