Floptina Boots (Cert)

19 Oct, 2026

white 1

white 2

i guessed chablis. felt confident
yellow. muted nose. lees / bread noticeable, malo. cool climate, lots of minerality

red 1

i guessed italy sangiovesse. didn't feel confident
ruby red. barynyard non-fruit forward. vanilla. struct(med acidity, med+ tannins super fine texture, med alcohol). was getting eucalyptus on this at the end

red 2

i guessed USA merlot. didn't feel confident and switched last second (was thinking malbec). i think i talked myself into smelling green/steminess which is why i guessed cab franc
purple, jammy high tone, vanilla. struct(high tannin and kinda rough, med alcohol, med acidity).
indy's friend guessed shiraz which would be good but i didn't get meat/black pepper other notes
ran low on time. final wine i was really rushing at the end. spent too much time writing notes / explaining why i made my guesses

see email
going in i was super nervous/doubtful because i had hardly spent time studying southern hemisphere / fortified / liqueurs. this ended up not being a problem because the majority of the questions were france/europe
surprisingly not a ton on soil
they did ask Qs about the uniquely listed Certified things so that's a good thing to study (e.g. terra rossa soil in coonawara, Cahors AOP
a lot of france/europe
not a ton on southern hemisphere

morgan MS (angler)
observations:
- time goes by fast
- got the 2 minute warning when still opening cork
- only 16 mins total
scenario = steakhouse serving french wine. MS + 3 guests. MS wants half glass of cornas, guests get the riesling reserve.
went well:
- opened champagne with minimal sound
- served clockwise
didnt go well:
- got yelled at by proctor lady for not showing up exactly 15 mins beforehand to get the instructions from the maitre d. need to write stuff down and remember it
- poured wrong splashes off the bat and only noticed when tableside
- couldn't answer majority of questions so seemed really unsure / apologetic
- had trouble holding champagne while cutting tin
- turned wire cap the wrong way, then when reversing it the wire is kinda messed up
- rushed thru champagne service cuz running low on time so skipped stuff (didnt pour sip for host first)
- forgot to set cork on coaster
- forgot the name of the champagne and returned to the table to ask the guy (cuz i was trying to remember the unfamiliar name of the cuvee).
- brought the champagne and forgot the cuvee. had to ask again "it was bollinger XXX"
other
- when he asked for alternative pomerol producers (after i didn't recognize the producer/cuvee he specifically mentioned and had to tell me it was pomerol), i said "how about Petrus tonight" and he literally lolled