Blind Red Wine Tasting

Plymouth, MN
Tasted Saturday, November 22, 2014 by GoBlue2002 with 388 views

Introduction

3 flights consisted of a welcome wine, the tasting, and then port afterwards.
Red wines were consumed blind, and tasters had to rank and guess the varietal for each wine. The list of varietals was: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Bordeaux Blend, Syrah, Zinfandel (2), and Red Blend (2).

Flight 1 - Welcome Wine (1 Note)

Flight 2 - Blind Tasting (8 Notes)

All wines were drunk blind, with each person starting on a different wine.

  • 2004 McPrice Myers Syrah Les Galets 87 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

    Dark in color yet without much structure remaining. This still sports a fruit-forward palate.
    For blind tasting:
    I guessed Bordeaux, 88 pts. 3rd place.
    Marianne: Zinfandel, 86 pts. 5th place.
    Overall 3rd out of 8 wines.

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  • 2010 Rua 88 Points

    USA, California, Napa Valley

    Very fruit-forward on the palate, with very little structure.
    For blind tasting:
    I guessed Red Blend, 87 pts. 6th place
    Marianne: Zinfandel, 89 pts. 2nd place
    Overall 5th out of 8 wines.

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  • 2012 Folie à Deux Ménage à Trois Red 79 Points

    USA, California

    Very sweet with definite residual sugar. This was added to the tasting as a "surprise" as it was the winner of our group's first blind tasting a few years ago. This illustrated how much our palates have changed. I poured the wine down the drain.
    For blind tasting:
    I correctly guessed zinfandel blend, 77 pts, 8th out of 8 wines.
    Marianne: Correctly guessed Zinfandel, 84 pts, 6th out of 8 wines.
    Overall 7th out of 8 wines.

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  • 2011 Quivira Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley 83 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County, Dry Creek Valley

    Light in color, easy drinking, but acidic and kinda blah.
    For blind tasting:
    I correctly guessed zinfandel blend, 85 pts, 7th out of 8 wines.
    Marianne: guessed syrah, 80 pts, 8th out of 8 wines.
    Overall 8th out of 8 wines.

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  • 2012 William Hill Winery Cabernet Sauvignon North Coast 89 Points

    USA, California, North Coast

    Moderate level of color, flavorful, smooth/soft, yet with structure. This wine stood out in the tasting as the wine with the most structure, by far.
    For blind tasting:
    I guessed merlot, 91 pts, 1st out of 8 wines. My last wine of the tasting.
    Marianne: guessed Bordeaux blend, 88 pts, 7th out of 8 wines.
    Overall 4th out of 8 wines. This one split the group, with 3 1st place votes and 4 7th (2nd to last) place votes. This appeared to need some time, with those tasters who went back to the wine enjoying more than 2nd time around.

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  • 2013 Ravenswood Besieged 88 Points

    USA, California, Sonoma County

    Bland, yet flavorful. Easy drinker.
    For blind tasting:
    I correctly guessed red blend, 88 pts, 5th out of 8 wines.
    Marianne: Correctly guessed red blend, 87 pts, 4th out of 8 wines.
    Overall 2nd out of 8 wines.

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  • 2011 Ramos Pinto Douro Duas Quintas Reserva 90 Points

    Portugal, Douro

    Meaty, with ripe flavors, dry, mild, purple in color.
    For blind tasting:
    I guessed syrah, 88 pts, 2nd out of 8 wines.
    Marianne: guessed cabernet sauvignon, 90 pts, 1st out of 8 wines.
    Overall 1st out of 8 wines.
    This was clearly the group favorite, and was also the 1st bottle finished by the group, even before the results were announced.

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  • 2009 Château La Gorre 89 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Médoc

    Pruney, somewhat ripe, yet easy drinking. This did have some body though.
    For blind tasting:
    I guessed cabernet sauvignon, 89 pts, 4th out of 8 wines.
    Marianne: Correctly guessed bordeaux blend, 89 pts, 3rd out of 8 wines.
    Overall 6th out of 8 wines.

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Flight 3 - Finishing Wine (1 Note)

Closing

Group Scores (low score is better):
Wine A - 2004 McPrice Myers Syrah Les Galets - 31 pts
Wine B - 2010 Rua - 36 pts
Wine C - 2012 Folie à Deux Ménage à Trois Red - 46 pts
Wine D - 2011 Quivira Zinfandel Dry Creek Valley - 49 pts
Wine E - 2012 William Hill Winery Cabernet Sauvignon North Coast - 35 pts - the love it or hate it wine
Wine F - 2013 Ravenswood Besieged - 28 pts
Wine G - 2011 Ramos Pinto Douro Duas Quintas Reserva - 26 pts
Wine H - 2009 Château La Gorre - 37 pts

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