They say that customer satisfaction is paramount in any business, and certainly I wouldn’t disagree with that. It doesn’t matter whether you’re offering a product or a service, we all want the people who pay us their hard-earned cash to be happy. In the case of our wine business the aim is always to make the best product that we can, and offer it at an attractive price, but our commitment does not stop there. How we interact with our customers is equally as important, and we always strive to give importers exactly what they want, and when they want it. We pride ourselves in turning orders around quickly and efficiently, whilst always keeping our customers informed of what’s going on (which may sound obvious, but I’m afraid does not always happen).

In these days of recession and perhaps in the face of fierce competition, I have noticed recently that an increasing number of websites are asking their visitors for their opinion. Now, I am not sure if this is borne out of some sense of insecurity, or possibly an increased number of complaints as they reduce staffing, but it is certainly happening on a much more regular basis.

In the case of Castro Martin, we will not be sending out any surveys, but instead we are always open to suggestion, and invite our consumers to contact us at any time with their opinions.

One small, related anecdote before I sign off. Many, many years ago I visited a restaurant in the South of France. On the bottom of the menu in wonderful pigeon English they wrote “If you are satisfied please tell your friends, but if you are not satisfied please warn the waitress”. Now I’m not sure if this is just my twisted sense of humour, or indeed if many people will find this funny, but I always swore that if I ever owned my own restaurant, that this ‘warning’ would be printed at the foot of every menu!

They say that customer satisfaction is paramount in any business, and certainly I wouldn’t disagree with that. It doesn’t matter whether you’re offering a product or a service, we all want the people who pay us their hard-earned cash to be happy. In the case of our wine business the aim is always to make the best product that we can, and offer it at an attractive price, but our commitment does not stop there. How we interact with our customers is equally as important, and we always strive to give importers exactly what they want, and when they want it. We pride ourselves in turning orders around quickly and efficiently, whilst always keeping our customers informed of what’s going on (which may sound obvious, but I’m afraid does not always happen).

In these days of recession and perhaps in the face of fierce competition, I have noticed recently that an increasing number of websites are asking their visitors for their opinion. Now, I am not sure if this is borne out of some sense of insecurity, or possibly an increased number of complaints as they reduce staffing, but it is certainly happening on a much more regular basis.

In the case of Castro Martin, we will not be sending out any surveys, but instead we are always open to suggestion, and invite our consumers to contact us at any time with their opinions.

One small, related anecdote before I sign off. Many, many years ago I visited a restaurant in the South of France. On the bottom of the menu in wonderful pigeon English they wrote “If you are satisfied please tell your friends, but if you are not satisfied please warn the waitress”. Now I’m not sure if this is just my twisted sense of humour, or indeed if many people will find this funny, but I always swore that if I ever owned my own restaurant, that this ‘warning’ would be printed at the foot of every menu!

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that, after a very dry winter, it had finally started to rain. Well, as I look out of my window today (on this cold, grey holiday morning), the rain continues to come down. At this point it’s not really a bad thing for our vineyards, albeit that after such a dry spell, much of the initial rainfall simply runs off the surface and makes little impression. It will take some time before the water table is restored. With temperatures forecast for no more than 13/14°C (55/60°F) this week, it occurs to me that our calendar seems to have fallen out of sequence this year. Reversing the months of March and April would make far more sense as far as a logical progression is concerned – March being much dryer and warmer than April. Anyway, whatever happens next the only thing we ask for is a period of warm, dry weather for the flowering.

As an aside, and in the wake or the recent Titanic centenary, I just wanted to pass on a bit of useless information for the next time that you’re playing Trivial Pursuit. Did you know that the International Distress Signal Mayday, Mayday, Mayday actually has nothing to do with 1st of May (or any other day in May for that matter)? It quite simply originates from the French phrase “m’aider”, which means “help me”. Perhaps slightly oddly, the phrase was the idea of an English air traffic controller based at Croydon Airport near London, when, back in the 1920’s much of the air traffic flew between London and Paris.

