Eye-openers at blind-tasting

BLIND tastings are humbling events - at least for me. Long ago, I sadly came to the conclusion that I am (inherently) a bad blind-taster - my wife beats me every time!

I have just returned from a wine festival in Taipei where one of the wine events was a blind-tasting - of GSM (Grenache, Syrah and Mouvedre) wines. In short, wines of similar cepage to Chateauneuf-du-Pape (CDP). A very imaginative theme, a refreshing change from the usual Cabernet Sauvignon-based or Pinot Noir-based wines. In all my past experiences of blind tastings none of them had been centred on Grenache nor Syrah.

The six wines:

Three French, two Australian, one Californian.

Ch…