Wine tasting/champagne and sparkling wines
Several Rusters are involved in courses; Alice (Mansfield) goes to an art course on British modernism, Bob (Tickler) and Ivan ( Conway) on languages, all at their local learning centre and I attend irregularly a wine course. There is a common denominator as in every one there is a a know-all imposing their views on the class. Alice was saying that on recent curated tour of Tate Modern one attendee had to give her reaction to each and every picture “What this is telling me is …”
Often such people in reality want everyone to know how clever they are. I remember from my school education the cleverest pupils were the quietest but there was a second vocal level of intelligentsia who could not let any subject pass without the benefit of their views.
In the course on champagne and sparkling wine last night we had such a lady who also thought of herself as a wit and character. It has to be called champagne and sparkling wines as Champagne has protected their marque.
English vineyards produce some wonderful sparklers: Nye Timber, Chapel Down, Ridgeview, Camel Valley to name but four. They cannot call it champagne though. Prosecco have also protected their marque.
Champagne is a triumph of marketing. It is indelibly linked with celebration.
How much poor, cheap champagne have we all drunk at weddings?
Some will serve champagne with birthday cake even though there is a clash of taste between a cake’s sweetness and the acidity and dryness of champagne.
The event got off to a troubled start as only 14 of the 21 attendees were there. The tutor said you needed 15 to open an extra bottle on each round of tasting. One attendee remarked fractiously this was unacceptable as the course provider had the money of the absentees. The tutor retorted they could still come to another course. I was not that bothered but I was when one bottle was corked.
The most interesting wine I drank was a glorious Moscato d’Asti bottled as frizzante rather than spumante.
It was deliciously floral and sweet sparkler making a much better dessert accompaniment than champagne.