I returned to Kansas City, MO for the second phase of my participation in the Academy for Academic Leadership’s Institute for Teaching and Learning last weekend. Some of the time was spent with a few colleagues from my home institution — NYU — and I had the opportunity to dine out with them on several occasions. Knowing of my academic pursuits in wine, they deferred to me in all matters vinous, even to the point of waiting for me to arrive at the bar to advise them on which glass of wine to order.

On the first night, our group met at the hotel’s revolving restaurant to prepare for our project presentation. When in Rome…, so we all proceeded to order steak — KC Strip and fillet mignon — making my job very easy. I chose a Cabernet Sauvignon from Simi (Alexander Valley, Sonoma, 2004 vintage) and explained the match between tannin and protein. All expressed approval at the selection. The next night, thre of us headed to the well-regarded Fiorella’s Jack Stack BBQ, which practically begged for Zinfandel [Zen of Zin, California (specific details not recalled), 2004 vintage]. It was a terrific match with the sweet barbecue sauce and burnt ends (one of the house specialties) and ribs.

Of particular interest, my colleagues were hungry for wine knowledge, asking detailed questions. Perhaps their roles as scientists can account for some of their inquisitive pursuit. But, more likely, I think it is their true interest in learning more about wine. One colleague noted that she had never had so many wines before and bragged to another that she had learned about five grapes — all in three days! Regardless of motive, I was delighted to sate their appetite with my knowledge and keep the bottles flowing.

While at the Austrian wine event, I ran into Reuben, one of my Diploma classmates. He is the Wine Director for the Monday Room, at Public restaurant on Elizabeth Street. He noted that he would be heading home to his native Ribera del Duero for a month’s holiday. Thinking that such a visit sounded quite nice, I asked him if I would fit in his suitcase. While not expecting an affirmative response, I was a bit surprised by his answer. He noted that there wouldn’t be any room left due to all of the wine he would be carrying.

I am always anxious to bring home wine from Europe on my own holidays, but never thought about someone wanting to bring wines back from America. Of course, it makes similar sense as my own purchases, but I guess I hadn’t really ever given it any thought. My classmate noted that he had a cellar at his home in Spain and liked to stock it with American wines in addition to his European collection.

This is certainly a vote of confidence in American wines, which are more recent additions to the wine world than their European counterparts. It also raises the issue about the difficulty in getting a diverse range of wines wherever you live. As a New Yorker, I am fortunate to be able to obtain wines from all over the world, but even still, may not find a lot of the smaller producers since they are unable to get representation/distribution. Likewise, a Spaniard can purchase lots of different Spanish wines, but may have less access to wines from California or Chile. Consequently, visits abroad (in whichever direction) are a great way to learn more about wines one would not ordinarily find at home.

On our last day in Oregon, I made the mistake of checking e-mail and found a thread of e-mails from my Diploma classmates. The first heralded the arrival of our Unit 3 exam results, with subsequent posts from fellow students who had run out to the mailbox upon receipt of the first. Unfortunately, from my vantage point in Oregon, I was much too far from my mailbox to retrieve my own score. I tried to put it out of my mind for the remainder of the day, as we still had a long plane ride ahead of us.

We landed at Newark Airport, eventually retrieved our car (after initially taking the monorail to the wrong parking lot) and proceeded to drive home. Jared dropped me at the apartment, with our luggage, and headed off to the parking lot. While I awaited his return, I unpacked our bags, emptied the dishwasher and generally put our life back in motion. He entered the apartment and was surprised to learn that I had not yet ripped open the envelope, so he quickly flipped through the stack of mail and bade me to open it right then.

On tenterhooks, I carefully opened the envelope and slipped the pages from its hold, unfolding them to read the results. I was filled with a sigh of relief as I read that I had earned a Pass with Merit. Needless to say, I was pleased with the score and felt much lighter knowing that the end of the Diploma is in sight. With only 9 of the 60 credits remaining, I feel more confident in my wine knowledge and in my ability to successfully complete the Diploma program.

As noted previously, I am in the midst of preparing for the WSET DWS Unit 6 – (fortified wines) exam. Fortified wines are those to which a neutral grape spirit has been added either during fermentation, generally rendering the wine sweet, or after fermentation, usually leaving a dry wine. The former process is indicative of Port and similarly-styled wines, while the latter pertains to Sherry and other dry fortified wines.

Among my study activities, I will be doing a number of tastings, particularly as I will miss the actual class and will need to do everything via "home study." Accordingly, I have identified my wine line up and placed my order. The list includes:

SHERRIES
Domecq, ‘La Ina’ Fino Sherry
Widsom & Warter Amontillado Sherry
Osborne Cream Sherry
Osborne Dry Oloroso Sherry

PORTS
Sandeman Ruby Port
Dow 10-Year Aged Tawny Port
Warre’s Vintage Port 1985

OTHER FORTIFIED
Domaine Coyeux, Muscat de Beaumes de Venise 2003

I considered purchasing a vintage port from my birth year (which shall remain nameless 😉 ), but I am old enough for it to have been beyond my budget, especially given that this is a tasting exercise, not a special event.