~ And Then There Were Five ~
True to their vow of meeting every month, members of the WPBHL Wine Club held a January meeting. The theme, Cabernet Sauvignon, was suggested by Pinot Paul, who contributed a very tidy Chateau Margaux which he won at the recent Frankland Community School silent auction.
Paul also selected the other wines that were subjected to a blind tasting. A group of six wines was tasted:
#1. Masi Campofiorin 2004 Rosso Del Veronese Italy $17.30
#2. Leasingham Wines Bin 56 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley, Australia $25.75
#3. Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Colchagua Valley Chile $13.75
#4. Columbia Crest 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley, Washington, USA $15.75
#5 Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Penedes Spain $18.80
#6. Pavillon Rouge 1999 Chateau Margaux France $64
You will note that the Masi Campofiorin is not a Cabernet Sauvignon. In fact, Pinot deliberately included the Italian wine in our sample group as a "wild card".
For the record then, the participants for Meeting #2 were again Pinot Paul, Stevie Sancerre and Johnny Vinovich and two new members, Cristal Chambers and Cabernet Chris. I should add here that Cristal and Cabernet seemed to really enjoy the experience of drinking in the Vinovich Tasting Room. They were also very well behaved. Definitely not the stereo-typical rabble-rousing hockey players. It would seem that they are a good fit for the exclusive club that is becoming the best kept secret of Riverdale.
Here's how the Withrow Ball Hockey Boys rated the wines:
Pinot Paul:
#1. Pavillon Rouge 1999 Chateau Margaux France $64
#2. Masi Campofiorin 2004 Rosso Del Veronese Italy $17.30
#3. Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Penedes Spain $18.80
#4. Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Colchagua Valley Chile $13.75
#5. Columbia Crest 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley, Washington, USA $15.75
#6. Leasingham Wines Bin 56 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley, Australia $25.75
Stevie Sancerre:
#1. Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Colchagua Valley Chile $13.75
#2. Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Penedes Spain $18.80
#3. Leasingham Wines Bin 56 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley, Australia $25.75
#4. Pavillon Rouge 1999 Chateau Margaux France $64
#5. Columbia Crest 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley, Washington, USA $15.75
#6. Masi Campofiorin 2004 Rosso Del Veronese Italy $17.30
Johnny Vinovich:
#1. Pavillon Rouge 1999 Chateau Margaux France $64
#2. Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Penedes Spain $18.80
#3. Columbia Crest 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley, Washington, USA $15.75
#4. Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Colchagua Valley Chile $13.75
#5. Leasingham Wines Bin 56 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley, Australia $25.75
#6. Masi Campofiorin 2004 Rosso Del Veronese Italy $17.30
Cristal Chambers:
#1. Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Penedes Spain $18.80
#2. Leasingham Wines Bin 56 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley, Australia $25.75
#3. Pavillon Rouge 1999 Chateau Margaux France $64
#4. Masi Campofiorin 2004 Rosso Del Veronese Italy $17.30
#5. Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Colchagua Valley Chile $13.75
#6. Columbia Crest 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley, Washington, USA $15.75
Cabernet Chris:
#1. Torres Gran Coronas Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 Penedes Spain $18.80
#2. Pavillon Rouge 1999 Chateau Margaux France $64
#3. Masi Campofiorin 2004 Rosso Del Veronese Italy $17.30
#4. Leasingham Wines Bin 56 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Clare Valley, Australia $25.75
#5. Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Colchagua Valley Chile $13.75
#6. Columbia Crest 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley, Washington, USA $15.75
The Margaux is highlighted in red because it was the most expensive wine in the sample. You'll note that not everyone picked it first. In fact when the numbers are totalled it turns out that on average the club found the Spanish Torres Grand Cornas to be the favourite and the French Margaux to be merely the second favourite.
At the end of the tasting, members were granted the privilege of finishing off the wine they chose number one. But true to their spirit of generosity and sharing none of the wine was hoarded by anyone and before you knew it, it was a bit of a free for all. In fact there were a few instances where club members were drinking from each other's glasses. Such Bon Vivants! But before you get the wrong impression, don't for a second think that anyone drank directly from a bottle. That simply does not happen in the Vinovich Tasting Room.
So then, six bottles were consumed in the tasting and everyone was quite satisfied by the whole experience. Eventually the boys started making half-hearted noises about heading home. But Johnny, unwilling to see the night end, spied a special wine in his tasting room that he insisted had to be opened. Pinot Paul pointed out that it was coincidentally also a Torres--a Mas La Plana Penedes Cabernet Sauvignon 2000 ($41.25). Pop went the cork...
The entire group seemed quite impressed by the Mas La Plana. One wonders where it would have rated if it had been included in the blind tasting. We'll save that question for a future tasting.
On behalf of the Withrow Park Ball Hockey League Wine Club, I humbly submit this report.
Sincerely,
Johnny
2 comments:
I still think Cristal sounds like a stripper...I'm having visions...and they aren't pretty
But have you seen him with his shirt off? The man is ripped. So very strong. Just like a bottle of Cristal, as described by Wikipedia:
"It was first created in 1876 for Alexander II of Russia but did not become commercially available until 1945. As the political situation in Russia at the time of his ruling was unstable, the tsar feared assassination. He ordered that the bottles, containing the drink, were made clear to avoid having a bomb hidden in a typical green bottle. Louis Roederer commissioned a Flemish glassmaker to create a Champagne bottle with a flat bottom. Bottles made from common glass have a bell shaped bottom which makes them strong enough to cope with the pressure created by the champagne. In order to create a flat bottomed bottle they had to be made from stronger, clear lead crystal. The Champagne has since become known as "Cristal"."
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