The Mayday signal was (and still is) used on VHF radio, and therefore was never used on Titanic, which relied on Morse code for signalling. At that time there were however, two different distress codes used by Morse operators – ‘CDQ’ used by the Marconi company – CQ again derived from the French word “Secours” (Help). The letter D, stood for Distress. The second code (subsequently adopted by all) was SOS, created by the German Government in the early 1900’s. The letters were chosen as they were simple, both to recognise and remember – ‘Save Our Souls’ is simply a mnemonic and is not the reason that they are used.

I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that, after a very dry winter, it had finally started to rain. Well, as I look out of my window today (on this cold, grey holiday morning), the rain continues to come down. At this point it’s not really a bad thing for our vineyards, albeit that after such a dry spell, much of the initial rainfall simply runs off the surface and makes little impression. It will take some time before the water table is restored. With temperatures forecast for no more than 13/14°C (55/60°F) this week, it occurs to me that our calendar seems to have fallen out of sequence this year. Reversing the months of March and April would make far more sense as far as a logical progression is concerned – March being much dryer and warmer than April. Anyway, whatever happens next the only thing we ask for is a period of warm, dry weather for the flowering.

As an aside, and in the wake or the recent Titanic centenary, I just wanted to pass on a bit of useless information for the next time that you’re playing Trivial Pursuit. Did you know that the International Distress Signal Mayday, Mayday, Mayday actually has nothing to do with 1st of May (or any other day in May for that matter)? It quite simply originates from the French phrase “m’aider”, which means “help me”. Perhaps slightly oddly, the phrase was the idea of an English air traffic controller based at Croydon Airport near London, when, back in the 1920’s much of the air traffic flew between London and Paris.

The Mayday signal was (and still is) used on VHF radio, and therefore was never used on Titanic, which relied on Morse code for signalling. At that time there were however, two different distress codes used by Morse operators – ‘CDQ’ used by the Marconi company – CQ again derived from the French word “Secours” (Help). The letter D, stood for Distress. The second code (subsequently adopted by all) was SOS, created by the German Government in the early 1900’s. The letters were chosen as they were simple, both to recognise and remember – ‘Save Our Souls’ is simply a mnemonic and is not the reason that they are used.

There is already a good deal of doom and gloom surrounding the Spanish economy at the moment, even before the latest news that the country has lost its A credit rating, downgraded two notches to BBB+. The assessment, made by the Standard & Poor rating service, bases its evaluation on the future ability and willingness of sovereign governments to service their debt obligations.

Whilst there remains a distinct danger that things could get worse, and Spain be downgraded even further, the S&P did at least acknowledge that some of the severe measures taken by the new government, are at least a step in the right direction. They have announced reforms to the labour market, including cutting back on severance pay and restricting inflation-linked salary increases, that it hopes will ease the problem.. Unfortunately, these measures are, in the sort term at least, likely to make things worse rather than better, as Spain’s crippling unemployment continues its truly painful, inexorable rise. Indeed, only today, official figures reveal a figure of some 5.6 million people out of work, some 24.4%, compared to only 7.9% back in April 2007.

One chief economist is quoted as saying “In Spain today, a cycle similar to Greece is starting to develop”…….we sincerely hope not.

There is already a good deal of doom and gloom surrounding the Spanish economy at the moment, even before the latest news that the country has lost its A credit rating, downgraded two notches to BBB+. The assessment, made by the Standard & Poor rating service, bases its evaluation on the future ability and willingness of sovereign governments to service their debt obligations.

Whilst there remains a distinct danger that things could get worse, and Spain be downgraded even further, the S&P did at least acknowledge that some of the severe measures taken by the new government, are at least a step in the right direction. They have announced reforms to the labour market, including cutting back on severance pay and restricting inflation-linked salary increases, that it hopes will ease the problem.. Unfortunately, these measures are, in the sort term at least, likely to make things worse rather than better, as Spain’s crippling unemployment continues its truly painful, inexorable rise. Indeed, only today, official figures reveal a figure of some 5.6 million people out of work, some 24.4%, compared to only 7.9% back in April 2007.

