• What is it? One of the most prestigious competitions in the United States, featuring wines from around the world. Some 2,800 were entered, and my panel judged about 200 over two days.
• When and where: Feb. 1-2, 2010, Dallas
• Biggest surprise: That the judging went so smoothly. It's not that I thought it wouldn't; rather, it's that any competition with that many wines has plenty of room for glitches. But we didn't have any. The group that worked with us -- Rusty Brenner, Dana Olsen and Carolyn Westberg -- were top notch.
• What's different: We had celery as a palate cleanser. I'm not kidding -- that's a big deal. When one judges that many ones over such a short period of time, it's difficult to keep the palate fresh. Usually, competitions provide bread, cheese and sometimes little slices of roast beef. The celery was a revelation. Washed all those tannins right out.
• Who I judged with: Ron Ruggles of Nation's Restaurant News, an old pal form my newspaper days; Bob Small, who runs the Los Angeles International Wine Competition; and Shelli Brinson of King Estate, one of their top sales people.• Compensation: A $200 honorarium.
• Overall: Much more fun that I thought; again, not because judging isn't enjoyable, but because we had so many wines to do over two days (including almost 100 zinfandels). That is a daunting prospect. In addition, we got to taste some odd grapes, which is always a treat. That included the Eastern European saperavi, which we gave two golds to. Plus, the others on the panel were terrific, and I learned a lot, especially from Small, who shared his perspective as someone who runs a competition.
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