[wine] Common Wine Flaws (fwd)

FYI/FYE ----- Forwarded message from The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> ----- Authentication-Results: smtp-relay.enet.umn.edu from=wine(a)wineloverspage.com; sender-id=neutral; spf=neutral Date: Mon, 31 Mar 2008 12:02:04 -0500 (EST) To: jellings(a)me.umn.edu Subject: 30SecWineAdvisor: Cooked! From: The 30 Second Wine Advisor <wine(a)wineloverspage.com> THE 30 SECOND WINE ADVISOR, Monday, March 31, 2008 ________________________________________________________________________ TODAY'S SPONSOR * COLOSSAL WINE SALE AT THE CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Last day to save during this month's wine sale at The California Wine Club. http://www.cawineclub.com/?utm_source=wadv&utm_medium=banner ________________________________________________________________________ IN THIS ISSUE * COOKED! Many common wine flaws are clearly defined and relatively easy to learn to recognize. Not so "cooked" wine, a widely cited problem but one that lacks a clear description. * DOMAINE LA TOUR BOIS�E 2005 VIN DE PAYS D'OC CABERNET SAUVIGNON ($9.99) Warm, a bit rough and rustic; but there's nothing wrong with that in this "wine of the country" table wine, fine with simple fare. * COLOSSAL WINE SALE AT THE CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Last day to save during this month's wine sale at The California Wine Club. * THIS WEEK ON WINELOVERSPAGE.COM Columnist Randy Caparoso comments on the convergence in wine lists; Jorge Eduardo Castillo ponders wine matches with eggs, and Tom Hyland reports from Gala Italia. WineLovers Discussion Group members talk about Von Schubert Maximin Gr�nhauser's excellent Mosel Rieslings. * ADMINISTRIVIA Change E-mail address, frequency, format or unsubscribe. ________________________________________________________________________ COOKED! So many bad things can happen to good wine! Many common wine flaws are clearly defined and fairly easy to learn to recognize. Wine judges learn to identify flaws as an aid to scoring wines in competition. Many wine enthusiasts pick them up quickly, as a hobby interest and a guide to identifying and discussing wine problems. A few examples: * CORK TAINT: A moldy, musty stench reminiscent of wet cardboard or a damp basement, often with an overtone of chlorine bleach, identifies wine afflicted by a faulty natural cork. * OXIDIZED: The familiar walnutty aroma of inexpensive Sherry signals a wine exposed to oxygen over time in the bottle or through a faulty cork or stopper. The geek-speak term "Maderized" is nearly synonymous, although as an exercise in wine pedantry, it's possible to draw a line between "oxidized" by air exposure and "maderized" by exposure to air and heat. * WILD YEAST: Earthy, "barnyard" aromas ranging from sweaty leather horse saddles to barnyards piled high with manure - often accompanied by a twangy acidic finish - usually denote contamination by wild yeast strains with names like brettanomyces ("brett") and dekkera. * VOLATILE ACIDITY: The bacterium acetobacter, afflicting carelessly made wines, can yield a range of "high-toned" aromas ranging from a whiff of furniture polish to a salad-dressing jolt of vinegar. * SULFUR: A range of sulfur compounds (not to be confused with sulfites used as a natural preservative) can cause a variety of aroma faults in wine from "burnt match" to offensively stinky smells of overcooked cabbage, sauerkraut or swamp gas. One of the most widely discussed wine faults, though, doesn't submit easily to dictionary-style definition. Today, following up on an extended conversation in our WineLovers Discussion Group, let's tighten our focus on "COOKED" wine, a common problem that lacks a clear description. Not literally "cooked" on a stove top, this term refers to a wine purportedly damaged by exposure to excessive heat - or, increasingly, exposed to any heat above the traditional 55F/13C temperature of underground cellars - during shipment or storage. This term is a relative newcomer to the world of wine evaluation. Wine encyclopedias and other reference books from as recently as the 1970s don't list it, at least not separately from oxidation and maderization. It rarely if ever comes up in wine judging in Europe (perhaps because these competitions usually feature new wines sent directly from storage at the winery). But dip into online wine forums or attend gatherings of wine enthusiasts, and it surely won't be long before you encounter an expert spitting out wine and declaring it "cooked." Getting those experts to agree on exactly what constitutes "cooked" and how to identify it, however, is a much stickier wicket. Why did a long-term non-issue so quickly bubble to the top of wine lovers' worry lists? I see a combination of two factors: First, a few strong wine importers - most notably Berkeley's irrepressible Kermit Lynch - made a virtue out of shipping their wines under carefully controlled conditions ... and pointing out that their competitors do not. Second, a significant increase of wine collecting and investment - as opposed to mere wine drinking - altered priorities among new wine enthusiasts. Amid a growing received wisdom that exposure to heat in shipment or storage compromises the potential longevity of ageworthy wines, collectors