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MELBOURNE | You know how wine snobs always talk about how important it is to have the right glass for the right wine? Well it turns out that it’s not just pretentious BS, and that there really is something to it. We were recently invited to a Plumm “Ticket To Taste” event at new Collingwood restaurant/bar/grocer/event space Project 49, and through the course of the 90 minute session were taught all about the importance of using the right glass for different wines. Leading the session was Project 49 owner, wine educator, wine maker and sommelier Rocco Esposito, a personable character who shared his knowledge in a casual, accessible manner.
Australian owned glassware company Plumm was founded with a simple idea, and that was to sift through the noise around wine and wine glasses and determine what actually has an effect on the taste of wine when it comes to the glass. Their research, travels, and consultations with some of the world’s top wine experts (and tastings of course), led to the conclusion that four glass shapes is all that’s needed to get the most out of all the different kinds of wine that exist. No more, no less. The four glasses are named REDa, REDb, WHITEa and WHITEb, and are made by craftspeople in Slovakia using the finest crystal around.
We were given one of each of the glasses, and told why the shape was important to the particular kinds of wine suited to each. Of course, being told something is one matter, but experiencing something for yourself is something else. We tried various wines in the proper glasses and in comparison glasses – a white in a taster glass or a red in a white glass for example, and the difference was immediately apparent. It’s not that the wines tasted bad in the wrong glasses, but more that certain flavours and subtleties were lost. A beautiful In Dreams 2015 Chardonnay, for example, lost some of its fruit flavours and subtle notes of oak when drunk out of the WHITEa, instead of the WHITEb.
As well as educating guests about the importance of using the right glassware, the wines were matched with delicious bites, and several food matching facts and tidbits of interest were passed on. The session was very interactive, and Esposito was more than happy to take questions from the guests.
There are several more Ticket To Taste events planned for the rest of this year, and it’s a fantastic concept that we’re happy to recommend to anyone with an interest in wine. Keep an eye out on The City Lane’s Melbourne Events Calendar for details – we’ll add them as they’re announced.