Pigskin, wineskin…
By: Ben MacPhee-Sigurdson / Uncorked
via: Winnipeg Free Press
While I enjoy putting back a few barley sandwiches, wobbly pops or (insert nickname for beer here), wine is obviously my focus in these pages. I’m more than willing to pop a cork as I cheer, cringe and/or yell at Coach Kelly and company on my television. As it happens, wine descriptors apply quite nicely when describing the Bombers, for better or for worse…
Sour Grapes
Wine: Underripe grapes come from picking fruit early in the harvest. Portuguese Vinho Verde and many Sauvignon Blancs often show tart citrus flavours with high acidity.
Bombers: Fans have been vocal in their disapproval of the Blue and Gold. An acrid taste has lingered among a healthy contingent of fans…
Bitter
Wine: Like sour grapes, bitterness in wine isn’t always a bad thing — dry Spanish sherry often displays bitter characteristics, as do some dry reds lacking up-front fruit flavours.
Bombers: Sour and bitter go hand in hand here as well. Watching a Bomber game is a crapshoot — you end up either feeling elated or with a very bitter taste in your mouth.
Short Finish
Wine: Lighter white wines and reds lower in alcohol or tannin tend to have flavours that don’t linger for very long — often referred to as a short finish.
Bombers: Labour Day Classic, last play of the second half, third and goal. Bishop hands off to Fred Reid, who doesn’t make it into the end zone. Now that’s a short finish.
Hot Finish
Wine: Wines with higher alcohol content (14 per cent and up) and/or extensive oak aging often have a hot finish — an unbalanced wine that leaves you with a heartburn-ish aftertaste.
Bombers: Michael Bishop sometimes throws the ball so hard and so far, I worry it’ll hit a car in the stadium parking lot. Only Usain Bolt could run fast enough to catch a ball thrown with such a hot finish.
But it’s not all bad…
Explosive
Wine: An intense wine that delivers in a big way (fruit, tannin, etc.) is often described as explosive.
Bombers: Fred Reid. SSRqNuff said.
Full-Bodied
Wine: A big, heavy wine — when well-made, a full-bodied wine will show balance and poise. Examples include oaked Chardonnay or Viognier for whites, and Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Shiraz for reds.
Bombers: Doug Brown. SSRqNuff said.
W(h)ine/Bomber website of the week:
Angry Bomber Fans (www.angrybomberfans.ca) A local blog chronicling the emotional roller-coaster of the 2009 Winnipeg Blue Bomber season.
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uncorked@mts.net www.twitter.com/thegrapenut
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 17, 2009 F4
