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Tasting courses
Wine is the result of months or years of ellaboration which is opened most of the times in order to be enjoyed during a meal. It is therefore not given much importance or a main role in the conversation taking place at the table. However, as you dive into the work, patience and care that each cork seals in a bottle of wine, you get aware that sometimes it is worth taking the time to enjoy a wine separately, with no other thing changing the perception we get from it.
That is the moment is which tasting comes into action. Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to be an expert in order to appreciate the characteristics of wine. Nevertheless, having a certain amount of knowledge on tasting makes a glass of good wine an enjoyment for your senses. Tasting is a memory exercise which requires some concentration, but it is not an exact science. Subjectivity and personal opinions of the people taking part in the tasting are key points in learning and enjoying a tasting.
RIOJATREK offers different tasting courses, whether for those willing to initiate in the world of Rioja wines, or for those who want more details on varieties, harvests, or certain brands:
Introduction to wine tasting
The main aim of the course of introduction to wine tasting is teaching the attendees the methods for wine tasting in an approachable and well-reasoned way. In the meantime, we will lay some of the popular misconceptions surrounding wine to rest and we will teach you the best conservation and presentation habits. The different steps for the tasting are explained in detail along with its performance and you are given an orientation on the details shown on the label and on how to fulfill a tasting note. You will learn to distinguish different types of wines, the hints given by different winemaking processes, the different type of wood used in the barrels, the development of wines along time, and the basics on food-matching.
During the course, you will be offered a wide range of Rioja wines. The tasting consists of six wines that bring together different varieties and winemaking methods existing in the Protected Designation of Origin Rioja (D.O.C. Rioja):
- One white wine.
- One rosé.
- One red young wine (with destocked grapes).
- One red young wine (made with the carbonic maceration procedure).
- One red Crianza.
- One red Reserva.
The course of introduction to wine tasting will leave you eager to get deeper in the vast world of wine. With the knowledge you will acquire and a little bit of practice, you will get to distinguish characteristics and hints you would have thought impossible before. Above all, you will have a great time in the winery surrounded by a product created by nature and shaped by man.
Horizontal tasting
A horizontal tasting consists of presenting wines out of the same type and same harvest in order to analyse the characteristics of the wine production methods in different brands. This type of tasting is specially surprising for those who think that the year of the harvest is the most determinant point when you don't know which wine to choose.
Riojatrek offers two types of horizontal tasting:
- Tasting of young red wines made with the carbonic maceration procedure: these wines have been produced in Rioja for centuries. The blusters of grapes go into the fermentation vats completely, not being destocked. This way, fermentation is carried out inside each one of the grains thus producing wines a liitle fizzy in the mouth and with very characteristic aromas and flavours. Carbonic maceration wines do not leave the taster indifferent. The best time of the year for the tasting of these wines is during the first months once they are released to the market, in spring and summer, since they are not suitable for ageing.
- Tasting of red Rioja Crianzas: starting out from a certain harvest, you will taste six different wines belonging to the three areas of the Protected Designation of Origin Rioja (D.O.C. Rioja): Rioja Alta, Rioja Baja and Rioja Alavesa. Facts as the origin and selection of the grapes, the time of ageing in the barrel, the type of wood used during the ageing, and the ageing period in the bottle will play an important role when it comes to appreciate the different hints of each wine.
Tasting of Rioja white wines
Rioja white wines are generally eclipsed by the worldwide fame of the reds. Nevertheless, it is worth to get a deeper knowledge of this type of wines: with a careful ellaboration and certain techniques, there are white Riojas that astonish more than one neophyte. The wine production methods, varieties and timings in oak differ from the reds, as well as the sensorial perception during the tasting. The wines tasted in this option, all of them belonging to the Protected Designation of Origin Rioja (D.O.C. Rioja) are the following:
- Two young white wines with no ageing.
- Two young barrel-fermented.
- One white Crianza.
- One white Reserva.
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