Category: WSET Diploma

WSET Diploma

2011 Domaine Zind Humbrecht Muscat

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale lemon, legs
Nose: clean, med+ intensity, youthful, orange blossom, spice, ginger, stone fruit, peach, citrus, cardamom, lychee, fig
Mouth: off-dry, med+ body, med- acid, med alcohol, med+ flavour intensity, savoury, med+ length, ripe peach, apricot, lychee, spice
All in all: Good quality: the wine has aromatic and concentrated fruit and a complex flavour profile, but lacks some structure. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: High-priced (Riesling/Pinot Gris/Muscat/Gewurztraminer/Chenin Blanc) from Alsace, France; 2 years old.
Is really: High-priced Muscat from Alsace, France; 2 years old.

2011 Domaine Zind Humbrecht Muscat[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

I often get Gewurztraminer and Muscat mixed up. As soon as I took a sniff, it was perhaps a mistake to write “muscat?… read more

WSET Diploma

2011 Hunter’s Pinot Gris

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, pale lemon, legs
Nose: clean, med+ intensity, youthful, stone fruit, peach, apricot, floral, mineral, bit of spice
Mouth: dry, med body, med acid, med alcohol, med+ flavour intensity, med+ length, stone fruit, peach, apricot, floral
All in all: Good quality: a relatively long length follows good balance. Intense flavours, but a bit simple. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced (Riesling/Pinot Gris/Muscat/Gewurztraminer/Chenin Blanc); 2 years old.
Is really: Mid-priced Pinot Gris from Marlborough, New Zealand; 2 years old.

2011 Hunter's Pinot Gris[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

Heh. This was the wine for which I had to read out my tasting notes. I’m getting better at confirming my notes and not being a nervous wreck when reading them out loud – and much to my surprise, it turns out that my set of notes was good and mostly true to the wine.… read more

WSET Diploma

2009 Hiedler “Urgestein” Riesling

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med lemon, legs
Nose: clean, youthful, med intensity, mineral, citrus, lemon, lime, hint of petrol, slate, pear, white flowers
Mouth: dry, med body, high acid, med alcohol, med flavour intensity, med length, mineral-driven, citrus, lemon, lime, stony finish, green fruit
All in all: Good quality: there is a good concentration of flavours with a well-balanced structure that may benefit from some ageing, as the complexity is rather modest at the moment. Drink now, but has potential for short term ageing.
Identity Guess: High-priced (Riesling/Pinot Gris/Muscat/Gewurztraminer/Chenin Blanc) from Germany; 2 years old.
Is really: Mid-priced Riesling from Austria; 4 years old.

2009 Hiedler "Urgestein" Riesling[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

At the very start of this day’s class, we were polled by the instructor: what did we consider the “most noble” white grape variety?… read more

WSET Diploma

2010 Henri Bourgeois “La Côte des Monts Damnés” Sancerre

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med- lemon, legs
Nose: clean, pronounced intensity, youthful, gooseberry, grapefruit, melon, asparagus, green beans, fresh, floral, grassy, green apple
Mouth: dry, med- body, high acid, med alcohol, med+ flavour intensity, citrus, grapefruit, asparagus, green beans, mineral, med+ finish
All in all: Very good quality: a very characterful grape identity is also well-balanced in its acid; it is also persistent on the palate and has a moderate amount of complexity. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced (Chardonnay/Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend) from New Zealand; 2 years old.
Is really: High-priced Sancerre from The Loire Valley, France; 3 years old.

2010 Henri Bourgeois "La Côte des Monts Damnés" Sancerre[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

Bam. Even though this was a semi-blind flight, even someone new to wine could instantly smell the grassiness that was a Sauvignon Blanc.… read more

WSET Diploma

2009 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med lemon, legs
Nose: clean, med intensity, developing, oak, spice, butter, apple, pear, popcorn, melon, citrus
Mouth: dry, med+ body, med+ acid, med+ alcohol, med+ flavour intensity, butter, oak, nutty kernel, savoury
All in all: Very good quality: Well-concentrated fruit persists on the finish, and the acidity balances out the fuller body. The nose is a bit simple. Drink now, but has potential for short term ageing.
Identity Guess: High-priced (Chardonnay/Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend) from Sonoma, California; 2 years old.
Is really: High-priced Chardonnay from Marlborough, New Zealand; 4 years old.