began paying attention to the provenance of their wines - and, soon enough, worrying about the storage status of all their wines. But what exactly does a "cooked" wine taste like? Frankly, you can ask five experts and get five answers. Based largely on personal, anecdotal experience, some cite "overripe fruit" "pruney fruit" or even "stewed fruit" as a dead giveaway. Others look for the telltale nutty but stale Sherry-like scent that betrays oxidation. Collectors, who rarely drink their treasures young, focus on the longer term: Overheat a wine, they fret, and it will "fall apart" in the cellar, losing its fruit while an undamaged wine would be maturing toward mellow complexity, the damage revealing to the collector's dismay only after years of storage. Although the science behind this theory is less than clear, I'm inclined toward the latter view. Back in the summer of 2001, I conducted some casual tests, deliberately "cooking" a bottle of modest Cabernet in a closed car on a searing summer day. Tasted later in a "blind" pairing with an identical but un-damaged bottle, the heated wine was actually more immediately appealing, showing more forward fruit and softness. The effect resembled "flash pasteurization," a sleazy treatment given some industrial-type commercial wines to bring up their fruit. It doesn't seem surprising to me that a wine so treated - not unlike an athlete overdosing on steroids - would give up its longevity in exchange for a youthful burst of power. Still, when I taste a wine and find it either forwardly fruity or hinting at Sherry, I can't say that "cooked" is the first explanation that comes to my mind. "Cooked" is often used generically for "damaged" in cases where it's not really possible to be more specific. I do believe that long-term exposure to warmth compromises longevity, but I'm not persuaded that cooking confers a short-term "stewed" or other character that can be consistently picked out with the level of confidence that wine judges bring to cork taint, volatile acidity or wild yeast contamination. At the end of the day, though, I see no reason to alter my conclusion in the 2001 article: It simply makes sense to take care of your wine and keep it cool ... and that goes double if you're talking about an expensive, ageworthy wine that you intend to keep for a long time. At the same time, the reassuring lesson is that, even if you make a mistake and let your wine get overheated - or if the power to your cellar goes off for a few hours on a hot, summer day - you needn't assume that it's ruined and can't still be enjoyed. Now, here's today's tasting report, a fine value in a rustic but food- friendly Old World Cabernet. ________________________________________________________________________ DOMAINE LA TOUR BOIS�E 2005 VIN DE PAYS D'OC CABERNET SAUVIGNON ($9.99) Clear but very dark blackish-purple, almost inky; clear garnet at the edge. Appealing red fruit and spice, hints of mixed berries and tart plums, pleasant but doesn't really jump out to me as varietal Cabernet. Flavors are consistent with the nose, fresh and tart, perhaps a hint of dark, bitter chocolate as a backdrop to the fruit. Tannins aren't obvious at first tasting, but show up as dry and rather scratchy astringency on the finish. Warm at 13.8% alcohol, a bit rough and rustic; but there's nothing the matter with that in this "wine of the country" table wine, fine with simple fare. U.S. importer: Wine Adventures Inc., West Des Moines, Iowa. (March 31, 2008) FOOD MATCH: Fine with red meat or pasta, or in this case, both: Leftover rare rib eye steak warmed through in a light sauce of fresh tomatoes, green peppers, red onions, garlic and Pecorino Romano as a sauce for mezzi rigatoni.. VALUE: The $10 price point for quality European wine is almost disappearing as the puny dollar continues to weaken. This rustic red, however, is well worth the toll. WHEN TO DRINK: Drinkable now and not really meant for aging, but fruit, balance and tannins will likely hold it for a few years. WEB LINK: The winery Website is published in French, English and what appears to be two dialects of Chinese: http://www.domainelatourboisee.com For a fact sheet on an earlier vintage of today's wine, see http://www.domainelatourboisee.com/wines/cabernet-sauvignon.html FIND THIS WINE ONLINE: Distribution of Domaine La Tour Bois�e is limited. U.S. readers may be able to get information on sources from the import firm, Wine Adventures Inc. of West Des Moines, Iowa: http://www.wineadventures.com You'll find a few U.S. and international vendors for Domaine La Tour Bois�e on Wine-Searcher.com: http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/Tour%2bBoisee/-/-/USD/A?referring_site=WLP ________________________________________________________________________ TODAY'S SPONSOR: THE CALIFORNIA WINE CLUB Last day to save during this month's wine sale at The California Wine Club! http://www.cawineclub.com/?utm_source=wadv&utm_medium=banner Stock up on limited production, award-winning wines and save up to 70 percent off normal retail prices. Access wines you would normally only discover at the winery itself and be secure in knowing that every wine is 100 percent guaranteed. Try the Napa Valley Merlot for just $6.50, or the highly-rated Santa Barbara Pinot