Sommelier Review: Brancaia Top Wine of 2009

Madeline Puckette with a bottle of Toscana Tre 2007 Brancaia Wine.

Brancaia got my attention this winter: they popped Top 10 in Wine Spectator with their 93 point rated Toscana Tre.  Low and behold, our distributer walked in about 3 weeks later with a couple of Brancaia's wines including the yellow label(93 pts, WS, $16) and their wine called Il Blu(95 pts, WS $67).  I think Wine Spectator implemented a very savvy plan for their top rated wines this year: they included more wines in the below 40 price point, reflecting our more economically minded consumer.  That said, with prodigious buyers in mind, Brancaia's Il Blu commands a higher price and the palate proves it's worth it.  

Today, I'm going to experiment with the Court of Masters tasting method in order to really investigate the wine.  Brancaia blend is ~80% Sangiovese, ~10% Merlot, ~10% Cabernet Sauvignon.

VISUAL INSPECTION:

Clarity: slight haze

Brightness: Day Bright

Intensity of Color: Medium

Color: Garnet

Rim Variation: Yes, light pinkish to Ruby-Garnet hues

Viscosity: Medium

NOSE/AROMA:

Condition: sound/clean

Intensity: Medium-Low

Fruit Aromas: Dark Sweet Cherry, Cooked Raspberry, Dried Strawberry.  Predominant red fruit aromas.

Other Aromas: Chalkboard, white pepper, anise & oregano

Presence of wood: yes in the form of a slight vanilla smell

PALATE:

Sweetness level: Dry

Body: Medium-Plus

Fruit on Palate: taste matches nose with cherries & raspberries

Earthiness: Chalkiness + Green rhubarb, oregano on mid-finish

Wood: I would say yes, very slight, perhaps large barrels or less new barrels

Alcohol: Medium

Tannins: Medium - Plus to High, very structured fruit tannins, perhaps from whole bunches

Acid: Medium Plus

Complexity: Medium Plus complexity, based on big fruit with strong tannin structure

Finish: Medium-Plus, Acid clears palate relatively quickly

Court of Masters Experience

It's Official!  I have completed the Introductory Course for Sommelier put on by Court of Masters. For those of you who may be interested in extended wine education, the CoM does a great job of illustrating wine service as well as teaching fundamental ways of blind tasting wines.  That said, the course was very fast paced and would be difficult for someone not familiar with the major wine varietals and regions in the world.  Tim Gaiser, MS, who conducted the class, and Steven Poe, MS, had incredible enthusiasm and knowledge for wine, making sitting in a chair in a hotel convention hall for 7 hours fun!

During the class, there were many blind tastings.  First day was loaded with French wines, for which I had a lot of trouble identifying.  Aei! Gotta drink more Chablis and Crozes-Hermitage!  I wish I could blame a nasty cold for my off-palate, or perhaps it's because I always find myself sneaking passed the "FRANCE" wine aisle and spending too much time in the "ITALY" or "GERMANY" aisles.  hurrah for riesling!

The second day blind-tasting was a breeze, particularly when I spotted the Zind Humbrecht Pinot D'Alsace after the room of 100 people sat stumped.  rockstar.  Then, on the last 2 wines of the day, it was as though I tasted the lips of an old lover... when good ol' California Zinfandel touched my lips. Ahh Seghesio...my good friend.  The last wine was a hot red brick in my mouth with so much tannin and leather, my guess was Barbaresco... it was Barolo.

Wow.  I left the class with a list of wines (scant notations all over my notepad document) and next day found myself at K&L Wines in Los Angeles with a bottle of Peloponnese (Greece) Moschofilero.  I'm going to take the Certified Exam in April in Seattle... see yah there!

Working in a Wine Bar

Armed with a pair of dish gloves, each wine glass gets hand washed with fragrance free detergent, polished with a lint-free cloth and examined.

I work at West Street Wine Bar.  My prior career was as a graphic designer, I would have never started working as a wine server had it not been for Rick Martinez, the proprietor of WSWB.  Since February 2009, I've had the fortune of tasting over 600 wines and learned a great deal about the world of wine.  But as any seasoned wine professional will tell you: "The more you know, the more you know you don't know."   I've just enrolled into the Court of Masters Sommelier course, to continue to advance my knowledge and interest.

My traditional style career in the office was slowly rounding down my enthusiasm and sucking my social energy.  I would spend all day fantasizing about what to eat and drink for dinner, not acknowledging my passion (or respect) for the food/service industry.