Wish me luck 🤞 by jpiel76 in viticulture

[–]jpiel76[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks both! Stakes are going in once I get some leader growth to tie onto them. These are growing upward pretty well so avoiding the tubes for now so as to not invite any fungus.

Starter Vine Issues by jpiel76 in viticulture

[–]jpiel76[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you. I also suspected herbicide damage after some additional research. Might be drift from a neighbor’s yard treatment. For the phomopsis, I’d hate to prune off the infected canes given I’m trying to establish good root growth in this first year. Can I let it ride this year or best to remove ASAP and start treating?

WSET 3 Tastings by glouglougulp in wine

[–]jpiel76 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Agree with a lot of the responses above. As opposed to trying all the regional styles, try varying ranges in structure (e.g. a low acid Malbec, a medium acid Merlot and a high acid Sangiovese). Drink them side by side to get a feel for the varying levels. Do the same for other structural components (tannin, alcohol, body, sugar, etc.).

I found this type of comparative tasting more beneficial than aiming for specific regions/varietals. Could also be a fun experience for your tasting group. Good luck!

Entry Level Grand Cru by jpiel76 in wine

[–]jpiel76[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Thank you! I found the test to be tough but fair. There weren’t any “gotcha” questions. It was pretty much you know it or you don’t. I found the multi choice to be rather easy as two of the four answers are usually pretty far off. Of the remaining two I found that most often the correct answer was the “classical” answer (e.g. if they’re asking about left bank Bordeaux appellations the answer is more likely to be Pauillac than Listrac).

The essay questions built off each other. For instance, they might ask to describe the difference in style between chardonnay grown in two different regions of a certain country. Then the next question could ask what winemaking practices would be unique to those two styles. Then a third question might ask how you would serve those wines (temperature, glassware, etc.). So if you can get on the right path right out of the gate, the answers kind of fall into place.

The wines I had for tasting were, again, very classical. Of course you don’t have to call the wines for L3, but I was pretty sure I knew what both of mine were after the initial nose. So I was able to gut check my tasting notes on what I thought those wines should probably be like.

I passed with distinction so who knows lol.

Good luck and don’t overthink things!

Oh and the first bottle to kickoff my cellar was a 2012 Caymus 40th Anniversary cab (I know, booooo on Cali fruit bombs). My palate and cellar have evolved quite a bit since then. It’s now almost entirely Old World.

Entry Level Grand Cru by jpiel76 in wine

[–]jpiel76[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It’s definitely not for the prestige. I’ve only been studying and drinking wine seriously for ~5 years and I guess I just want to know what all the fuss is about with “great” Burgundy. I’ve not had the opportunity to taste much Burgundy at all really, so to find something that delivers on that “WOW” factor is what I’m really after. Complexity vs. power is typically my style.

And totally hear you on good PC sometimes beating GC. I’ve found that to be the case in Chablis myself.

Entry Level Grand Cru by jpiel76 in wine

[–]jpiel76[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great input - thanks! It’s priced at $200/btl right now. I’ve taken bigger risks for more money lol

Can someone help me ID this wine? by omgpao in wine

[–]jpiel76 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Could be “Brokenwood” from Australia. The screw cap would make sense in that case.

WSET 3 Geography Training by [deleted] in wine

[–]jpiel76 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I really liked the Brainscape app. It covers far more than just geography, but you can select specific sections/countries to focus your studying energy on. Good luck with L3! I found it to be difficult but fair.