Wine tasting question...

[Stewey]

Can someone explain to me what caused this?

I am still pretty new to wines. I know I like reds (syrahs probably the most so far) and gerwurtztraminers. So for thanksgiving, I decided to try hold my own wine tasting so I can actually experience/taste the differences in wines. I had one Pinot Noir and two Cabernets. I really enjoyed the Pinot Noir and had a full glass before trying the Cabernets. Once I opened the Cabernets I could actually taste some differences--such as a berry flavor vs. an oaky flavor. But I was not able to taste these distinctions for very long. After about half a glass of each of the two Cabernets, I began having this unpleasant bittery flavor in my mouth that would not go away. It was so bad that I could not taste anything other than this flavor. Would this be the tannins? I seem to remember hearing once that certain wines are "rich" and that you cannot have too much of it--similar to a rich cheescake I guess. Is that what I experienced?

[castironchef]

How "young" were the Cabs? Did you "let them breath?"

[DanBrown]

What were you eating? What wines were they (exactly)? Was it a metallic bitter taste? I've got some ideas, but I need more information first.

[Stewey]

Thanks for the responses. I am at work so I don't have all the details on the wines with me. But what I do remember is that one of the cabs was a Bogle 2001 or 2002. The other I can't remember for the life of me right now. I let them breathe for probably only 5 minutes or so--we were "thirsty" . They were both served cold. We drank them after the turkey dinner by probably an hour, so my palate was relatively clean. The Pinot was a Chalone vineyard 2003 or 2004--this was the wine I drank first with no after taste at all. And I don't know if this helps, but when I started getting the after taste from the cabs, my wife noticed that the back of my tongue was very purple--isn't the back the part of the tongue where bitter is experienced? She seemed to say that it looked "coated" as opposed to stained as with otter-pops or lollipops. There may have been a noticeable metallic taste--I know there was another flavor besides bitter--but the bitter was so overwhelming that I just couldn't taste anything else. I will post the third wine tonight. Thanks again!

[SushiGaijin]

hi.

all of those wines should be served at about room temperature. try them at the optimum temp before passing judgement, they should be decent bottles.

my guess, and a guess it is, is that the wines were very cold and you could not properly taste the size of the wine. those wines really develop with temperature into what they are supposed to be. When cold, they would be very smooth and easy to drink, but the acids and staining would indeed catch up with you. also, the aftertaste of the cabs (the finish) will be longer and bigger than the pinot noir, by style and definition. the pinot is usually a much lighter tasting red. even the "biggest" of the big reds tastes light and easy to drink when it is cold, but is much more robust at the proper temp. If you prefer lighter wines, start with reislings and guwurtzraminer and move into pinot gris and chenin blancs. once you are ok with a little dryness in your wine, try the reds again.

erik.

[Stewey]

Wow...thanks everyone for the input. Here are the exact names of the wines. 1) Chalone Vineyard 2004 Pinot Noir; 2) Bogle Cabernet 2002; 3) Gundlach Brundchu 2003 Cabernet.