One chief economist is quoted as saying “In Spain today, a cycle similar to Greece is starting to develop”…….we sincerely hope not.

You might be forgiven for thinking that the most famous thing about the village of Barrantes are its traffic lights (about 5 sets in the space of 200 metres – not synchronised), but you’d be wrong. Excluding Bodegas Castro Martin (that is not actually located in the village itself), there is a small family restaurant called O Tìo Benito, which loosely translated means With Uncle Benito, or perhaps At the table of Uncle Benito. Described in our local press recently as a ‘temple of cooking with a common touch’.

Clearly, when we’re working, we usually don’t have time to take lunch outside the bodega, but if we did, this would certainly be at the top of our list for local dining. Now, I’m not suggesting that this is a Michelin starred restaurant, but when it comes to honest, down-to-earth, great home cooking, then this is certainly the place to go. Run by Camilo Lojo, his wife Saladina and daughter Irene, this local landmark was established almost 40 years ago, and I swear that people have been queuing to get in ever since! I should tell you that the place is always packed (with locals rather than tourists), which is always the true indicator of good quality and value. Indeed, in my many years travelling the world as a buyer, I would always make a point of actively seeking out the small local restaurants that were overflowing with local people….. I have rarely had a bad meal working on this basis.

Tìo Benito is a place that we use to take visitors for lunch, so that they can savor the village atmosphere as well as it’s typical food. Famed for it’s Cod, Octopus, Cocido and other local dishes it has a fixed menu, and several other dishes that are rotated on a daily basis. It is also well-known for its award winning Tinto de Barrantes – the local wine that is guaranteed to stain you teeth a deep red colour. I’m afraid to admit that this is not my favourite tipple. On the other hand however, my personal recommendation is the selection of freshly homemade desserts, most especially the oven baked cheesecake, which is often still warm from the oven when it is served – heaven! I love this so much that Angela will often buy a whole one for me in place of a birthday cake. I don’t eat it in one sitting, but it certainly doesn’t last too long, and I only share it with others very grudgingly (typical old git that I am!)

We are currently slotting an oven and hotplate into our tiny kitchen in the Bodega, and I will write more about this later, but in the meantime we will have to settle for the table of our Uncle Benito.

You might be forgiven for thinking that the most famous thing about the village of Barrantes are its traffic lights (about 5 sets in the space of 200 metres – not synchronised), but you’d be wrong. Excluding Bodegas Castro Martin (that is not actually located in the village itself), there is a small family restaurant called O Tìo Benito, which loosely translated means With Uncle Benito, or perhaps At the table of Uncle Benito. Described in our local press recently as a ‘temple of cooking with a common touch’.

Clearly, when we’re working, we usually don’t have time to take lunch outside the bodega, but if we did, this would certainly be at the top of our list for local dining. Now, I’m not suggesting that this is a Michelin starred restaurant, but when it comes to honest, down-to-earth, great home cooking, then this is certainly the place to go. Run by Camilo Lojo, his wife Saladina and daughter Irene, this local landmark was established almost 40 years ago, and I swear that people have been queuing to get in ever since! I should tell you that the place is always packed (with locals rather than tourists), which is always the true indicator of good quality and value. Indeed, in my many years travelling the world as a buyer, I would always make a point of actively seeking out the small local restaurants that were overflowing with local people….. I have rarely had a bad meal working on this basis.

Tìo Benito is a place that we use to take visitors for lunch, so that they can savor the village atmosphere as well as it’s typical food. Famed for it’s Cod, Octopus, Cocido and other local dishes it has a fixed menu, and several other dishes that are rotated on a daily basis. It is also well-known for its award winning Tinto de Barrantes – the local wine that is guaranteed to stain you teeth a deep red colour. I’m afraid to admit that this is not my favourite tipple. On the other hand however, my personal recommendation is the selection of freshly homemade desserts, most especially the oven baked cheesecake, which is often still warm from the oven when it is served – heaven! I love this so much that Angela will often buy a whole one for me in place of a birthday cake. I don’t eat it in one sitting, but it certainly doesn’t last too long, and I only share it with others very grudgingly (typical old git that I am!)

