Wynn Magazine - Las Vegas
Issue link: http://digital.greengale.com/i/81170
VINE ARTS Selections from Wynn's Luxury by the Glass program include a 1999 Château Petrus Pomerol, 2003 Dom Pérignon, and 2009 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon. the matter. "With wine cultivation evolving over millennia and across continents, a unique style can be both impeccably crafted and totally subjective. Is it the soil? Is it the humidity of that particular growing season? Is it the wood used for the barrel? Is it the loving care of the winemaker? I think each of these factors truly contributes," says Morton. "I love a wine that has a layered complexity of aro- mas and flavors that touch different spots in the mouth, the nostrils, and the top of the head. Which wine that is varies according to the moment, the mood, the company, the accompaniments, or lack thereof. Happily I have found that there is a wine for each moment and many I have yet to discover." " What makes a wine stylish— or great—is balance." SIPPING PRETTY Beauty is in the eye (and on the palate) of the beholder. BY AMY ZAVATTO "F 116 WYNN ashion changes, but style endures." So spoke Coco Chanel, that eternal oracle of style. It's a notion that's apropos for grapes as well as garments. Does wine have style? Of course it does. There are the vintages that become classics, the producers who earn fame for their care and craft from vineyard to bottle, and the stunning, eye-catching bit of well-curated art on a label. There's a wine's depth of color, body, and grace on your palate. These ele- ments might seem elusive, imbued with a bit of mystical hocus-pocus, but like a well-made piece of clothing or a stunning painting or a car whose engine purrs the second you turn the key, there's more than magic in the mix. In any of these things, style requires good bones. "The wine industry as a whole is a lot like fashion and somewhat cycli- cal," says savvy sommelier and Wynn general wine buyer Mark Thomas. "There are periods of experimentation and periods of focus on roots and where things come from, and within that there's always something new that expresses itself. And from that, a few things that squeak through and become part of the norm, from new places to plant vines to new ideas in the vineyard and the winery." But how does such evolution occur? Michael Morton, owner of Wynn's vino-centric spot for sensory exploration, La Cave, has some thoughts on wynn general wine buyer —mark thomas, How does one discover such treasures? Tasting, tasting, and more tasting—something Thomas understands very well. It's the reason he created Wynn's new Luxury by the Glass program, for which Thomas has placed state-of-the-art Enomatics— wine-dispensing and preserving machines that can dole out one- to three-ounce pours—into the Tower Suite Bar, offering guests the opportunity to taste some sought-after and truly great exemplars of wine style. Like what, you ask? Oh, how about a little Château Mouton-Rothschild, 2005 edition? Or a 1982 Château Margaux, 1999 Château Lafite Rothschild, or Wynn's own special Cabernet Sauvignon cuvée from 2008? All those and more are now available by the glass, so go ahead and try all of them. Even better, Thomas has also brought the same idea into Lakeside and Bartolotta, where he's popping some pretty exciting corks on great wines usually reserved for those prepared to commit to an entire bottle— and he has plans to expand the program. So how does he curate such a lauded list of grapey greats? It all goes back to the notion that the beauty of a great wine lies within. "To me, what makes a wine stylish—or great—is balance. It is first and foremost in my mind," he offers. "And that balance is based on the grape and the typicity of that grape varietal and what's unique to that grape. It's also the balance between all of a wine's elements—strength of tannin, flavor, acidity, and of course how each individual grape's characteristics are exhibited. And that starts in the vineyard." True enough, but you can't discount a great artist in the mix either. After all, you can have the finest cloth in the world, but in inept hands it may amount to no more than a gunny sack. Care in the vineyard and in the winery can make the difference between a revolutionary experience on your palate and a forgettable one. Morton best sums up the notion of spotting true style in wine: "What makes a wine stand out? When it stops me for a moment from talking or eating," he says with a laugh. "Maybe for a long moment!" ■ PHOTOGRAPHY BY ALEX KARVOUINS