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The ins and outs of fine wines are both an elusive mystery and a delightful adventure, but you needn’t go through the rigors of earning a degree in viticulture or enology or becoming a sommelier to gain a better understanding of vintages and varietals.
In that spirit, Bonny Doon Vineyard is launching a monthly series, “Eno Education with Nicole Walsh,” with hands-on tasting classes covering a wide spectrum of approaches to the art and craft of fine winemaking.
Walsh, who has been the winemaker at Bonny Doon for over 20 years, also makes wine for her own Ser Winery label, which sources in part from San Benito County vineyards. She sees the classes as a way of better connecting with her customers.
“I wanted to do this partially for myself,” Walsh said, “because it forces me to go back and revisit what I’ve already been taught so I can better express to people how to taste wine and how to do pairings.”
Her first class was held on Jan. 17 at Doon to Earth, the Bonny Doon tasting room in Aptos. The goal was to learn a little bit about describing a wine by tasting versions of Mourvèdre made by four different wineries: Domaine Ray-June’s 2017 Bandol Falun, Ridge Vineyards’ 2019 Gonsalves Mataro, Birichino’s 2021 Rodnick Vineyards Mourvèdre, and Walsh’s own 2022 Telegram Mourvèdre.
Participants were given scoring sheets and led through a systematic exploration of each wine’s primary, secondary, and tertiary aromas and flavors, aroma, nose and palate, with Walsh skillfully assisting in discerning the differences.
“It is difficult for people to talk about wine without knowing the language,” she said. “And that is what these classes are all about, speaking that same language and learning how to calibrate our palettes and our noses.”
Much of the class was taken up by finding points of agreement—debating the level of acidity or sweetness of any given wine or judging the body and mouthfeel. Walsh explained to BenitoLink that it was important to build up a common wine vocabulary as an aid to finding new wines that match an individual’s tastes.
As an example, she recalled a woman who mentioned that she had not particularly enjoyed a wine, the 2022 Le Cigare Volant, that she had tried at the tasting room, saying she preferred wine with more flavor. As they talked, Walsh realized that the woman was talking about wines with a higher acidity.
“I poured the 2022 Ser Gruner Veltliner,” she said, “thinking the Gruner has a lot of acidity, a lot of citrus. It is a lot more in your face, and that’ll hit you with some flavor.”
Trying the wine, the customer’s response was, “There it is!” and she became enthusiastic about trying more of the wines. By matching her vocabulary to the customer’s, Walsh was able to completely change the experience.
“There is an intimidation factor with wine tasting,” Walsh said. “I think it’s because it’s an unknown, and it’s not something we’re taught, right? So when you don’t have that education, you’re less inclined to comment about something.”
During the next class in the series, “Explore Wine Faults & Flaws,” Walsh will be using a wine fault sensory kit, a professional tool that simulates the aromas of various types of spoilage. The scents are concentrated, and when applied to strips of paper, they allow a better perception of defects that might be more subtle in a glass of wine.
“When they open a bottle of wine for you at a restaurant, you’re supposed to know instantly if it is good or bad,” she said. “This is a way to better acquaint yourself with hints that there is something not right with what you are being served.”
Taking a very light and non-studious approach with her classes, Walsh is hoping to make wine just a little more fun for people.
“I get so excited about the world of wine,” Walsh said, “and there’s so much to know about it that I just want to share it. And I learn from other people and their experiences and their comments, too, so it’s a win-win for me!”
The next “Eno Education with Nicole Walsh: Explore Wine Faults & Flaws” will be held on Feb. 21 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Contact the tasting room by email or phone at (831) 612- 6062 for more information.
The Wines of Nichole Walsh
2022 Ser Gruner Veltliner ($30) – “When I see this on wine lists,” Walsh said, “it is one of my go-to wines that I love to order.” It has a gentle, relaxed aroma of grated orange peel and clove, with a flavor that brings crisp notes of pineapple and guava popsicles, and a lemony acidity that hits the back of the throat without being overpowering, lingering in the finish. A wine to bring on picnics and enjoy with turkey and Swiss cheese croissants.
2022 Bonny Doon “Perfect Clairetty” Clairette Blanche ($30) – “I did not have any experience with Clairette Blanche,” Walsh said. “I just knew that it was grown in the Rhone regions and that it was a good blender. I thought it was unremarkable until the day we were ready to ship it out, and I thought, ‘this thing really came around in a really interesting way.’” It is a wine full of character with a good minerality, some salinity and a haunting aroma of lemon blossoms and spice. It is a delicate wine with enough acid to make it bright and varied savory notes to bring it back down to earth. It is a perfectly delightful afternoon wine and would go extremely well with poached fish or pasta with cream sauces.
2022 Bonny Doon Le Cigare Volant ($17.99) – A blend of 61% grenache, 20% syrah, 15% cinsault and 4% petite sirah. “We wanted to focus on a more fruit-forward grenache-based blend,” Walsh said. “Over the last two or three years, I have been adding tiny amounts of petit syrah and it just sort of knits everything together and brought everything in focus.” This is quickly becoming one of my favorite wines and I love watching people’s reactions when they try this one. The aroma is marvelously fruity, and the first sip brings a flood of strawberries and raspberries, with a soft undercurrent of tannins and acid bringing an elegant finish. It will put a smile on your face, and, at an $18 price point, this one is a steal.
2022 The Old Telegram Santa Ynez Valley Mourvèdre ($60) – Of the four wines in the first of the tasting classes, this one was the clear favorite of the participants. It is easy to see why. A deep aroma of blackberries, fresh-turned earth and shaved dark chocolate gives way to a flavor that swirls with dark cherries, plums, and thyme, all held together by slate-like minerality and a very balanced acidity. Bonny Doon only makes this wine when they find enough high-quality old-vine Mourvèdre, so it is a good one to grab while it is still available.
The Bonny Doon tasting room, Doon to Earth, is located at 10 Parade Street in Aptos and is open from Thursday – Friday from 2-6 p.m. and Saturday -Sunday from 12-6 p.m.
Recommendations for future Eat, Drink, Savor articles can be emailed to roberteliason@benitolink.com.
BenitoLink thanks our underwriters, Hollister Super and Windmill Market, for helping to expand the Eat, Drink, Savor series and give our readers the stories that interest them. Hollister Super (two stores in Hollister) and Windmill Market (in San Juan Bautista) support reporting on the inspired and creative people behind the many delicious food and drink products made in San Benito County. All editorial decisions are made by BenitoLink.
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