Third place at the Dutch National Blind Tasting Championships

Midway through 2023, I received a message asking if I wanted to participate in the Dutch Blind Tasting Championships. Team Extra Brut was looking for a new team member. "Yeah, great, but I'm feeling the pressure," I replied. They'd already won twice and lost out to other countries at the World Championships in France. So, with Jesper Moonen and the wine twins, Juliette & Maxime Zandbergen, I found myself in a well-oiled machine. Last Sunday, it was finally happening. Twenty teams gathered in Zeist for the Dutch Blind Tasting Championships.

A team consists of four tasters and, if desired, a coach. A coach doesn't participate in the tasting but helps the tasters form a conclusion. The teams are presented with 12 wines, one at a time, which they must blind-tast. The jury requires information about the grape variety, country, region, year, and producer. A total of 25 points can be awarded per wine.

What wines were served?

Short summary: it was incredibly difficult. The furmint from Vega Sicilia in Hungary, the white Château Musar, a unique Vinho Verde, a Bordeaux blend from Veneto. I was feeling discouraged. Did we do this right?

It turned out we did! We took third place with 79 points . Below you'll find the wines – I couldn't resist adding my raw thoughts on them as well.

#1 Gusbourne, Blanc de Blanc, Kent, 2018

Noooo, it crossed my mind because the acidity was so high. But the chance of an English sparkling wine seemed slim to none. Little did we know. Still, points for the grape.

#2 Quinta do Tamariz, Vinho Regional Minho Reserva, 2017

Crazy Vinho Verde. We thought it was Soave.

#3 Mandolas, Tempos Vega Sicilia, Oremus, Tokaji, 2021

I don't have Furmint in my system. It's a lovely wine, though!

#4 Chateau Musar blanc, Beeka Valley, 2017

Who would expect this obscure wine to be at the National Championships? We were torn between an aged Burgundy and a white Rioja. Actually, that's a pretty apt description for this wine. It ended up being Burgundy, which gave us some points for the grape, since Obaideh is the same as Chardonnay (I never knew that).

#5 Hugel, Pinot gris Grossi Laüe, Alsace, 2012

Giller, because I had tasted this exact wine from this vintage. Yet, it came across quite differently this time. Blind tasting really does change your mind. The wine now seemed quite sweet and somewhat thick, and probably because we'd just tasted the fresh furmint, that was accentuated. We had the grape and the grape taste right, but unfortunately, the producer and vintage weren't.

#6 Donny Doon, Le Cigare Volant, Central Coast, 2021

We were torn between Gamay, Grenache, or perhaps something simpler from Valpolicella. We ultimately chose a Grenache blend from the Rhône. Not bad.

#7 Dominique Piron, Beaujolais Morgon du Py, 2022

We missed some spots here. We were more in the Malbec/Syrah corner, although Gamay was also mentioned. Still, the country and the year were good.

#8 Drouhin, Beaune Cras 1ere Cru, 2019

A very ripe Beaune 1er cru. It felt very new world, but still scored points.

#9 Château Lagrezette, Cuvée Dame Honneur, Cahors, 2020

We thought we recognized a Ribera del Duero in it. My bad.

#10 Numanthia, Toro, 2018

Unfortunately, we thought it was a South African Bordeaux blend.

#11 Gasparini, Capo di Stato, Veneto, 2019

Oh my god, I know this one, because it's from Platenburg/Les Genereux. It's a bit of a stretch for the organizers: a Bordeaux blend from Veneto, Italy. We thought it was a Cabernet Franc from the Loire Valley. It also had a greenish note. It did score a few points, though.

#12 Tschida Angerhof, Muskat Ottonel, Burgenland, 2022

An Austrian Muscat, who would expect that? We did, because we were right. It was a gamble, but a well-considered one. The wine screamed Muscat. We all agreed on that. You automatically go to Beames-de-Venise, but we didn't think the alcohol content was right. It seemed quite low: 10% or so. For a Muscat from Alsace, we expected a richer flavor profile and more acidity. For lack of anything better, we chose Austria, and with that, we managed to snag 20 points at the last minute.

The podium places

We tied for third place with Provino (Cees van Casteren MW, Dirk Vanhorenbeeck, Alessandro Matrone, and Hans Meijs). The Brabant Wine Society are avid wine tasters and, according to some, taste every Monday evening. They're very enthusiastic, and therefore deservedly number one and two.

BRABANT WINE SOCIETY 2: 100 points
BRABANT WINE SOCIETY 1: 93 points
EXTRA BRUT: 79 points and PROVINO: 79 points

Next year again

The next Dutch Blind Tasting Championships will take place on May 31, 2025, and we'll be there again. Blind tasting is easy to learn. The trick is practice. Practice, practice, practice. That's the secret. Will you join us next year?

Check the press release from NK Blind Tasting 2024 .