"Paris Trial", many wine lovers are not unfamiliar, today May 24 is the anniversary of the "Paris Trial of Paris" (Anniversary of Judgment of Paris), in order to commemorate the May 24, 1976 in Paris blind tasting meeting, the United States red and white wine successfully defeated French wine and sensational, this blind tasting is also known as the "Paris Trial".
It should be noted here that "Blind Tasting" does not require blindfolding. Blind tasting is to guess the variety, region and even specific to the winery and grape picking year by looking at the color, smell and tasting without providing any information about the wine. It is to let the wine taster collect clues through the flavor of the wine, and then through the corresponding knowledge reserve, carry out logical reasoning, and show the thorough understanding of the wine taster of a production area.
The advantage of this method is that it can put aside the prejudice against the wine brand and judge the quality of the wine through the first sense. The significance of blind tasting is that the quality and style of the wine itself can be better viewed.
1976 Paris Blind Tasting Contest scene
The Blind Tasting Club in Paris, which has gone down in history
On May 24, 1976, a British wine critic, Steven Spurrier, invited 11 of france's wine masters to a blind tasting at the InterContinental Paris.
The blind tasting is divided into two groups, one red and one white, with red wines made from Cabernet Sauvignon and white wines all Chardonnay. There are ten wineries in each group (6 in the USA & 4 in France). Among them, French wineries are well-known, while American wineries were some little-known wineries at that time.
Unexpectedly, among the two sets of red and white wines, the final winner was from the Napa Valley Deer Leap Winery and Monterena Winery, which caused a great sensation, it can be said that the mythical status of French wine was broken, and American wine also officially appeared on the world stage. Since then, the world map of wine has changed dramatically, with a new wine world led by the United States emerging and competing with old world wines.
Before the Paris Trials, people tended to focus on the appellation when talking about wine, judging the style of wine by the names of regions such as "Bordeaux Left Bank" or "Burgundy". The New World usually emphasizes the grape varieties used in wine. The emphasis of both can also be seen in the label styles of the Old and New Worlds, with the Old World highlighting the appellations and the New World often marking specific grape varieties.
Blind tasting of "Wine Industry" in Paris
"Wine Industry Storm" based on the Paris Trials
Later, a film called Bottle Shock (Chinese often translated as the wine industry) was made based on the Paris Blind Tasting Club. The film is set against the backdrop of a real Montreine winery that tells the entire story from wine selection to blind tasting, with characters and the winery appearing under their real names.
In the world of wine, there is no supposed king, and there is no eternal winner. Years can change a bottle of wine, but the beauty of the past will always remain in the heart of the taster.