The Wine Experience

Bart here. I recently attended the December Wichita Wine Experience again at the Candle Club.  This event is held monthly by Jamie Stratton and is open to anyone. You do not need to be a member of the Candle Club, just have an interest in wine.  My wife was out of town, so I took my sister Mary, who has become quite a wine aficionado the last several years. Instead of the usual Christmas party this year, he decided to go with a theme—choosing 6 red wines from the Wine Spectator Top 100!  For the price of $40 to attend, it was a no brainer. The wines chosen included Wine Spectator #4, a 2021 Faust Cabernet Sauvignon ($65) , #12, a 2022 Penfolds Bin 389 ($80), #14, a Turley Juvenile Zinfandel ($26), #17, a Bledsoe Family Cabernet Sauvignon ($52), #30, Kaiken Ultra Malbec ($25), and #51, a Bodega Muga Rioja Reserva ($40).  

As Jamie does every time, the evening ends with a crowd participation “ranking of the wines.”  The common denominator was the Wine Spectator Top 100 wine list, so a direct comparison is unfair as the wines are not otherwise similar. Of the 40 or so attendees for the evening, the Faust took home first place! This was followed by the Penfolds Bin 389 in second and the Bledsoe Family Cabernet a close third.

Our tastes were similar, but not the same, as the Wine Spectator Staff.  The top three wines were all bigger and more complex than the others, but all were special in their own right. As usual, by attending we received a discount on the wines tasted. Mary and I drove directly to Jacob’s yet that evening to further stock our wine cabinets!  If you are interested in wine here in Wichita, this is a great monthly event led by a well-known local wine professional, Jamie Stratton. It is held at the Candle Club, starts at 6:30 pm, and usually finishes before 8.  Ask at Jacob’s Liquor to be put on the email list for upcoming events, or contact him at Jamie@jacobliquor.com.