My friends and I decided to have an amateur wine tasting. We aren’t experts and sometimes find it intimidating to be stuck with choosing which wine to order when at a restaurant. However, the assembled group have one thing in common: we all really enjoy drinking wine.

Are there good options that are also inexpensive? What would be the opinions of peers versus the experts and their complicated descriptions? Sure, all those adjectives sound pretty, but are a variety of tones, or, notes discernible to someone with an untrained palate or a lack of background in wine making and tasting?

Our group of enthusiasts compared one grape varietal from different regions. We chose Shiraz (also known by its French name, Syrah) because it is a bold red wine known for the characteristics of deep colour, berry notes, and spiciness.

Doing some research in an attempt to construct some way to “judge” the selections, I found there are four components to distinguish in wine: sugar, alcohol, acidity, and tannins. The fine balance of these parts determines the quality, depth, complexity, and structure (affecting how well it will age). I offered this information to the guests to keep in mind.

With a little bit of ceremony, (trying to be authentic) in the process, the wine was poured in large glasses meant for red wine. It was swirled to note the colour, how much the wine clung to the glass (”the legs”), as well as to aerate it, and inhaled deeply to detect the aromas. A sip was taken, lips pursed to draw in air as the wine slid over the tongue.

All in all, it was a fun little experiment, one where it had been accidentally forgotten to spit each sample. Instead, we easily drank a glass of each. If nothing else, we learned that having a wine tasting theme party can make for a great adult drinking game.

Our findings in order of tasting:

Woolpunda 2005 Shiraz, South Australia $10.05
Quite heavy, spicy, without much nuance. It could be one of those red wines that make people think they don’t like reds. Not for us. The popularity of Shiraz in Australia, it seems, has inflated prices rather than quality. This was the least expensive Australian Shiraz we could find at the LCBO.

Ubuntu 2006 Shiraz, Western Cape, South Africa $9.75
Right away, we could smell the fruit and sweetness, which was almost too much. It was refreshing for the first few sips, but soon became cloying. Even though we hate to waste, we weren’t too concerned about pouring this out for the next one.

Trapiche 2006 Syrah, Argentina $8.86
It was a good mouthful. One guest noted the berry notes from the first sniff, saying it was rich and fruity without being too sweet. We also noted a smooth finish. Make it a go-to wine because it’s a great deal without seeming cheap - although once it is matched against the label’s higher priced reserves, the difference in quality is apparent.

Castillo De Molina 2005 Shiraz, Chile $14.95
Better, with more complex tones, it made the Trapiche taste flatter in comparison.

Toasted Head R.H. Phillips 2004 California $19.95
A perfect balance of spice, richness, varied fruit, and a smooth finish. It was, by chance, the most expensive, which we didn’t know until afterwards. The overall favourite.

How a wine will taste will differ depending on the person, of course. What we noticed (or thought we did) in terms of the flavour, richness, sweetness, perfume, and yummy factor may likely be completely different from one person to the next. As they say, the only rule to know is just drink what you like.