Tasting interesting wines in Stockholm, generating word cloud tasting notes with an expert group
I recently did a seminar in for wine folk in Stockholm – at Vinkällan, the Scanadnavian Wine Academy – which included a tasting component. This time, I decided to use the group wisdom to try to describe the wines, with everyone being able to contribute descriptors. This created a word cloud in which the most frequently chosen terms ended up in bigger font. With 20-22 participants contributing to each cloud, it was an interesting exercise. The word cloud was generated with blind tasting, and then afterwards I did a reveal so people could taste the wine aware of what it was. Here are my notes on each wine, followed by the word cloud. I found this approach really helpful and would do it again – it represents a different sort of ‘tasting note’ – one less manicured, but perhaps more useful in creating an impression of the wine.
La Grange du Nord Par les Dunes 2021 Vin de France
12.5% alcohol. This is a natural wine from the Languedoc, and the blend is 90% Grenache with the balance Clairette, Carignan, Syrah and Cinsault. This tastes quite natural, but not necessarily in a bad way. Fresh, supple and bright with red cherries, raspberries and nice herbal hints. Vivid and focused with high acidity and some smoky hints. Picked early, this is slightly wild, but it’s also delicious. 92/100
A Tribute to Grace Grenache 2022 Santa Barbara County, Central Coast, California
14% alcohol. This pale-coloured red is delightful. Elegant and sweet with red berry fruits and some fine spices. Cherry and strawberry fruit with a floral character, this is pure and textural, and very stylish. 94/100
E. Guigal Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2019 Rhône, France
15.5% alcohol. 80% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 5% Mourvèdre and 5% other varieties. Ripe, rich and dense with quite a bit extraction, this is grippy and richly textured with some liqourice and notes of tea and tar. It’s firm and dense, but despite the elevated alcohol, isn’t jammy, showing some firmness. 91/100
Felton Road Calvert Vineyard Pinot Noir 2022 Central Otago
14% alcohol. Lovely black cherry and plum fruit with some raspberry freshness, as well as spice and wild strawberry. There’s a slight meatiness here, and good structure, but the main theme is focused fruit with a degree of refinement. Quite lovely. 94/100
Kutch Wines Sonoma County Pinot Noir 2020 California
13% alcohol. At age four, this is juicy, fruity and bright and it’s also quite linear. There’s a nice acid line and fresh black cherry fruit as well as a hint of tomato and undergrowth, with vivid berry fruits leading the finish. Potential for further development here: it’s still very linear. 94/100
Veronica Ortega Cobrana 2021 Bierzo, Spain
12.5% alcohol. Mencía, Godello and Doña Blanca. Fresh, vivid and bright this is slightly meaty with some savoury character as well as bright berry fruits. Juicy and refined with nice bite and good tannins, and some black pepper and orange peel detail. Youthful, still quite tannic, vibrant and full of interest. 94/100
Pax Mahle Wines Sonoma Hillsides Syrah 2021 North Coast, California
12.5% alcohol. Oh yes. This is lovely. Meaty black cherry fruit with richness and then some peppery notes, as well as cured meat, olives and crushed rock. Dark and dense, but so refined, this is whole-bunch Syrah at its best. Concentrated, dense but fine, and quite thrilling. 96/100
Domaine de la Soufrandière Pouilly-Fuissé 1er Cru “Climat Au Vignerais” 2022 Bourgogne, France
13% alcohol. Finely spiced with lovely pear and peach fruit, as well as nice spicy detail. There’s a hint of melony richness and some crystalline citrus fruit, with great balance and purity. Good concentration, allied to elegance. 95/100
Louis Michel & Fils Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir 2020 Bourgogne, France
13% alcohol. Fresh and quite pure with lovely lemon and white peach fruit, showing a nice acid line and good concentration. Seamless and pure, not showy, but substantial, with fine saline notes on the finish. 94/100
Mount Eden Estate Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay 2020 Central Coast, California
14% alcohol. This is a bold, firm, linear Chardonnay. There’s a high proportion of new oak, and it shows, but it’s not buttery and toasty, more spicy and savoury. Rich pear and citrus fruit with good acidity, this is a chiselled, concentrated Chardonnay that could develop in interesting ways. 93/100
Cloudy Bay Chardonnay 2022 Marlborough, New Zealand
13% alcohol. Mineral-laced and taut, this is a very focused Marlborough Chardonnay showing bright lemony fruit with some pineapple, and good acidity. Has a twist of flinty reduction, too, and could develop positively. Subtle green hints on the finish hint at early harvesting for freshness. 93/100
Timo Mayer Chardonnay 2023 Yarra Valley, Australia
13% alcohol. I really like this. Bright and focused with great energy and linear citrus fruit, with a nice mineral streak. Stony, bright, pure and vivid, with good acidity. 94/100
Radikon Slatnik 2021 Venezia Giulia, Italy
14% alcohol. 80% Chardonnay, 20% Tokai. This is brilliant. Full yellow-gold in colour, it’s energetic and powerful with spicy, grippy notes and some honeyed citrus fruit, as well as some pear and ripe apple. Fine, spicy and detailed with a lovely spicy finish. Fantastic depth here. 95/100
Roberto Henriquez Tierra de Pumas 2022 Valle del Bío-Bío, Chile
11.5% alcohol. País. Gorgeous, taut, linear País. Fresh, stony and vivid with raspberry and cherry fruit as well as keen acidity, and with some nice edges, including some tannin. Bright and detailed with nice energy. 94/100
Hervé Souhaut Saint-Joseph “Clos des Cessieux” 2016 Rhône, France
12% alcohol. This would have been a lovely, dense, focused Syrah with pepper and meat, but alas it was also mousy. Impossible to rate.