We are currently slotting an oven and hotplate into our tiny kitchen in the Bodega, and I will write more about this later, but in the meantime we will have to settle for the table of our Uncle Benito.

I’m not quite sure how all these International Days are supposed to work, or how you’re supposed to know about them, but suffice to say that somehow I keep missing them. It’s not that I don’t use the internet or follow the news, but it’s becoming quite clear to me that many of these special days are simply not as well publicised as perhaps they should be.

Apparently, yesterday was Earth Day, which was organised by the ‘Green’ movement. It is claimed that more than one billion* people around the world voiced their appreciation for the planet and demanded its protection (*give or take an odd million). They are standing for a sustainable future and calling upon individuals, organizations, and governments to do their part. 

Today is International Book Day, organised by UNESCO, and is a day when we should promote reading, publishing and copyright. The 23rd April is selected for book day as it is often quoted as the anniversary of the deaths of both William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes. At least one official celebration of this day is the reading of Cervantes’ Don Quixote (actually a two-day “readathon”).

In England it is also St George’s Day, as we honour the life of England’s very own Patron Saint (albeit that there is no public holiday). I think it’s probably fair to say that St George’s Day, St Andrew’s Day (Scotland) and St David’s Day (Wales) are not celebrated as much as St Patrick’s Day in Ireland, but apparently many people are now working to get these days re-established on the calendar for all British people.

So today, by way of recognition, I will be reading a book, made from re-cycled paper, about the life and times of St George (I think that covers all the bases).

I’m not quite sure how all these International Days are supposed to work, or how you’re supposed to know about them, but suffice to say that somehow I keep missing them. It’s not that I don’t use the internet or follow the news, but it’s becoming quite clear to me that many of these special days are simply not as well publicised as perhaps they should be.

Apparently, yesterday was Earth Day, which was organised by the ‘Green’ movement. It is claimed that more than one billion* people around the world voiced their appreciation for the planet and demanded its protection (*give or take an odd million). They are standing for a sustainable future and calling upon individuals, organizations, and governments to do their part. 

Today is International Book Day, organised by UNESCO, and is a day when we should promote reading, publishing and copyright. The 23rd April is selected for book day as it is often quoted as the anniversary of the deaths of both William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes. At least one official celebration of this day is the reading of Cervantes’ Don Quixote (actually a two-day “readathon”).

In England it is also St George’s Day, as we honour the life of England’s very own Patron Saint (albeit that there is no public holiday). I think it’s probably fair to say that St George’s Day, St Andrew’s Day (Scotland) and St David’s Day (Wales) are not celebrated as much as St Patrick’s Day in Ireland, but apparently many people are now working to get these days re-established on the calendar for all British people.

So today, by way of recognition, I will be reading a book, made from re-cycled paper, about the life and times of St George (I think that covers all the bases).

If we lived in the south of Spain, and it was summer, it might be quite understandable to welcome a period of rain – but it’s winter, and we’re here in Galicia, and so this idea is probably not quite so normal. When I am explaining to people about the lack of rain that we’ve experienced, I try very hard not to exaggerate, but I think I am correct in saying, that up until Easter we had suffered a period of between 2½ and 3 months with virtually no rain whatsoever (perhaps 2 or 3 hours of light rain in total). I don’t have the actual statistics, but suffice to say that it’s been dry!

Immediately following the Easter holidays the skies turned their more usual winter shade of grey, and some very welcome, more persistent rain arrived. Now, I’m not suggesting by any means that our period of drought is behind us, but the last week of rain will certainly do no harm – it would probably require several weeks more to return the water table to normal levels.

The other significant factor is the temperature, whilst our nights have largely remained cool, daytime temperatures before Easter were regularly pushing over 20°C (68°F), and often into the mid 20’s. However, this last week has seen the thermometer fall to the low teens during the day, perhaps averaging only 12/13°C (54/56°F).

Of course by now our vines are already well advanced and vineyards all around us are turning green as the growing season gets under way. There is no doubt that this period of wet weather will help, and I do hope that it will continue at least for another few weeks, or at least until the flowering.

