#kusuda

It's been already quite a long time. Just some months ago and the memories seem to be fading away, it's nothing but a lost situation. Really only a vain event hidden deep down in the wrinkles of the unconscious. One must hunt it without any pressure. 

We've been through the whites and made acquaitance of Viognier, the beautiful lady of bold perfumes. Full of flower beds and honey and etheric oils. We'll come down from those clouds now, at least to the level of balloons to see clearly both the sky and the ground and appreciate the captivating depth of the fall to Syrah.

What is this king of dark peppery and fruity reds like? It is said that he likes "the view". Certainly this is not the only variety that is doing well in higher sites of steep hills looking upon a valley cut through by a majestic river. But to Syrah sunbathing on terraces fits very well. The area along the Nothern Rhône, particularly the so-called Côte-Rôtie ("burnt hill"), is one of the most valuable examples. Syrah is here full of expressive and diverse aromas. His grapes are rich in tannins, the substance which can be found in the skins and is responsible for the robustness and longevity of a wine. 

Talking about Syrah is necessary if you come to the Nothern Rhône because no winemaker would value other variety more. This was well visible at the Gaillard's house. 

The table started to be flooded with thirty heavy weights, wines, which were supposed to dissolve our doubts about the region and colour our teeth. There were three rounds of ten. Wines from each appelation where this domaine is powerful and amongst them some traps. We were driven through St. Joseph, Cornas and Côte-Rôtie. The only missing appelation was Hermitage but that would need it's own pedestal. 

I must admit that my ability to take notes was not ready for such a hard attack. And so unfortunately the memories are rather incomplete and the identity of most of those delicious wines will remain in secret as many of the fascinating pieces of art that have struck my instant sensations in art museums.

I imagine that the aim of this generous wine-tasting was to introduce the french Syrahs. However, unexpectedly the memory retained mainly the pieces that were beside the "normal". All of the Rhône wines were elegant, robust, often with animal tones and a good portion of ripe fruits. But suddenly amongst all of that nobleness appeared a moravian wine from Habanske sklepy, their Blauer Portugieser 2011. Quite a surprising example which cannot fight with the heavy Syrah but at least pulled me out of the daydreaming about french reds. Because then there came my personal favourite of the evening. The Japaneese wine-perfectionist Kusuda who is cultivating vines on New Zeland. He is said to be so punctilious that he asks his winepickers to cut off the "legs" of Syrah grapes, the side sprouts of the fruit which are usually considered natural. Even though his employees might find this weird, the Syrah 2010 from Martinborough proves that this tactics pays off. The wine was delicious and perfectly balanced.