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mineral - 4/16/2008 4:30:31 PM

shirazgirl

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Joined: 10/18/2007
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I'm trying my hardest to determine what a mineral TN is. What? should I swish a few pebbles in my mouth to simulate the experience? What commercial wine would you consider to have a mineral TN that I could experiment with?

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RE: mineral - 4/16/2008 5:43:33 PM

GalvezGuy

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From: Galveston, TX
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Trimbach Riesling (Alsace) is widely available and not too pricey. It almost always has strong mineral component to it.

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RE: mineral - 4/16/2008 6:59:41 PM

cgrimes

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I often wondered about this when I was first tasting wine and reading reviews. After drinking lots of wines, esp French whites, my understanding (which by the way is always evolving) just came into being. It's hard to describe but I'll try:

Start with the French (who really do minerality well). Buy a dry Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire or a Dry Alsacian riesling (as GalvezGuy suggested) or a Chablis or other Burgundy which is not heavily oaked....

Now, when you are tasting, you will initially get fruit followed by acidity. However, there is something else in there that is almost indescribable--not fruit, not acidity, not oak, and I would describe that as the mineral component. My tasting notes will often just say "minerality" in the generic sense but sometimes one can pick out distinct minerals such as "flinty" or with touches of iron, or wet stones (don't put them in your mouth--just smell them sometime), even wet cement (I get this kind of minerality in many red Bordeaux).

I think the minerality is important because it really is the fingerprint of a wine. The element that makes a Chablis different from ANY other Chardonnay is its distinct minerality from its unique chalky soil. Nowhere else in the world can replicate this exactly.

Hope this was helpful...

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RE: mineral - 4/16/2008 8:03:13 PM

deb293

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I think of it as the kind of taste one gets from the liqueur of raw oysters (a saline quality, plus taste of the shells). Head for the Chablis...Then there's the famous "slate" in the Rieslings from the Mosel. I'm still working on that one...

< Message edited by deb293 -- 4/16/2008 8:51:47 PM >

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RE: mineral - 4/17/2008 12:45:22 AM

Colonel Lawrence

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quote:

ORIGINAL: deb293

I think of it as the kind of taste one gets from the liqueur of raw oysters (a saline quality, plus taste of the shells).

Now that's a description that gets you thinking.

Hopefully it's not a reason to name a wine though:
http://www.oysterbaywines.com/wines.html

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RE: mineral - 4/17/2008 12:55:44 AM

Maestro

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Joined: 10/4/2007
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quote:

ORIGINAL: shirazgirl

I'm trying my hardest to determine what a mineral TN is. What? should I swish a few pebbles in my mouth to simulate the experience? What commercial wine would you consider to have a mineral TN that I could experiment with?

Probably the easiest way to figure this out is by direct comparison of wines with and without the mineral component.

For example, head to Burgundy and compare in one go a Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru (such as http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=227265 , for example) with a Chablis 1er Cru (here is an example from the same vintage as the one above: http://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=359002 ).

Now, bear in mind, both these wines are Chardonnay from Burgundy.

The Chablis will be heavily mineral, while the Chassagne Montrachet will not (butterscotch will probably dominate it).

I suppose that by doing a direct comparison of these wines the mineral component will become very clear in your mind -- it is more fun then tasting pebbles anyway...