2009 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

Where Cabernet Sauvignon is the de facto red grape, I would argue that Chardonnay is the white version – grown everywhere, famously-known, and wrongly-hated.… read more

WSET Diploma

2010 Peter Lehmann “Clancy’s” Semillon Sauvignon Blanc

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med- lemon, legs
Nose: clean, med intensity, youthful, green apple, honey, pear, spice, mineral, hint of green herbal character, hints of orange
Mouth: dry, med body, med+ acid, med alcohol, med flavour intensity, med finish, lemon, lime, citrus, green apple, pear, mineral
All in all: Good quality: there is a freshness with the well-balanced med+ acid along with a good concentration of fruit, but there is a simplicity that also shows through with warming alcohol. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.
Identity Guess: Mid-priced (Chardonnay/Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc + Semillon Blend) from Bordeaux; 2 years old.
Is really: Mid-priced Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend from Australia; 3 years old.

2010 Peter Lehmann "Clancy's" Semillon Sauvignon Blanc[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

“Orange” is a common descriptor in Britain for Semillon.… read more

WSET Diploma

2004 Tyrrell’s Wines Vat 1 Semillon

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med lemon, legs
Nose: clean, med intensity, developing, citrus, lemon, lime, mineral, hint of honey, butter, toasty, smoky minerality, green apple, hint of butter
Mouth: dry, light body, med+ acid, med- alcohol, med+ flavour intensity, med+ finish, citrus, chalky, lemon, lime
All in all: Very good quality: despite lightness, there exists a well-balanced acidity, flavourful electric fruit, developing characteristics, and a longish finish. Drink now, but has potential for ageing.
Identity Guess: High-priced (Chardonnay/Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc/Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Blend) from Hunter Valley, Australia; 4 years old.
Is really: Premium Semillon from Hunter Valley, Australia; 9 years old.

2004 Tyrrell's Wines Vat 1 Semillon[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 10]

Semillon is so hilariously boring in its still, young, and pure versions.… read more

Life · WSET Diploma

WSET Diploma – Section 1 – Week 9

Posted on by Josh

June 5, 2013

It was maybe around Thursday evening. My body gradually felt all grey and pained – an omen of an impending sickness. Immediate panic, because clogged sinuses and fried smell receptors is the equivalent of my athlete friends spraining their ankles, and who wants to read out tasting notes when you can’t even smell?! BODY, HEAL! Thursday would be the best time to get sick anyways, because it’s the farthest from the next Wednesday.

 unacceptable

Despite my attempts to be healthy, along with battles of constant air conditioning at work and an all-too-optimistic container of Jugo Juice, I was able to breathe by today’s class but my smell receptors remained fried. We had Saint-Estèphe.

Saint-Estèphe.

crycrycry

bah

I could catch hints of things time to time in the glass.… read more

WSET Diploma

2009 Chateau du Trignon Sablet Côtes du Rhone Villages

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, med ruby, legs
Nose: clean, med intensity, youthful, red fruit, cherry, spice, earth, game, cola, white pepper, oak, savoury
Mouth: dry, med body, med- acidity, earth, med- fine tannin, med flavour intensity, med+ alcohol, game, red fruits, cherry, slightly herbal, med length
All in all: Good quality: a moderate complexity is held up by a softer structure. Lacks a bit of concentration, but is still enjoyable. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.

2009 Chateau du Trignon Sablet Côtes du Rhone Villages

[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 9]

This poor little wine was shoved within the last 5 or so minutes we had of the class, and it was also bought with the intention to display some for of a Grenache and Syrah dominated blend (i.e.… read more

WSET Diploma

2010 Borsao “Tres Picos” Garnacha

Posted on by Josh

Tasting Note:

Eyes: clear, deep ruby, legs
Nose: clean, med+ intensity, youthful, red fruit, strawberry, raspberry, ripe, sweet spice, hint of leather
Mouth: dry, med+ body, med acid, med fine tannin, strawberry, raspberry, high alcohol, white pepper, sweet spice, herbs, med+ intensity, med+ finish
All in all: Good quality: a moderately complex and ripe expression of Garnacha is well-concentrated and has a high alcohol content that is relatively balanced. Drink now; not suitable for ageing.

2010 Borsao "Tres Picos" Garnacha

[Tasted during WSET Diploma class – Section 1 – Week 9]

Garnacha is one of those grapes that I think I like but never really choose to drink. Being a thin-skinned grape variety with lots of flesh, it produces lighter-coloured wines with lower tannins but can still produce a wine with a considerable amount of body and alcohol – although in drought and in hotter conditions, thicker skins and a deeper colour aren’t unknown (like this wine), but all in all, this wine tends to oxidize quickly; read – drink most of these wines young.… read more