Food & Drink April 2005

Feature
ROMANIAN LIFE AND TIMES
In Vino Veritas

by Alice Ignatiadis
April 2005

“Look closely at this glass. Do you see the thick trace of a liqueur? It’s a robust, heavy wine, with sure and weighty movements. The aroma is aristocratic, powerful and mature.” Every Sunday when I heard these comments on the television, I would look admiringly at Radu Anton Roman and decide that next mealtime I would pour out a drop of wine and approach the glass a little more carefully. To guess every secret of the liquid, and memorise each sensation. And then to describe the poetry of the aromas …

Well, I said I’d do it, but I didn’t get around to it until a few weeks ago, after I saw the film, Sideways. Don’t you come out of the cinema and think how you’ll savour a glass of Pinot Noir over dinner? I heard on CNN that Alexander Payne’s film started a real Pinot mania, and the vineyards of Santa Barbara couldn’t cope with the hordes of wine tasters.

So on a late March afternoon, after an alcohol inducing film, I started to taste carefully, and to understand the meaning of a good wine:

1) I threw the chewing gum into the nearest bin.

2) I filled the glass one third full.

3) I tilted the glass 45 degrees and held the wine up to the light. It had an almost copper colour. It was an old, mature wine, with experience.

4) I turned the glass slightly. I let the bouquet enrich my senses.

5) I slowly lifted the rim of the glass towards my nose and sniffed. It was earthy, full and fruity. Subtle, isn’t it?

6) Then I tested the palate. I sipped a small mouthful, washed the liquid around my mouth to savour every taste bud and memorise the hidden aromas. I tried to understand: dry, sweet, acidic, tannin? I wasn’t sure.

7) Then, like a professional, I spat it out, concentrating on what had pleased my taste buds the most.

8) I had a little break and tried to memorise each step.

My first experiment as a wine connoisseur. How did I manage to look like a specialist? Easy: a click on the Sideways site, with a link to an “ABC for beginners” site and I did exactly what it taught me. Step by step.
Unfortunately, I didn’t understand what had happened to the aroma of wild strawberries (and I tried about half a bottle-I’d got tired of all that spitting!) And what aroma should tannin have? And why did it have to be a solid wine?
But I didn’t give up. I decided the Internet is far too cold a way to learn such a sensual art, and I called a specialist. My friend Achim, a lifelong sommelier who had taught French, English and even Japanese the meaning of a true Romanian wine.

So one afternoon, there I was with two girlfriends at a real “specialists” wine tasting.

I started from the beginning. I poured a little wine into glasses, swirled it around, sniffed it, sipped it, washed it around in my mouth, spat it out and memorised the taste. Maybe this time was a bit better, but I still couldn’t really manage to identify the taste of wild strawberries. I washed away the taste of the wine (to “erase” the memory of the taste buds) with a little unsalted bread and water (and to be honest, a dash of gorgonzola would have gone down wonderfully) and carried on. Eventually, it seemed … yes … it seemed I began to feel a vague hint of strawberry. Eureka!

And that’s why I’m so fond of Sideways. I want to understand! I want to exercise my taste buds, and be better than Achim or Miles Faymond put together!

I began a crazed hunt for all the books on wine tasting that I’d heard anything about. I looked for sites on the Internet, I drove Achim crazy with phone calls, and every time I found myself at lunch or dinner with a friend or colleague, I tried to start a serious discussion about wines, aromas and the memory of taste buds. We judged every drink the waiter had poured into our glasses, even reaching the point at which the impression made on the taste buds by a boring old glass of water or juice would be analysed to the nth degree.

Slowly but surely I became a specialist. I swear that what I’m writing now is from memory! I know exactly what sort of food, sauce, cheese or spices go with which wine! So here goes…

- “Delicate” wines (Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling) go perfectly with fish, vegetables and salads, lemon sauces, rosemary, cinnamon, dill and garlic, and as a discreet accompaniment to blue cheese, goat’s cheese and gorgonzola.

- “Hearty” and “earthy” wines (Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, Merlot or Chardonnay) are wonderful when they freely wash down meat delicacies (pork, poultry, veal), heavy sauces with cream and butter, rich spices (oregano, mustard, savoury or ginger) and sweeter cheeses (mozarella, feta, cheddar, ricotta or percorina).

- “Spicy” powerful wines (Zindafel, Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah) are sweet drinks for a rich table of red meat, wine based sauces, basil, parsley and strong cheeses (brie or camembert).

OK then, now for some gossip. About showbiz stars and wine, of course. A lot of good people from showbiz are heavily involved in winemaking. The world’s wineries and vineyards are dominated by famous names. Sofia Coppola, Francis Ford Coppola, Sting, Olivia Newton John, Bob Dylan, Mel Gibson, Brad Pitt, and the former Bond girl Carole Bouquet - who was obviously destined to become a vintner with a name like that - are just a few examples of A-list celebs who have started to produce their own wines in recent years, or have joined with names which are already highly respected on the market.

It’s good for them (it’s said that businesses work on miracles) and it’s good for us ordinary folk too. That’s because there’s only one trend in this business. Celebrities have more and more refined tastes, and want to enter the market with the best quality wines. “The ambrosia of the gods” of course. And this is how we can steal a drop of the forbidden liquor too.

Undoubtedly the best-known wine producer in Hollywood is Francis Ford Coppola. He started out in the business in 1975 with the money he made from the Godfather trilogy. He bought the legendary Napa Valley estate Inglelook, and now Niebaum Coppola wines are famous throughout the world.

As well as the famous wine producers, there are also many drinkers who are crazy about the fruit of Bacchus, and here it’s hard to get a look in.

The gods of Hollywood won’t buy a new property if it doesn’t have a wine cellar. It’s said that in the vaults of the luxury areas of Los Angeles you can always find Brunello di Montalcino, Barolo, Sagrantino di Montefalco or Amarone. The value of the content of the cellars? About the same as a full safe.

USA Weekend magazine has revealed that Brad Pitt, now a single man, drowns his sorrows in his new cellar, designed by the famous architect Frank Gehry and which contains a cool 980 five star bottles (the greats from Luce, Brunello and Barolo) worth over $5 million.

Why do they cost that much? Is it really easier to taste the wild strawberry?
Until I get to spend a winter in Brad’s cellar, I’m trying whenever I get the chance to train my smell and taste buds, so I’ll be able to identify as easily as Anton Roman “an adolescent, lively wine, with a fresh aroma of delicate leaves and the lights of Dutch painters.”

Wish me luck!

Alice Ignatiadis is a partner at Antz, an event planning company.