A Matter of Taste.

Len Evans book, ‘How to Taste Wine’ is the ultimate guide for a newcomer to wine appreciation. The take home point for me was that people should not struggle to find descriptive words for aromas and tastes when they aren’t there. Sometimes a good Shiraz tastes like a good Shiraz. Evan’s described the various aspects of wine tasting from colour, nose, palate, line and length, and how to identify good and bad qualities with each.

On our last morning in the vineyards, my wife had arranged for one final surprise. This time we went to the Hunter Resort for a session of 'Wine School'. Here they lead participants through a tasting of local varieties and showcased some of the smaller producers.

Firstly we were taken through the 'Motel Block', the site of Thomas Wines award winning 'Motel Block Shiraz'. We were then taken through the winery itself. Once we had finished the tour, we were taken through a tasting structured around the common Hunter varieties, and some of the less common varieties from the smaller producers.

The Semillons were first, and what better wine to start with than the 2010 Thomas Wines Braemore Semillon. This wine was used to highlight the importance of colour and aroma to the tasting process. The nose was described as being like a 'coiled spring'. Most of the aromas were hidden, requiring a good deal of aeration to bring out the lemon and lime. The wine was contrasted with the 2004 Braemore which had began the transition into buttered toast territory, but still maintained some of the primary fruit.

We were then shown some Hunter Shiraz's from their small producers. Polin & Polin, Margan and San Martino were showcased. We assessed the colour of the wines, looking at examples with a few years bottle age, and those that were recent releases. We were also treated to a taste of Thomas Wines Motel Block Shiraz 2009 (given the location), and the Thomas Wines Kiss Shiraz 2009. A fantastic vintage for one of the Hunter's flagship reds.

The quality of the Thomas Wines was incomparable, and some of the best value purchases we made on the trip.