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  • How to conduct a simple blending trial

    Ok then, this is my first attempt at doing something positive and useful for the forum.

    I have read several threads where people express an interest in blending wines, this is something that I have been itching to have a crack at for some time.

    Before you start tipping bottles of various wines into a demi and swilling them round it would be a good idea to conduct a blending trial, this is how I did mine.

    First, I did a little research on the internet regarding blending and used a few basic ideas for doing a blending trial and tailored them to meet my needs.

    I selected Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz for the trial because 1. I know they blend well (it’s been done before) and 2. I happened to have both on my wine rack!
    National Wine Judge NGWBJ

    Secretary of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Society

    My friends would think I was a nut, turning water into wine....... Lyrics from Solsbury hill by Peter Gabriel

    Member of THE newest wine circle in Yorkshire!!

  • #2
    Equipment needed:

    1 bottle each of the wine that you want to blend.

    7 glasses

    An accurate way of measuring small amounts of liquids, I used a 10ml syringe.

    Some small sticky labels.

    A pen and paper.

    Some friends or family members to help “judge” the wine (this isn’t that important as you are attempting to determine which blend suits YOU.
    Attached Files
    National Wine Judge NGWBJ

    Secretary of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Society

    My friends would think I was a nut, turning water into wine....... Lyrics from Solsbury hill by Peter Gabriel

    Member of THE newest wine circle in Yorkshire!!

    Comment


    • #3
      Method

      Using the labels and a pen, identify each glass 1 – 7.

      Using the syringe, put measured amounts of wine in each glass as follows:

      Glass 1 - 40ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 10ml Shiraz or 80%/20%

      Glass 2 - 35ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 15ml Shiraz or 70%/30%

      Glass 3 – 30ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 20ml Shiraz or 60%/40%

      Glass 4 - 25ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 25ml Shiraz or 50%/50%

      Glass 5 - 20ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 30ml Shiraz or 40%/60%

      Glass 6 - 15ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 35ml Shiraz or 30%/70%

      Glass 7 - 10ml Cabernet Sauvignon and 40ml Shiraz or 20%/80%

      Make sure that you write down the contents of each glass on a sheet of paper.

      Turn the glasses so that the labels face away from you then if possible get someone else to move the glasses around randomly so they are no longer lined up 1 – 7.

      Start tasting. If at first you can’t decide on ones you like, discard the ones that you don’t like, we discarded 2 glasses after the first round of tasting. Carry on until you have a winner then look at the label and check against your sheet. In our case, glass 3 was the best blend (60% Cabernet Sauvignon & 40% Shiraz). You will now know what percentages of those 2 wines to blend on a larger scale.
      Attached Files
      National Wine Judge NGWBJ

      Secretary of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Society

      My friends would think I was a nut, turning water into wine....... Lyrics from Solsbury hill by Peter Gabriel

      Member of THE newest wine circle in Yorkshire!!

      Comment


      • #4
        Lastly, drink all the trial wine, much better with friends or family.

        The pics here are Mark disposing of the trial wine and us deciding if glass 3 or 4 was the best.

        Good Luck!
        Attached Files
        National Wine Judge NGWBJ

        Secretary of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Society

        My friends would think I was a nut, turning water into wine....... Lyrics from Solsbury hill by Peter Gabriel

        Member of THE newest wine circle in Yorkshire!!

        Comment


        • #5
          That's fab Richard, great job

          thank you



          I have added a couple of PDF files that may be useful during tastings....saves having to label the glasses

          hope you find them useful
          I downloaded them from this website
          Wine Aroma Dictionary: An easy to use logically presented list of wine tasting terms


          regards
          Bob

          Extra posts removed and topic locked as per other tutorials

          anyone else feel like doing a tutorial?
          more than happy to have them.
          Attached Files
          Last edited by lockwood1956; 21-10-2007, 12:11 PM. Reason: Added placemat for tasting glasses
          N.G.W.B.J.
          Member of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Makers Society (Yorkshire's newest)
          Wine, mead and beer maker

          Comment

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