WHY PÉTRUS?

We have conducted ‘structured’ blind tastings since 1996.  By ‘structured,’ we mean tastings in which we have asked outside tasters to taste and compare Lenz wines with leading wines, typically from France and California.  We have organized the tastings in a number of different venues, with slightly different formats but always with a first-rate panel of tasters and always seeking to compare Lenz wines with the best from internationally renowned producers, like Pétrus.

Recently, we have begun to focus more on French wines.  Why?  Two or three reasons.  The first is that stylistically, our wines are closer to French than California wines.  Second, we found that we almost always came in ahead of California wines - - that is, with higher points.  (This was not nearly so true in the San Francisco tastings where the California wines did well, owing, perhaps, to a trained ‘California palate’ among the West Coast tasters).  Mostly, we have changed format so that we can include more than one vintage of each variety in each flight without the flights getting unwieldy.  Hence, for a couple of years we have gone away from the double- or triple-blind format.  Now, we tell the tasters what wines will be poured and then ask them to rate and distinguish the wines.

We have found that the tasters enjoy the challenge, knowing that there are such distinguished French wines involved, and certain that they will be able to tell them apart from the Lenz, Long Island wines.

In general, however, we (and they!) have discovered that it is not at all easy to make the distinction.