Monday, December 14, 2009

New Tasting Notes: What Do You Think?

I am conducting an experiment, dabbling with a new style of wine tasting notes. And I would love your input on the results.

Tasting notes can get boring, the same old words being used again and again, almost until they lose their meaning. You may not want to read the same old descriptors all the time. So I have been pondering over how to improve my tasting notes. I want them to be more exciting, though still maintaining their validity.

My first new tasting note was for the 2008 Heidi Schrok Muscat, and those who commented on my review all enjoyed the new style. It is a more descriptive style, trying to evoke the emotions and feelings that the wine brings out in me. I think this might be a more vibrant style which can better summarize the character and nature of the wine. I have followed that my first new tasting note with a review of a couple of Sakés. And more new reviews will be forthcoming.

I won't be using this new style of tasting notes all the time. Especially when doing reviews from large tastings with lots of different wines. But these new tasting notes will become more prominent on my blog.

Please give me feedback on these new notes. Do you like them or not? Do you find them useful or not?

5 comments:

Dale Cruse said...

I thought it was great. I know you have an interest in writing fiction. I'd love to see you try incorporating wine tasting notes into various forms of short fiction!

The Wine Whore said...

Honestly, you're writing and notes are great either way. Your new style is cool because it offers a different and also a fun to read approach to tasting notes.

Personally, any tasting notes that have a list of descriptors spewed out onto the page are a turnoff for me. Any way you can spice that up equals awesome in my book!

I say, keep experimenting and most importantly, HAVING FUN! :)


P.S. You're a total ROCK STAR!

Anonymous said...

I'm one of those guys that like reading tasting notes, regardless of how they are done, BUT I love the emotion you described. It was like taking a tiny tastebud journey with you.

@nectarwine

sam klingberg said...

i was just having a convo last night about how old and overdone wine reviews, and wine conversation in general is. we talked about new journalism (think gonzo, tom wolfe) and how cool that would be to incorporate, very similar to what you did.

cheer bro, blaze on.

Richard Auffrey said...

Thanks for all the support, and look forward then to more reviews in the new style!

And Dale, maybe you will see that in the near future!