Free wine. Now that got your attention.
A few weeks ago, Burgundy-based Australian winemaker Jane Eyre recommended tasting as much wine as possible to get a good idea about what you like.
Eyre wasn’t talking about liking chardonnay above sav blanc or shiraz before cabernet sauvignon, but getting to know your favourite grapes better.
Chardonnay-lovers should get to know the difference between the Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula, Burgundy and Chablis.
You don’t need to be a lawyer, surgeon or chief executive and have an iron-clad liver to do this. You don’t need to be a wine writer either.
Every weekend, and on the occasional weeknight, Melbourne’s better wine shops host tastings of local and imported wines.
These can be pretty special tastings, too. More often than not the wines are poured by the producer.
One week it will be a local winemaker pouring and talking about their wines and the next a Bordelais talking about the value of merlot in their wines or a riesling producer talking about the way residual sugar affects their wines.
Often, the wines are offered at a discount if bought on the day of the tasting.
I’ve learnt so much about wine at these events – my dad and I were regulars at the Prince Wine Store in South Melbourne for years – and have a stash of the wines I bought at these events in my cellar.
Every time I open one of the bottles, the conversations are brought back to life, the memory of the first tasting enhancing the wine’s enjoyment even more.
