News 2018: 2 of our wines awarded by the Best Sommelier of the World

Domaine Vintur is thrilled to start this New Year 2018 with some more very positive critical reviews. Andreas Larsson, Best Sommelier of the World 2007, tasted two of our wines in blind conditions and gave the following scores and tasting notes:

Cuvee Selene 2015 - 92/100

Bright light golden. Fine nose displaying discreet oak with nutty and toasted notes - ripe citrus and elegant stone fruit. The palate has a bright freshness paired with generous fruit and finely underlined oak, toasted and nutty finish with good length and balance, really good.

White Tradition 2016 - 89/100

Bright light golden colour. Pure nose displaying young fruit, pear, peach, some herbal notes and fresh almond. Well balanced palate with good weight and fruitiness, yet a fresh backbone and rather long finish, nicely made.

Andreas Larsson comments on his scoring system that his scoring is generally 3 points lower than other sommeliers and journalists. He believes that this difference is the result of doing a blind tasting. He says: “Without a label, everything tastes real!”

Andreas Larsson is the Best Sommelier of the World (2007 ASI). He has a discerning palate and is a passionate wine lover. He is known not only for his incredible tasting abilities and vast knowledge, but also for his friendly and professional approach. He has a relaxed manner and is a highly sought after taster, speaker and educator within the vast field of gastronomy, food, wine and other beverages.

Here below Andreas Larsson shares his method of scoring wines: “Evaluate a wine is something very subjective and, every palate is different. Perfection is something very personal, that’s why I rarely give a 100 Point score. And in the end the comment is more important. That’s also the reason I like to follow a wine several times, particularly during its first 2-3 years when it often changes the most and the consumer needs guidance.

From the beginning, back in the 90’s when he was a young sommelier, Andreas Larsson was a firm believer in blind tasting as the only true way to taste wine. The absolute objectivity of blind tasting allows the taster to focus exclusively on his or her senses, without preconceptions about the wine clouding their judgement. Andreas focused mainly on that tasting approach when on his quest to become Best Sommelier of the World, a goal he reached in 2007; and he attributes his success largely to his dedication to blind tasting all levels of wine and spirits.

Sharing Andreas’s vision, we at TASTED 100% Blind decided to organise scored blind tastings with Andreas, as a feedback and promotion tool for all winemakers – from the Bordeaux Grands Crus to the youngest wineries of the New World. We treat all wines and spirits similarly: all will be blind tasted by Andreas Larsson in optimal and perfectly identical conditions. We can thus guarantee that all tasting results are perfectly objective and trustworthy.

There is no distinction made among the wines we taste. Every wine or spirits maker can submit products to Andreas’s verdict, and all will pay the same participation fee. The most affordable and the most expensive wines will also benefit from the exact same treatment during transport, storage and service. This way, the tasting results are perfectly comparable, and can be confidently used by wine producers as qualified feedback for their wines and/or as powerful sales arguments.