My "WOW" Wine

The Wine Spectator web site is publishing posts from their writers about their "Aha!" wines. An "Aha!" wine is the one that opened your eyes (or nose, or taste buds) as to what wine is, or can be. I like to think of them as "WOW" wines more than anything else. And, like in the movie Highlander, there can be only One. It is The One that changes your life. It's probably like in golf, when you hit an amazing shot, and then you're hooked on the game for the rest of your life. I wouldn't know about that; I subscribe to Mark Twain's theory on golf. Suffice it to say, golf and I never got along. We tried, but we just couldn't make it work. But I did have an "Aha!", or "WOW", wine and my olfactory senses have never been the same.

I was living in Los Angeles, and had taken a job at Wally's, a well-known wine shop located in Westwood. Some Hollywood heavies were having a wine dinner at a private residence, and I was one of the three representatives from Wally's that was asked to go and help with the wine service. They were doing a tasting of some legendary Bordeaux from some of the great vintages of the 20th century. The wines were Lafite Rothschild, Mouton Rothschild and Cheval Blanc from the 1970, 1982 and 1986 vintages. Even now as I write this, my mouth is starting to water and I might even be having some slight heart palpitations. These are all monumental wines, the likes of which I doubt I will ever have the opportunity to taste again. Why? Because they cost about $900 per bottle back in 1999, and probably command close to $2500 per bottle now, if not more.

As we decanted and then poured the wines into the glasses, the three of us were watching one another as if to say, "Don't pour it all! Don't pour it all!! We could taste what's left!!" Well, mission accomplished. Like little wine urchins, we managed to save enough so we could each have a taste of these modern-day classics, and scurried back to the kitchen while the party adjourned to the patio for cigars and Sauternes. We started tasting the 1970's. I was the least experienced of my colleagues, and these were the oldest wines I'd ever had. I wasn't sure what to make of them. My fellow wine stewards marveled at how good they were, and I just nodded and agreed. Then we went to the 1982's. First the Lafite, which had received numerous 100-point scores. Yep, pretty good stuff as I recall. Same for the Mouton, another 100-pointer; but I recall it seemed a little more muscular. Then we tasted the 1982 Cheval Blanc. I swirled and sniffed. My head popped up out of the glass. "Wow", I said. "That is really something. The aromatics on this are gorgeous."

That was the first thing of substance I'd said all night. Granted, it was not some earth-shattering observation, but still... I tasted, and I knew then I had to take this all in, because my wine world had just broadened to a level I didn't know was possible. It wasn't just the overall balance of the fruit and tanic structure, but it was also the mouth feel, like liquid velvet. I regret not having something to write with so I could take accurate notes, but I told myself, "remember...remember what this is like." It was moving, almost spiritual.

We moved on the 1986's, and they were quite good, although the consensus was they were still a little young. We talked about which one was our favorite, and before I could speak up one of my colleagues said, "Greg loved the '82 Cheval. Did you see his face? Here, finish it off." And with that, he went on to pour the rest of the wine from the decanter into my glass. Even though it had not been released yet, I felt like Gollum from the Lord of the Rings trilogy: "my precious... my precious..." I hurried off into the corner to be alone so I could give the wine the attention it so majestically commanded. I swirled and sniffed, tasted and swallowed. I took my time, but it was gone all too soon.

I had found my "WOW" wine.

Have you found yours?




"A man cannot make him laugh - but that's no marvel; he drinks no wine."
~WM. SHAKESPEARE, Henry IV Part 2