Wine by Gabrielle Vizzavona (@gabvizza)
Into contact with our palate, wine reveals its texture, its material and releases its sweetness or roughness. That's why, touch is a sens of utmost importance in wine tasting...
Wine and material
During my studies, I was taking classes with the British Master of Wine Patricia Stefanowicz. During our long hours of blind tasting, this true wine professional wearing several hats, including a passion for Couture and materials, often told us: " It's got linnen tannins . " (talking about wine).
This has marked my imagination and now, each time I taste some wine, I often picture its surrealist metamorphosis into some material. I visualize the long streaks of rolled, thin, thick, velvety or rough materials...
There is a whole common vocabulary between couture and wine. We often talk about the texture, the sweetness, the silk, the suppleness, the smoothness to make reference to its touch.
The velvet of a Saint Emilion which Merlot fills your palate with a pleasant roundness. The lace of a fine champagne with delicate chiseled bubbles exploding in the mouth. The taffeta of a dense but sweet Bourgogne...
There are few elements composing the wine material. First, its density, mainly made of its concentration of fruit, sweetness and alcohol level. These elements are the results of some natural factors ( grape variety, weather conditions... ) and intentional ones ( vinification, ageing... ), that are giving the wine more or less " weight ". Then, there are the elements influencing the wine's texture. Its tannins, in a greater or lesser extent, with a sweet or surly texture, giving the wine its first expression in mouth. Finally, its wood, that can be really strong or more subtle, bringing more texture to the wine.
My monthly wine selection: Wines of texture
A velvet wine: St Emilion Maison Blanche 2005, Despagne Rapin
Maison Blanche cuvée
Nicolas Despagne, winemaker, loves quoting Francis Bacon: " To be controlled, the nature must be obeyed. " Fully mature, its black fruity nose also reveals some more advanced notes, slightly animal.
A silk wine: Agathe Bursin Gewurztraminer
Agathe Bursin Gewurztraminer: a silk wine
A bunch of fresh, delicate roses. A soft silk wine, seasoned with a subtle sweetness. A beautiful and fine balance, like a caress.
A linen wine: Domaine Monts et Merveilles " Maintenant 2013 ", Vin de France, Syrah and Grenache Noir
Maintenant 2013
A linen wine with fine texture, black fruits and spicy notes. Its elegant structure and its quite surprising profile for a South of France wine, makes this wine a " must-have " to discover quickly!
Mars 2015
