Still Water Tasting - Open University Style

Having seen the Open University programmes as a youngster eagerly anicipating the start of early morning children's programmes, I never anticipated being in a situation where I'd be dealing in, ironically, dry subject matter and number-based diagrams. Thankfully, I think that I have better dress sense than the learned, if uninspiring, science teachers!

Anyway, I think that for the purposes of understanding more about waters with wines, we should taste a wide variety of waters. These are not all waters that Aqua Amore distribute, as some are not even available in this country, save for the samples we have acquired for tasting purposes. The criteria I am using to differentiate these waters is a selection of:

- Origin (rain, artesian, glacial, spring)

- TDS (overall mineral content)

- pH (acidity/alkalinity)

I have also selected London tap water in the interest of comparison purposes, since some people will undoubtably use this as their starting point as a drinking water of preference.

To evaluate the waters, we are using an excellent taste evaluation inspired by the International Association of Sommeliers. This takes into account the taste sensations mentioned in my previous blog.

This has saved us an unbelievable amount of background research and provides the template for our understanding moving forward. Hopefully as we begin to understand more about which waters suit different grape varieties, we'll be able to retrospectively understand how features such as freshness, acidity, balance and structure affect the taste of the wine.

According to the Open University style diagram, without having to study the results, there is quite a noticeable difference in the organoleptic properties of the eleven waters. 

Just as a starting base for dispelling the populist misconception that 'water is water', the results are significant and indicative of the variety of results that we are likely to have in 'Minerals & Terroir'.

Roberto' s analytical nature prompts him to predict that the key elements here will be freshness, acidity and sapidity. Nicolas' head is spinning with excitement at the promise of discovering more about this subject, after such a great variety in results. And I need to pay a visit to the gents.

Acidity, by the way, is the freshness (sensation of cooling), experienced when the water is on the palate and when it has first been swallowed.

Eve to Adam

To first understand what we are working with, I have selected a variety of still and sparkling waters.

When people generally 'taste' water, especially wine specialists, they always tend to look for immediate 'taste' experiences. You'll often hear 'chalky' or 'minerally' used to describe a water. 

This, however, overlooks the subtle and fundamental aspects of water tasting.

Tasting a water in isolation of any other is rather like Adam seeing Eve and determining that there could be no woman more beautiful on Earth. Of course, had he sat through an afternoon of MTV, he would have probably set his sights a little higher.

Once a number of waters are tasted alongside one another, it becomes apparent that there are differentiation factors that should bear relevance to the appreciation of character. These differences are qualities that should be considered in addition to 'taste'.

There is the 'freshness' of the water - how cool is it when the water first hits the tip of your tongue. Is it fairly dull, like tap water, or does it possess a natural 'cooling' sensation that give an immediate sense of refreshment. In addition to this, there is the element of how 'fresh' the water feels when on the palate and when it is swallowed. 

Other considerations are the structure, lightness and softeness of the water. When carefully considered and scored, it becomes quite apparent that there is a great variety in the constitution and 'taste' sensations offered by different waters.

Wine List *gulp*

Well, it certainly looks comprehensive, this is provisional wine list. It will be updated as we progress. Since we're going to be tasting on Saturdays, as and when we can, we'll certainly be getting to spend a lot of time together over the coming months!

WHITES

France

Loire Valley

• Sancerre/Pouilly Fumé
• Saunur/Montlouis/Vouvray
• Muscadet

Burgundy

• Chablis
• Aligoté
• Côtes d'Or

Bordeaux

• oaked
• un-oaked

Rhone Valley

• Côtes du Rhône (Marsanne/Roussanne)
• Condrieu/VdP Viognier

Alsace

• Gewurztraminer
• Riesling
• Muscat d'Alsace (dry)
• Pinot Gris

South (Roussillon/Languedoc/Provence/Southwest)

• Côtes du Roussillon/Coteaux du Languedoc (Grenache blanc/Macabeu/Crignan blanc etc.)
• Côtes de Provence
• Jurançon Sec/Pacherenc du Vic Bihl Sec

Italy 

• Fiano
• Gavi
• Soave
• Pinot Grigio
• Vernacca
• Insolia

Spain

• Rioja (Viura)
• Rueda (Verdelho)
• Rias Baixas (Albariňo)

Portugal

• Louriero (Vinho Verde)
• Bical (Dao/Bairrada)
• Maria Gomes (Bairrada)
• Arinto (Becelas)

Germany & Austria

• Riesling
• Scheurebe
• Gruner V.

Lebanon

• Chardonnay (oaked)
• TBC

New World

Australia

• Chardonnay
• Sémillon
• Riesling

New Zealand

• Sauvignon
• Chardonnay

South Africa

• Chenin Blanc
• Sémillon

USA

California/Oregon/Washington

• Chardonnay
• Sauvignon
• Viognier
• Chenin Blanc

Canada

• Chardonnay
• Sauvignon
• Sémillon

Latin America

• Torrontés Argentina
• Viognier Argentina
• Chradonnay Chile
• Sauvignon blanc Chile
• ...
• ...

REDS

France

Loire Valley

• Saumur Champigny/Chinon/Bourgueil
• Sancerre

Burgundy

• Côtes de Nuits
• Côtes de Beaune

Bordeaux

• Medoc
• Libournais

Rhône Valley

• Crozes Hermitage/Cornas/Côte Rôtie
• Vacqueyras/Gigondas

South (Roussillon/Languedoc/Provence/Southwest)

• Côtes de Roussillon/Coteaux du Languedoc
• Côtes de Provence/Bandol
  
• Gaillac/Madiran

Italy

• Nebbiolo
• Barbera
• Sangiovese
• Aglianico
• Nero d'Avola

Spain

• Rioja
• Priorat
• Ribera del Duero

Portugal

• Tinta Roriz/Touriga Nacional etc.
• Baga (Bairrada)

Lebanon

• TBC

New World

Australia/NZ/USA/South Africa

• Cabernet Sauvignon
• Shiraz
• Merlot
• Pinot Noir
• ...

Latin America - Argentina, Chile

• Malbec
• Carmenere
• Bonarda
• ...
• ...

I know that a number of wine people will point at this and say 'impossible', all wines, regardless of grape variety are different.

This is where the expertise of Nicolas and Roberto will come into play, so that an 'typical' example of an NZ Sauvignon, for example, can be selected. This should give adequate representation of the type of water that will best match the varietal.

Planning for the tasting

Roberto and Nicolas between them know quite a lot about wine. I, on the other hand, know next to nothing. I am hoping that in this instance, my lack of knowledge on wines will enable me to offer a layman's perspective, which should help gauge how relevant the varying combinations of wine and water to an untrained palate.

We started the first session with the intention of mapping out our taste experiment and determined that the most thorough way to gain an understanding of the water and wine would be to first taste the waters in isolation in order to understand the characters better and then taste the waters alongside a comprehensive list of wines.