Today is the big tasting in Madrid, at the very swanky Casino de Madrid and it’s a shirt-and-tie affair. Top button done up is very uncomfortable, reminds me of school! The tasting is of 75 wines; served blind and in flights. All the wines have been treated differently for the Malolactic fermentation (MLF). Just to remind everyone MLF, is the secondary fermentation when malic acid is converted to lactic acid. It’s always done on reds and sometimes on whites where desired by the winemaker.
The tasting today features wines treated with a range of isolated MLF bacteria along with different wood treatments in order to help colour, aroma and palate. I am one of seven people on the judging Panel, along with Norrel Robertson MW, Sam Harrop MW, Joshua Greene (editor of US Wine and Spirits magazine), Dr Sibylle Krieger-Weber (directrice of MLF since school), David Molina (ex-el Bulli sommelier, now has own school in Barcelona) and Antonio Palacios (head professor at university of Rioja).A big thanks to Pepe and Carlos of Lalemend for organising the event.
So with a very tannic tongue and bright red lips I am looking forward to a beer and some tapas this evening!
Tomorrow I'm off to London where I will be presenting the Chai wines at the Laithwaite 'Arch' shop at Vinopolis in Borough Market, hope to see some of you there?
Will be tasting the 2009 La Voute which, by the way, just won best-value 'Vin de France'!
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