A spirited wine affair

Col. Ravi Joshi gives a ring-side view of Spiritz Selection Blind Wine Tasting, which he has been conducting since its inception days.

If  I were to record a time lapse video of the Spiritz Selection Blind Wine Tasting (SSBWT) since its inception, the gamut of facial expressions could flummox even the best of artificial intelligence algorithms. Exaggeration apart, the range of wines and the diversity of palates in successive versions of SSBWT have ensured that the fielded wines face a healthy competition and the best of human sensory talent. Awards after all, are aimed at bringing out the best of the best, aren’t they?

Action on the Better Side of Caution

Much like the last year, this year too, SSBWT took place under the cloud of pandemic. However, this time around, apprehensions ran somewhat low with India seemingly having gone through the worst of the pandemic already. Nevertheless there could not be a let down on precautions and thus there were temperature checks, sanitising stations and more than ample social distancing at the spacious venue at Hotel Radisson Blu Plaza Mahipalpur, New Delhi.

Wines Vying for Awards

Thirty four wines from India and abroad segmented across four categories vied for the attention of the judges as each one of them was poured in flights arranged in logical sequences of complexity and price points. Serving temperatures are even more critical in a competitive scenario like this, and the Spiritz team working alongside the hotel staff did a flawless job of it. The big bold Reds were diligently decanted to accord them the respect they deserved.

In my opinion, SSBWT 2021 could have seen even more wines had it not been for the pandemic constraints on he supply side, as also the notoriously illusive implementation of the Delhi excise policy. However ‘doing your best’ is certainly a better option than taking no action at all. To that end, the credit goes to the SSBWT organisers that the event didn’t miss its date with the industry, thus bringing much needed cheer in these unprecedented times of duress.

The judges for the event were drawn from accomplished people of the alcoholic beverages trade and the credit also goes to them for approaching the tasting without any reservations.

A Continual Refinement

The proforma of tasting sheets for SSBWT has seen quite an evolution over the years. The focus has been on simplicity and a close granularity of marking, especially during close contests. Like the previous year, this year too weightages were allocated to appearance, nose, palate and finish. However, the format was made simpler by whittling away further drilled down characteristics of the previous year’s version, which were deemed as self explanatory to the experienced jury.

A brilliant aspect of SSBWT in this edition was also giving due weightage to label and packaging; wherein after the submission of evaluation sheets for the liquids, judges were shown the unveiled bottles to rate them on their aesthetics. This ensured a focused evaluation of all the important parameters of wines in the competition.

Evolution in Awarding

I was told by the Spiritz management that another big change this year would be the system of awarding the wines. While in the previous editions, only the top scoring wines were awarded the Gold, Silver and Bronze medals, this year a datum has been set, above which the wines which came between a particular range of scores were awarded medals applicable to that range.

In effect it meant that there was no embargo on the number of medals to be awarded provided a wine fell under a particular range of scores. But it also meant that a wine that scored below the minimum benchmark would fail to qualify for any award.

The winning wineries will have the authority to paste an appropriate sticker on their bottles that may be printed at their end for which the standard design will be provided by Spiritz Magazine with no commercials involved whatsoever. This in my opinion would give further credence to the fairness of the awards.

The wait is now, for the winning wines to be announced… Thankfully this year at a over on- ground awards ceremony though with a limited attendance due to Covid protocols. Here is raising a toast to the best wines of the country in advance.