Sonoma wine tasting - the reds

(A Cabernet flight done right.)

It's been nearly a week folks, since the Sonoma vintners tasting at Terminal City Club. You may wonder what a self professed wine ignoramus such as myself could remember about a tasting six days ago. Well to be honest I was already somewhat buzzed by the time we hit the reds, so I don't remember that much of what I tasted. Luckily there was a lot to think about, so I do have a recollection of some things.

Sonoma vintners wine tasting - the whites

Firstly - and I mentioned this in my previous article about the whites - it needs to be said that the flights were the highlight. Flights are in, and samples done right with a mind for aesthetic and quality are right up my alley. Our first venture was to a Zinfandel flight, where a lady with a ridiculous hairstyle gave us her practiced schtick about trying the whites first - for a second time.

(ZINFANDEL!? OVER 9000!?)

At this point in time, my coworkers began chit chatting with coworkers from another store. I didn't know them and couldn't take part in the conversation, so I did the only reasonable thing. I moved on to the Cabernet flight. This one was quite interesting, though, there were only three samples, the flight attendant (pun intended) poured them in a nice progression. To my tongue, the Cabs got better as she poured down the line of three. And that's saying a lot, as the first was already quite good to begin with. The bottles this time were accompanied with tasting notes of cinnamon, chocolate, black berries and what looked to me to be ground coffee (I should have investigated further). Indeed, I did notice more mature, yet playful flavours this time.

From there I tried many reds, but few stuck out; not for lack of quality, but for lack of sobriety. I'm somewhat o a lightweight, so even this swish-and-spit method hits me before long.

The basics of wine knowledge for new servers

Paul Hobbs 2012 vintage Pinot Noir left an impression, though. Seemingly, it left an impression on everyone. It was constantly featuring long lines for samples, even before the room became crowded and stuffy. It left a good impression on me, and my coworkers, and before long the coworkers from another location returned to express their delight for Paul Hobbs as well.

(Paul Hobbs Pinot Noir)

At this juncture the conversation about personal lives continued, and that was my queue to duck out and have some snacks before continuing on with the tasting alone.

Everyone else in the group had gotten tired of the tasting it seems, so I tasted a few more wines that I had been meaning to try, but alas. Nothing stuck out. There were a lot of pleasant Cabernets, and Pinot Noirs, but almost too many to begin listing. My best recommendation would be to pick out Sonoma reds at your local wine store.