Joseph was attracted to the culture of wine appreciation while growing up in his parent’s hotel. “Wine was quite simply the thing I was least bad at,” said Joseph.
“From the outset I became fascinated with all the different labels and names and bottles. I got the chance to taste lots of different wines, thanks to customers who failed to finish them.”
Joseph believes classic wine lessons teach the consumer to understand the wine. He explains how to judge its colour and the way it smells.
“If the wine is cleanly fruity or dirty, or musty, which would indicate a faulty cork – still far too frequent a problem – or sherry-like or vinegary, this would reveal that the wine is too old or has been badly stored,” said Joseph.
Wine tasters should swirl the wine around their mouths to allow its various flavours to hit all the receptors in their tongues. This is followed by the “spit and the pause to see how long the flavour lasts once it’s no longer in your mouth”.
He added that it was up to the consumer to decide if the wine was simple or complex, ‘oaky’ or acidic.
“The most interesting wines with the longest lasting flavours are the ones that win the highest awards,” clarified Joseph.
When asked about what goes into creating a valued blend wine he stated, “The same that goes into preparing a good dish in a kitchen, an understanding of flavours and how they work together.”
Joseph’s ideal location to taste wine was anywhere there’s good company, and maybe, but not necessarily, something agreeable to eat between sips”.
Details: www.wineshow.co.za
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