If we lived in the south of Spain, and it was summer, it might be quite understandable to welcome a period of rain – but it’s winter, and we’re here in Galicia, and so this idea is probably not quite so normal. When I am explaining to people about the lack of rain that we’ve experienced, I try very hard not to exaggerate, but I think I am correct in saying, that up until Easter we had suffered a period of between 2½ and 3 months with virtually no rain whatsoever (perhaps 2 or 3 hours of light rain in total). I don’t have the actual statistics, but suffice to say that it’s been dry!

Immediately following the Easter holidays the skies turned their more usual winter shade of grey, and some very welcome, more persistent rain arrived. Now, I’m not suggesting by any means that our period of drought is behind us, but the last week of rain will certainly do no harm – it would probably require several weeks more to return the water table to normal levels.

The other significant factor is the temperature, whilst our nights have largely remained cool, daytime temperatures before Easter were regularly pushing over 20°C (68°F), and often into the mid 20’s. However, this last week has seen the thermometer fall to the low teens during the day, perhaps averaging only 12/13°C (54/56°F).

Of course by now our vines are already well advanced and vineyards all around us are turning green as the growing season gets under way. There is no doubt that this period of wet weather will help, and I do hope that it will continue at least for another few weeks, or at least until the flowering.

A day or two ago I wrote about the ‘perfect’ tasting (as if there is such a thing), and mentioned the importance of having the correct wine glass, or at least a glass that is suitable for tasting. Certainly in recent years there has been a lot of research in the field of wine glass design, so much so that it has become a science in itself, and manufacturers now sell distinctly different designs for almost every conceivable type of wine. It wasn’t that many years ago when more or less the only recommended glass for professionals was the official ISO tasting glass, but this was soon dismissed as being too small and clumsy to do the job effectively. It was soon overtaken by designs made by some top glass producers such as Spiegelau, Schott, Zwiesel, Bormioli, Cristal d’Arques, Dartington and probably the most famous of all, Riedel.

A wine glass is divided into three parts – the bowl, the stem and the foot, and of course the most influential of these as far as taste is concerned, is the bowl. These days the tulip shape is largely preferred to the balloon shape (the latter made famous by the old Paris goblet). The design of the stem and foot are made with more practical issues in mind – that the stem doesn’t break too easily, or that the glass doesn’t topple over too easily when filled. Together however, all three elements should combine to produce a well balanced glass with a nice ‘feel’, not too heavy, and certainly not patterned or coloured.

The bowl should be curved and smooth on the inside to not inhibit swirling, and should preferably taper inward slightly towards the rim keeping the wine’s bouquet focused towards the nose and preventing too much from escaping.  A proper wine glass should be large enough to contain a full serving when only half full (not overfilling a glass is actually sensible, not mean). This provides adequate space for both swirling without spilling and provides the “chimney effect” that concentrates and directs aroma towards the nose. The width and depth of the bowl will differ according to the type of wine it is intended for as it physically determines the distance between your nose and the surface of the liquid. This will alter the way that you perceive the different elements of the wine, such as fruit, spice or perhaps the level of alcohol.

Finally the rim of the bowl will divert your wine towards the different receptors on your tongue – a narrow rim directs wine to the middle of your tongue first, and because acidity receptors are located at the sides, your first taste sensation will be fruit. In the case of a wide rim, wine is diverted directly to the edges of the tongue and acidity is detected first, making wine taste more rounded as the acidity blends with the fruit.

Whichever shape you choose, there is no doubt that fine, crystal glass feels best, even if it might be a bit more prone to breakage. In a similar way, being English, I also believe that my tea tastes better from a fine bone china cup too!

(See video of my old friend Joe Wadsack presenting white wine glasses on our YouTube page)

A day or two ago I wrote about the ‘perfect’ tasting (as if there is such a thing), and mentioned the importance of having the correct wine glass, or at least a glass that is suitable for tasting. Certainly in recent years there has been a lot of research in the field of wine glass design, so much so that it has become a science in itself, and manufacturers now sell distinctly different designs for almost every conceivable type of wine. It wasn’t that many years ago when more or less the only recommended glass for professionals was the official ISO tasting glass, but this was soon dismissed as being too small and clumsy to do the job effectively. It was soon overtaken by designs made by some top glass producers such as Spiegelau, Schott, Zwiesel, Bormioli, Cristal d’Arques, Dartington and probably the most famous of all, Riedel.

A wine glass is divided into three parts – the bowl, the stem and the foot, and of course the most influential of these as far as taste is concerned, is the bowl. These days the tulip shape is largely preferred to the balloon shape (the latter made famous by the old Paris goblet). The design of the stem and foot are made with more practical issues in mind – that the stem doesn’t break too easily, or that the glass doesn’t topple over too easily when filled. Together however, all three elements should combine to produce a well balanced glass with a nice ‘feel’, not too heavy, and certainly not patterned or coloured.

The bowl should be curved and smooth on the inside to not inhibit swirling, and should preferably taper inward slightly towards the rim keeping the wine’s bouquet focused towards the nose and preventing too much from escaping.  A proper wine glass should be large enough to contain a full serving when only half full (not overfilling a glass is actually sensible, not mean). This provides adequate space for both swirling without spilling and provides the “chimney effect” that concentrates and directs aroma towards the nose. The width and depth of the bowl will differ according to the type of wine it is intended for as it physically determines the distance between your nose and the surface of the liquid. This will alter the way that you perceive the different elements of the wine, such as fruit, spice or perhaps the level of alcohol.

Finally the rim of the bowl will divert your wine towards the different receptors on your tongue – a narrow rim directs wine to the middle of your tongue first, and because acidity receptors are located at the sides, your first taste sensation will be fruit. In the case of a wide rim, wine is diverted directly to the edges of the tongue and acidity is detected first, making wine taste more rounded as the acidity blends with the fruit.

Whichever shape you choose, there is no doubt that fine, crystal glass feels best, even if it might be a bit more prone to breakage. In a similar way, being English, I also believe that my tea tastes better from a fine bone china cup too!

(See video of my old friend Joe Wadsack presenting white wine glasses on our YouTube page)

It would be very easy to ‘over think’ the conditions required for a perfect wine tasting, especially when chances are, that your best tasting memories will occur when you are totally relaxed and sharing your bottle in good company.

From a purely professional point of view however, to conduct a more ‘analytical’ tasting (as you might do as a wine buyer or journalist), there are actually a huge number of considerations to take into account, many of which I have written about in the past. To make it a little easier to digest, I will list as many as I can think of (albeit there are so many that I might well miss a few):

Environment

• What is the weather doing? Atmospheric pressure can change your perception of a wine, whilst some will claim that the phase of the moon can do the same.

• Is the room where you are tasting light and airy – not too hot or too cold, with no breezes (that might detract from the smell) and with good natural light so that you can visually examine your glass?

• Is the room free from other distracting smells (some tasters are particularly sensitive to this, myself included)

• Are you in a place where you can concentrate, free from other distractions?

Personal

• Are you fit and healthy? Colds and flu are the wine professionals worst nightmare, and tasting with a hangover just doesn’t work!

• Are you wearing perfume or after shave – these will certainly confuse your sense of smell.

• Is your palate clean – have you been eating garlic, or other strong, lingering foods that could affect your taste? Or have you recently cleaned your teeth or been drinking fruit juice?

Wine

• How many wines are you tasting? Tasters will dispute how many you can reasonably taste to make an effective judgement (possibly depending on your experience as a taster).

• Is your wine at the correct temperature (cellar temperature is not a bad start)? For example, too cold will exaggerate acidity in white wines, and tannins in red, whilst alcohol will dominate if the bottle is too warm.

• To be truly objective a completely blind tasting is much more effective, after all, a quick glimpse of the label is worth at least 20 years tasting experience!