Noir for $29. You'll find bold Sierra Foothills Syrahs for only $8.75 and many, many more! Visit the Wine Sale page at The California Wine Club or call 1-800-777- 4443. Time is running out to save, order now. http://www.cawineclub.com/?utm_source=wadv&utm_medium=banner ________________________________________________________________________ TALK ABOUT WINE ONLINE If you have questions, comments or ideas to share about today's article or wine in general, you're always welcome to drop by our online WineLovers Discussion Group. This link will take you to the forum home page, where you can read discussions in all the forum sections: http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/village Everyone is free to browse. If you'd like to post a comment, question or reply, you must register, but registration is free and easy. Do take care to register using your real name, or as a minimum, your real first name and last initial. Anonymous registrations are quietly discarded. To contact me by E-mail, write wine(a)wineloverspage.com. I'll respond personally to the extent that time and volume permit. ________________________________________________________________________ PRINT OUT TODAY'S ARTICLE Here's a simply formatted copy of today's Wine Advisor, designed to be printed out for your scrapbook or file or downloaded to your PDA or other wireless device. http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor2/2008/03/cooked-print.html ________________________________________________________________________ THIS WEEK ON WINELOVERSPAGE.COM * RANDY'S CULINARY WINE & FOOD ADVENTURES: Dragging Wine Lists Out of the Dark Ages What's happened to individuality in restaurant wine lists today? Randy Caparoso takes a look at why so many lists are so much alike. http://www.wineloverspage.com/randysworld/darkages.phtml * VINO 101: Green Eggs and ... Wine? Eggs aren't just for Easter, but many of us take for granted the flavor a simple egg can add to a particular dish, sauce or dessert. Jorge Eduardo Castillo looks some some wines that make particularly good pairings with popular egg dishes. http://www.wineloverspage.com/vino101/eggs0308.phtml * ITALIAN WINE GUIDE: Super Italian Wines - Tuscany and Elsewhere It seems like every Italian wine maker today is producing a "Super Tuscan." But why? At this year's Gala Italia, Tom Hyland hears just why so many producers are adding them to the traditional wines they make. http://www.wineloverspage.com/italwineguide/galaitalia08.phtml * WINELOVERS DISCUSSION GROUP: Maximin Bliss A tasting of Von Schubert Maximin Gr�nhauser's excellent Mosel Rieslings prompts an extended discussion among the German-wine lovers in our WineLovers Discussion Group. Read the posts and join in: http://www.wineloverspage.com/forum/village/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=14894 ________________________________________________________________________ LAST WEEK'S WINE ADVISOR INDEX The Wine Advisor's daily edition is usually distributed on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays (and, for those who subscribe, the FoodLetter on Thursdays). In recent weeks, however, we've published on Mondays only. Here's the index to last week's column and archives: * The value of a nose (March 24, 2008) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor2/tswa20080324.php * Complete 30 Second Wine Advisor archive: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor2/archives.php * Wine Advisor Foodletter archive: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor2/food/archives.php ________________________________________________________________________ SUBSCRIBE: * WineLoversPage.com RSS Feed (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/rss/ * 30 Second Wine Advisor, daily or weekly (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/index.shtml * Wine Advisor FoodLetter, Thursdays (free) http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor/foodletter.shtml ARCHIVES: For all past editions: http://www.wineloverspage.com/wineadvisor2/archives.php CONTACT US E-mail: wine(a)wineloverspage.com SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES: For information, E-mail wine(a)wineloverspage.com ________________________________________________________________________ ADMINISTRIVIA To subscribe or unsubscribe from The 30 Second Wine Advisor, change your E-mail address, switch from weekly to daily distribution, or for any other administrative matters, click to http://www.wineloverspage.com/admin.php?id=20970&cs=7d1109b668af1f87d36… We welcome feedback, suggestions, and ideas for future columns. We do not use this list for any other purpose and will never give or sell your name or E-mail to anyone. All the wine-tasting reports posted here are consumer-oriented. In order to maintain objectivity and avoid conflicts of interest, I purchase all the wines I rate at my own expense in retail stores and accept no samples, gifts or other gratuities from the wine industry. Monday, March 31, 2008 Copyright 2008 by Robin Garr. All rights reserved. ----- End forwarded message ----- -- ------------------------------ * Dr. James Ellingson, jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, mobile : 651/645-0753 * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *