The Art Of vertical Tasting by: Seema Pal, Dipwset
Anyone who has experienced a vertical tasting knows how illuminating it is. For those who have yet to discover the delights of a vertical tasting, it is a comparison of the same wine over several vintages from the same estate, producer, or vineyard. This provides the taster some context as to how the particular wine evolves.
Article from Opimian by Seema Pal, Dipwset Opimian’s Marketing Assistant. From Cellar 311, South Africa and Tuscany
One of the purposes of vertical tastings is to detect clues that help determine the reasons for a wine’s evolution, whether it be due to factors such as soil composition, elevation, topography, skin contact, sunlight exposure, and more. Aged wines can be considered as ‘history in a bottle,’ and vertical tastings offer a way to transform vintage variation into an event worth celebrating!
To maximize the tasting experience, several elements should be considered when conducting a vertical tasting. One practice, especially important for older vintages, is to allow the wine to aerate in a decanter for at least 60 minutes, as some wines may take hours to fully open up. When ready, they can be tasted with water or bread in between wines to carefully assess each one with a clean palate.
The order in which a person chooses to taste the wines is up to the individual. A common approach is to taste from the youngest to the most mature to gauge the level of development. Another method is to begin with the older vintage, allowing for the detection of fine nuances in an older wine with a fresh palate, then progressing to younger vintages that display more primary and secondary characteristics.
There are several ways to compare wines in a vertical tasting. First, the nature of the fruit has a gradient. On one end, there are the fresh characteristics, which slowly metamorphose into a blend of both dried and fresh fruit, culminating in completely dried fruit notes. The most ageable wines will develop these pronounced levels of dried fruit. Additionally, as wine ages, it will gain tertiary notes of leather, sous bois, tar, mushrooms, etc.
If the wines are red, you will likely detect that the tannin levels become more polished and smooth as it ages. Not only this, but there may also be significant vintage variations that can be detected. For example, very hot years in Bordeaux, such as 2003 and 2005, will exhibit more baked fruit character, lower acidity, and higher alcohol levels compared to wines from different vintages.
Trying a vertical tasting case will enable you to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the producer, region/appellation, or vineyard. Additionally, it will help you further explore your own personal palate in terms of how long you prefer to age your wines and which tasting notes you prefer the most! If this intrigues you, consider trying one or both of Opimian’s vertical tasting cases offered in C311. One option is the Sorbaiano Febo Vertical Tasting Case, which includes one bottle each from 2017, 2018, and 2019