THESKINI.COM

January 2007

Reveal Your Judgment

by Martina Priadka

In 1976, a small tasting in Paris changed the world of wine. On that day a charming room in the luxurious InterContinental Hotel was filled with nine of the leading wine experts in France, an Englishman, his colleague and one reporter. The nine French wine experts were the judges. The Englishman, Steven Spurrier, was the owner of Caves du Madeleine, a local wine shop, and was the event organizer. The reporter, George M. Taber, was the Paris correspondent for Time magazine and the only member of the press to accept the invitation. Neither Steven Spurrier nor George Taber had any idea that the little tasting pitting the new California wines against the best French wines of the time would cause such a stir, let alone still be discussed 30 years later.

As the nine judges swirled, swished, smelled and savored each of the twenty wines, a surprising trend emerged. The judges repeatedly mistook the California wines for French wines. Each of the wines came from vintages ranging between 1969 and 1973. California Chardonnay went head to head with Burgundy, and California Cabernet Sauvignon was set against the reds of Bordeaux. The result was astonishing: The judges had picked the winners and California came out on top.

In the number one spot was the California Chardonnay Chateau Montelena, 1973, followed by a 1973 Meursault Charmes from France. The irony was that the California producer had aimed to emulate the Mersault Charmes, his wife's favorite wine, and is doing so, surpassed even his own expectations. The top pick in the red category was much closer. This could have been because the red wines of California were not showing as well as the whites, alternatively it could have been that the judges, stunned by the results of the white wines, were much more concerned with getting the French wines on top. Whatever the case, the winner surprisingly went to Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, 1973, followed closely by Chateau Mouton Rothschild, 1970.

The public was shocked by the judge's decisions, but they were also curious. Wine shops sold out of the winning Californian wines within days. Thirty years later those wines are still selling strong and the world of wine looks quite different.

France still holds it's reputation as a leader in the wine world but California wines have come a long way since 1976. The quality levels and choices have multiplied exponentially.

This thirtieth year anniversary of the shocking Paris event is the perfect time to relive history. The tasting below will help you conduct a modern day version of the 1976 revolution of wine.

The original tasting:

*White wines

Chateau Montelena 1973, Meursault-Charmes 1973 Roulot, Chalone Vineyard 1974, Spring Mountain Vineyards 1973, Beaune Clos des Mouches 1973 Drouhin, Freemark Abbey 1972, Bâtard-Montrachet 1973 Ramonet-Prudhon, Puligny-Montrechet Les Pucelles 1972 Leflaive under the Sichel label, Veedercrest Vineyards 1972 and David Bruce Vineyards 1973.

*Red wines

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars 1973, Chateau Mouton-Rothschild 1970, Chateau Montrose 1970, Chateau Haut-Brion 1970, Ridge Montebello Vineyard 1971, Chateau Léoville-Las Cases 1971, Heitz Martha's Vineyard 1972, Clos du Val 1972, Mayacamas Vineyards 1971 and Freemark Abbey 1968.

The modern tasting:

Of course it would be near impossible, if not inhibitively expensive, to conduct the same exact tasting with the same vintages. As a substitute, a fun tasting is to get as many of the original wines as you like in similar vintages. Make sure they are covered and mark each with a number. Rather than using the original 100 point system make it ten points. Record your notes and discuss as you go. Put one person in charge of tallying the results and see what happens in your own personal judgment of France vs. California.

*Wines are listed in winning order

photo by Michael Chung

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