Wine: sip it and see

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2014/apr/12/wines-that-grow-on-you-review-fiona-beckett

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Earning your living by tasting wine strikes most people as unbelievably jammy but, at the risk of sounding disingenuous, it's not quite as much fun as it sounds. First of all, there are a lot of wines to try at a typical tasting – 150 is not uncommon – which leaves no alternative but simply to sniff, slurp and spit your way down the line. Many of them are also very dull – commercial wines made to a price point that, at the current rates of tax and duty, leaves precious little for the wine (roughly 80p of a £5 bottle, according to bordeaux producer Gavin Quinney of Château Bauduc).

The wines that stand out in a lineup tend to be the showier ones (which is why they win medals), but even so they are not necessarily the ones that would be most enjoyable with a meal. So, occasionally, it's worth tasting a wine slowly and mindfully, dipping into it over two or three days, with different foods, to see how it evolves. Much like trying a recipe on a number of occasions until you feel you've got it right.

Wine can also grow on you. If you tried the 2011 Broc Vine Starr Sonoma County Zinfandel (12.7% abv), for instance, you would probably find it totally different from any zinfandel you had tasted before, but I'm sure the heady aroma of rose petals would win you round. (It's made in tiny quantities, but I'm assured by importer Roberson Wine that it will be in stock by the time this article appears. It's being snapped up as fast as they can bring it in, even at £25.95 a bottle.)

Not all intriguing wines are as expensive, of course. What I'm looking for when I'm tasting is a wine that has character, not one made to a formula, whether that's to pander to current tastes (for example, cheap-as-chips prosecco) or to please Robert Parker (ie, full-throttled reds). The Wine Society is particularly good at uncovering well-priced gems such as Ottoventi Punto 8 2013 (£7.75; 13% abv), a delicious, crisp Sicilian white that would be perfect with fish; or Hilltop Corvinus 2012 (£6.50; 13% abv), a vividly fruity, springlike red made mainly from the local kekfrankos grape.

Even wines that are not noted for their complexity, such as beaujolais, can prove rewarding if you linger over them. When I first tasted the Domaine des Marrans Chiroubles 2011 (£13.62, Christopher Piper Wines; 12.5% abv), it tasted a little rustic, but the fruit blossomed beautifully the next day. Sometimes it pays to give wine time.

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