Lisa O’Doherty
I’m delighted to say that it’s that time of year again, when we put out the call to the many wine enthusiasts around the country asking you to tell us what ignited your spark, that first time when wine changed for you, that moment you went, “Mmmm …”
It always makes me think back to my start, my original spark. Now, in truth, I’ve always been a foodie, but I most certainly didn’t come from a wine family. I grew up in the 1980s in Dublin, and apart from a bottle or two of cheap plonk for Christmas, wine was not my parents’ tipple of choice. It was later, on trips to my grandfather in Spain for summers, as a young adult, and a gap year in Madrid, that properly introduced the noble grape into my life.
And truthfully, once I realised that it was acceptable, even encouraged, to drink wine, how do I put it ... earlier in the day, on the oh so sophisticated continent, well, I happily embraced the burgeoning European in me. This was the start of my introduction to the concept of wine with food, and the enjoyment of sharing both wine and food with friends and family. Little did I know then, it would become my passion and my career.
But a wine course taken too long ago to comfortably remember, and funnily enough, taken with my mum to spend some more quality time together, really got my oenological juices going. We were both a little apprehensive, a lot intimidated and frankly totally overwhelmed. However, we needn’t have been, as an incredible teacher, Mary O’Callaghan, whose knowledge and enthusiasm was infectious, smoothed the way for us and awakened my virgin palate.
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With that said, I still distinctly remember my first class. Mary gave us a Sauvignon Blanc to taste from the Loire Valley, guiding us through the WSET tasting analysis. We discussed appearance - clear and pale; intensity - pale and clear, a nose of gooseberries, citrus, with a little herbaceous quality, dry and crisp on the palate with high acidity and fresh zippy fruit. Being I’m a city girl, I have to admit, I didn’t know what a gooseberry was. So, in my trademark stage whisper, I turned to mum for answers, surely she would know?
Mary, hearing my query, quipped, “A hairy grape.” Still I was clueless. On Mary’s advice, off to the supermarket I went, to Superquinn, the fancy one, and over a few visits I smelled, touched, and tasted my way around the expensive end of the fruit aisle, training my nose and palate while desperately trying to avoid the loitering security guards, just to get my lightbulb moment. Eventually I did, and from then on, I was hooked.
Lots of study and qualifications and many years of experience later, I still love the stories, the senses, the flavours, the slightly crazy look in each wine maker’s eye, and the history of all things wine.
But it’s that moment, standing in front of a guest, when you hear that “Mmmm …” after they’ve tasted a wine for the first time, maybe even the one I’ve blended uniquely for the K Club that I’m so proud of, that’s the moment I love.
We are now in our third year of this competition and it is most certainly one of the highlights of the year for me. So, to all our amateur tasters, our oenophiles, our vinophiles and our connoisseurs out there … tell us about your spark, your wine moment, your “Mmmm...” moment. You can enter at irishtimes.com/competitions.
Dermot Powell, winner 2022
When I saw an article about this competition in the Irish Times this time last year, it triggered the epiphany I had experienced with wine back in the 1990s, when I lived abroad and had made friends with some great people from France, Italy and Greece. They guided me on the types of wine to drink and how to pair them with food. So, I just started writing, in reply to the Irish Times. I had forgotten all about it when I got a random call from the Irish Times to say I had made the final five.
At the K Club for the final judging, we were ushered into a room with a separate table for each person. The examiners sat at a top table. It had been a long time since I experienced a “You can turn your paper over now”, moment. I had a weird deja vu feeling, something like, please let it be Kavanagh and not Yeats, but this time it was, I hope there isn’t a question on malolactic fermentation (there was). Then I saw the glasses of wine for tasting, so how bad could it be?
Later, the fun continued at the dinner table, where we met the other finalists and the team of judges for the competition. There were more questions on wine, but it was really all about the five finalists talking about their passion. There were some great stories. Then, they announced the winner and it was frankly shocking to hear my name called out.
In exchange for writing a few words on how an encounter may have changed your relationship with wine, this competition offers the chance to go to the K Club to taste wines, tour their cellars, meet equally enthusiastic wine lovers, have dinner, stay overnight, and if you are successfull, win the opportunity to go on a very special trip to Bordeaux. Once in France, you meet with Pierre and others from Chateau Magnol, whose life is wine.
My advice is to spend time in Bordeaux city as well as in the vineyards. Lose yourself in the backstreets, discover a restaurant that does not have an English menu and simply ask for their recommendation and what local wine they would suggest. We did and experienced the best meal we have had this year.
I was fortunate enough to enjoy each of these experiences. If this is still not enough, I would add that you get to stay overnight again at the K Club, with a companion, and enjoy a sumptuous dinner perfectly wine paired by Lisa O’Doherty. Lisa will also bring the winner to a professional wine tasting, where you will meet sommeliers from many leading restaurants while expanding your palate and drinking some wine that would ordinarily be too far down a wine list.
