“As the sun fades in our garden and we hand rugs around to fend off the cold, my guests too are beginning to get more garrulous as the wines loosen tongues,” writes Smart.
All pleasures are heightened by a little risk. So for our online wine tasting with Proper Wines’ resident expert and Vintner founder, Tom Gilbey, we have invited several friends to come around into the garden for the evening. All Covid-secure, but the WiFi may fail at any time and, once the sun is gone, we may all need to cuddle up in this chilliest of Aprils.
But the gods are with us. Our collection of four bottles (half of Champagne, Chateauneuf du Pape and Grüner Veltliner plus a full bottle of rosé) and two English cheeses arrived a couple of days earlier. There about 30 people on the Zoom event and it is all interactive – guests can unmute and have their cameras on if they so choose.
By the time Tom pops up live on the computer screen to launch the tasting we are in good order. Tom, from Proper Wines, is about unstuffy, informal wine chat, though his family pedigree includes association with the eponymous gin producer and a claim to fame in Bordeaux where his was the first English family to buy a château.
Though it is billed as ‘a masterclass’, this tasting is in fact more about broadening the tastes of some fairly typical wine drinkers by introducing them to wines that are probably rather better – and rather more expensive – than they are used to.
In these sorts of tastings where fun and education are what count, the personality of the presenter is everything. Some regale their audience with well-worn anecdotes, others assume a depth of knowledge – and interest – the audience simply doesn’t have.
Tom avoids both these pitfalls. He is personable, informed and enthusiastic. He clearly knows his stuff and is able to communicate it. He reaches out deftly to the novice while not talking down to the wine geek.
We start with the André Clouet Grande Reserve (ABV 12.0 % retail price £29 a bottle). From the vineyards of Bouzy, this has a delicious biscuityness and a nice acidity. Good for the price. Then we try the La Minuette Rosé 2020 from Domaine Gayda in the Languedoc (ABV 12.5 % retail price £14). Floral and fresh with notes of grapefruit, this is remarkable for its extraordinarily pale colour, which attracts admiring comments.
Then on to the Austrian Grüner Veltliner Tradition Reserve, Weingut Dürnberg. (ABV 13.5 % retail price £19). With notes of blossoms and white pepper, a nice minerality and a great mouth-feel, this is classy and really wakes up the taste buds. Note to self: must try Grüner Veltliner a lot more often.
We haven’t been told when to tackle the two hard cheeses so we set to: both are scrummy, especially the Cornish Kern.
At this point, the tasting is getting more interactive with many of the participants unmuting and popping up and chatting to camera from their living rooms. As the sun fades in our garden and we hand rugs around to fend off the cold, my guests too are beginning to get more garrulous as the wines loosen tongues.
Still, we are on the final furlong and must stay focused. Tom has saved the most expensive offering till last. The Châteauneuf-du-Pape, 2019, Domaine de la Presidente (retail price £26) is quite a serious wine. There are comments from my guests that it’s a bit young; even so its already tasting rather distinguished; it has lovely liquorice and spicy notes and Tom explains how this fine blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Mourvèdre and Syrah creates an intriguing sensation of dryness in the mouth.
The tasting is over and we bid farewell to Tom. It’s been a convivial hour al fresco even if it is now dark and the cold is starting to bite hard.
Tom’s wine tasting events run across a number of different themes, with prices ranging from £90-180 per person inc VAT (min. spend £1000). For more info. click here.