Other 

• Is your wine glass clean, odour free and suitable for a tasting? (This is actually a subject that demands a separate blog post, especially as some wine glass manufacturers invest huge amounts of time and money in researching the perfect glass for every imaginable grape variety).

• Time – What time of day are you tasting? Many will say that the best time of day is around 11.00am or 12.00am, as this is the time when both your palate and your brain are at their most receptive. Certainly before lunch is a good idea, and never just after a meal.

• Time – have you allowed enough time to taste your selection, if necessary going back to re-assess your favourites?

• Notes – make copious tasting notes. Few people have a photographic memory, or perfect recall (although a truly memorable wine will certainly stand out)

Let me know if you think I’ve missed something.

It would be very easy to ‘over think’ the conditions required for a perfect wine tasting, especially when chances are, that your best tasting memories will occur when you are totally relaxed and sharing your bottle in good company.

From a purely professional point of view however, to conduct a more ‘analytical’ tasting (as you might do as a wine buyer or journalist), there are actually a huge number of considerations to take into account, many of which I have written about in the past. To make it a little easier to digest, I will list as many as I can think of (albeit there are so many that I might well miss a few):

Environment

• What is the weather doing? Atmospheric pressure can change your perception of a wine, whilst some will claim that the phase of the moon can do the same.

• Is the room where you are tasting light and airy – not too hot or too cold, with no breezes (that might detract from the smell) and with good natural light so that you can visually examine your glass?

• Is the room free from other distracting smells (some tasters are particularly sensitive to this, myself included)

• Are you in a place where you can concentrate, free from other distractions?

Personal

• Are you fit and healthy? Colds and flu are the wine professionals worst nightmare, and tasting with a hangover just doesn’t work!

• Are you wearing perfume or after shave – these will certainly confuse your sense of smell.

• Is your palate clean – have you been eating garlic, or other strong, lingering foods that could affect your taste? Or have you recently cleaned your teeth or been drinking fruit juice?

Wine

• How many wines are you tasting? Tasters will dispute how many you can reasonably taste to make an effective judgement (possibly depending on your experience as a taster).

• Is your wine at the correct temperature (cellar temperature is not a bad start)? For example, too cold will exaggerate acidity in white wines, and tannins in red, whilst alcohol will dominate if the bottle is too warm.

• To be truly objective a completely blind tasting is much more effective, after all, a quick glimpse of the label is worth at least 20 years tasting experience!

Other 

• Is your wine glass clean, odour free and suitable for a tasting? (This is actually a subject that demands a separate blog post, especially as some wine glass manufacturers invest huge amounts of time and money in researching the perfect glass for every imaginable grape variety).

• Time – What time of day are you tasting? Many will say that the best time of day is around 11.00am or 12.00am, as this is the time when both your palate and your brain are at their most receptive. Certainly before lunch is a good idea, and never just after a meal.

• Time – have you allowed enough time to taste your selection, if necessary going back to re-assess your favourites?

• Notes – make copious tasting notes. Few people have a photographic memory, or perfect recall (although a truly memorable wine will certainly stand out)

Let me know if you think I’ve missed something.

We have received very special Easter offer from a hotel in the Basque Country for this Easter – 3 nights bed and breakfast, one dinner (with water), one free circuit of the spa, garage space, late check out…. Oh, and not forgetting a rather sinister looking man in a black hood and cape too! I’m sorry but I do find this mailshot rather off-putting, or am I just being ridiculous?

Spain celebrates ‘Semana Santa’, (Holy Week) much more than most other European countries. The whole week is filled with street processions, organised in the majority of Spanish towns each evening, from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. Participants carry statues of saints on floats or wooden platforms in an atmosphere of mourning – which can seem quite oppressive to outsiders.

In some of the processions, marchers wear clothes reminiscent of the Klu Klux Klan. In fact their clothes are meant to represent ‘Nazareños’, people from Nazareth. It is the religious fraternities and brotherhoods of each town that are responsible for organising the processions, and the people who actually carry the sculptures and biblical scenes are known as ‘costaleros’. These floats are extremely heavy, and the costaleros have to be strong, as the processions will last for many hours. The pain that they suffer is likened to that experienced by Christ and the men consider it a great honor to carry the float, despite (and indeed, because of) the pain involved.

We have received very special Easter offer from a hotel in the Basque Country for this Easter – 3 nights bed and breakfast, one dinner (with water), one free circuit of the spa, garage space, late check out…. Oh, and not forgetting a rather sinister looking man in a black hood and cape too! I’m sorry but I do find this mailshot rather off-putting, or am I just being ridiculous?

Spain celebrates ‘Semana Santa’, (Holy Week) much more than most other European countries. The whole week is filled with street processions, organised in the majority of Spanish towns each evening, from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. Participants carry statues of saints on floats or wooden platforms in an atmosphere of mourning – which can seem quite oppressive to outsiders.

In some of the processions, marchers wear clothes reminiscent of the Klu Klux Klan. In fact their clothes are meant to represent ‘Nazareños’, people from Nazareth. It is the religious fraternities and brotherhoods of each town that are responsible for organising the processions, and the people who actually carry the sculptures and biblical scenes are known as ‘costaleros’. These floats are extremely heavy, and the costaleros have to be strong, as the processions will last for many hours. The pain that they suffer is likened to that experienced by Christ and the men consider it a great honor to carry the float, despite (and indeed, because of) the pain involved.

Sadly for us, and for our industry, alcohol is too often abused, used as a way of self-medication when we are feeling low or rejected to drown our sorrows. It could be that we have lost a loved one, failed in an exam, been rejected by our girlfriend or perhaps by a gorgeous female fruit fly……..

I actually can’t believe that I’m writing this, but a study by the University of California in San Francisco has proved that male fruit flies turn to alcohol when they are rejected by female fruit flies that are hovering nearby. Now, the first question is fairly obvious. Why on earth were they researching this in the first place, and secondly, what relevance does this study have to our daily lives? Well, apparently, the answer is that frustrated flies have quite similar brain mechanisms to humans – the brain chemicals that control appetite actually correlate strongly with a thirst for alcohol, especially when we are feeling rejected. In tests, the flies, perhaps surprisingly, favoured a liquid mixture spiked with 15% alcohol in preference to other fruits, such as rotting bananas.

In similar studies mice, rats and monkeys also turned to drink after periods of isolation, bullying or after becoming victims of aggression.

The explanation is that when we are feeling low the levels of a compound called NPF in our brain falls, we get dysphoric, and this gives us a strong urge to drink. The object of the study therefore, is to develop a drug to enhance NPY activity, thus reducing the craving.

In summary, all I can say is that there must be an awful lot of frustrated fruit flies in our cellars around harvest time, either that or they just appreciate a good albariño when they taste one!

Sadly for us, and for our industry, alcohol is too often abused, used as a way of self-medication when we are feeling low or rejected to drown our sorrows. It could be that we have lost a loved one, failed in an exam, been rejected by our girlfriend or perhaps by a gorgeous female fruit fly……..

I actually can’t believe that I’m writing this, but a study by the University of California in San Francisco has proved that male fruit flies turn to alcohol when they are rejected by female fruit flies that are hovering nearby. Now, the first question is fairly obvious. Why on earth were they researching this in the first place, and secondly, what relevance does this study have to our daily lives? Well, apparently, the answer is that frustrated flies have quite similar brain mechanisms to humans – the brain chemicals that control appetite actually correlate strongly with a thirst for alcohol, especially when we are feeling rejected. In tests, the flies, perhaps surprisingly, favoured a liquid mixture spiked with 15% alcohol in preference to other fruits, such as rotting bananas.

In similar studies mice, rats and monkeys also turned to drink after periods of isolation, bullying or after becoming victims of aggression.

The explanation is that when we are feeling low the levels of a compound called NPF in our brain falls, we get dysphoric, and this gives us a strong urge to drink. The object of the study therefore, is to develop a drug to enhance NPY activity, thus reducing the craving.

In summary, all I can say is that there must be an awful lot of frustrated fruit flies in our cellars around harvest time, either that or they just appreciate a good albariño when they taste one!