- T-H-I-C-C, thick!
- That's what he said.
- Slow down. - Stop, stop, stop.
(laughing) - Just like that.
(laughing)
- You need to slow down, Maggie.
(energetic music)
(clapperboard claps)
- You can start.
(laughing)
- Hi, I'm Ariel.
- I'm Becky.
- And we're here at The Blending Lab in Los Angeles
We're going to make our own wine.
- Make our own wine. - Today.
- [Both] Try Wives Wine Time!
- We've changed our outfits today.
Becky and I got a little bit sick of the onesies.
- They're a little toasty.
We nixed them for another reason too.
It's 'cause we only had two onesies.
Here, for the first time,
in a Try Wives Wine Time,
it's Margaret Bustamante!
- Yay, Maggie!
(cheering)
- I actually don't drink a whole lot of reds,
so we'll see how this goes.
- I do like red wine better. - I like red wine better.
- Oh, you do? - 100% yeah.
- I thought you were always a white wine drinker.
You're always drinking white wine.
Maybe it's 'cause we're in public.
You're worried about the tea!
- I only drink red in secret.
- I only see you drink red in your apartment.
- You're a secret red drinker. - I guess that's true.
- That's true, it's a fact.
- Let's drink some wine, you guys.
- Yeah!
- Teaching us today is Michael.
He's the owner and the teacher of The Blending Lab.
- Michael! (clapping) - Hey!
One of the best ways you can get started with this is
just for me to understand
what kind of wine do you guys usually drink.
- I usually like Syrahs or Pinots,
but I also like Malbecs too, I don't know.
I just see it, I like it, I drink it.
(laughing)
- I typically go for a Cabernet of some sort.
I like a medium body.
- [Michael] Medium body?
- Yeah, I don't love a ton of tannin, like that very acidic
- You're of the old world, or more of like
that California style.
- I like the old world a little better.
- I like my wine cold.
(chuckling)
Cold white wine.
I see a lot of red in front of us.
- There's a lot of red. - Wooh!
- [Ariel] I'm okay with that.
I'm ready to broaden my wine horizons.
(classy music)
- Before you put it on though, maybe
start with wine one and put a little splash in your glass,
so you don't spill.
Just enough to get a good initial taste.
That's perfect.
- Okay.
- [Michael] Here, I will help you out.
- Oh, it's on this side! - Yeah, there you go.
Right there.
I usually tell people the first sip
that you have of each of these wines,
drink it like you normally do.
(upbeat guitar music)
(lips smacking)
- [Ned] Wine number two.
- [Ariel] Thank you.
- [Becky] Thank you.
- Blind cheers.
- Don't do it too hard though.
(glasses clinking)
(laughing)
- (smacks lips) Taste like wine.
(wine pouring)
- You know why we have to be blindfolded?
It's because it heightens all of your other...
- Senses - Senses, yeah!
You can hear what the wine is saying.
- Drink me!
- Okay, go.
(classy music)
- I forgotten what the first one tasted like.
(classy music)
- Who liked wine number one the best?
- Number one was really light and I liked it.
- I thought it was a little too light
like I could've shot that whole thing back,
which is usually not my preference in wine.
(laughs)
- [Michael] Two?
Did you still remember what one tasted like?
- Yeah, I remember I didn't like it.
- How about three?
- Oh, wow, we're even split. - Oh my god!
- You guys are all over the place.
Let's start off with wine number one
and let's break down these fundamentals.
So the basic fundamentals of wine tasting
or finding out what you like about
acidity, sweetness, and body or texture.
- Taking notes, acidity...
- Totally take notes.
Just looking at a wine will actually tell you
what's going on with those three things.
Let's talk about color first.
So that's actually linked to pH.
The redder a wine is, the lower the pH,
meaning the more acidic the wine is.
The more purple it is,
the higher the pH, and less acidic.
You'll notice this wine's pretty transparent.
- It's almost clear, almost looks like water on the edge.
- So pillar number two: texture.
Like we don't expect a ton.
Swirl that glass around.
- Waaah. (beatboxing)
- Alright, you guys can stop. So what you wanna look for now
is the sugar concentration.
The legs.
If you look at these droplets, though,
they seem pretty big in the grand scheme of things,
like I've definitely seen smaller legs.
- That's what he said.
(laughing)
- So that's a pretty good clue actually
that this wine right here has good sugar.
The thinner the legs and the more tightly
they all drop together, the less sugar that you have.
- I need more space for notes.
- [Michael] Give it another swirl,
and then what I want you guys to do is quick sniff.
(sniffing) Like this.
- Oh!
(sniffling)
- Oh, Ariel! (laughing)
(sniffling) - Oh, she's congested
(laughing)
(sniffing)
- At this point, we're all trying to figure out,
what is that fruit that I'm supposed to be smelling?
- Ras?
- [Becky] A raspberry, that's what I was gonna say!
- Smell like something? - Raspberry?
- I think it smells like a under-ripe raspberry.
- So I always like to start with this idea
of sweetness and ripeness.
This wine has some decent ripeness to it,
maybe it's like a little past overripe.
I want you guys to check out these aroma wheels here.
- That's exactly the opposite of what we said.
- I was like, uh... - I know!
I know, right?
Go through and pick a fruit genre
that you think this smells like.
Could be something on the riper side?
- A black fruit? - A black fruit.
- I was thinking black fruit too.
- Red fruit?
- I tend to agree with the red fruit.
- Of course you do, Michael.
- Now we need to rate the wine in terms
of that acidity, the sweetness, and the texture.
- Definitely not cat piss.
- That's good.
- It's not musty cardboard.
- Oh my god, there's a wet dogs.
- Sweaty, leather saddle.
I love that.
- [Michael] So with this wine, we've got
decent acidity, good sugar, low tannins.
So now this is your benchmark wine.
You're asking yourself how would you
fix this wine using the other two.
Like is there one on that you'd change?
- The acidity.
- The acidity. - It's too much.
- I might make it a little fuller.
- [Michael] Little fuller?
- A little fuller body.
- [Michael] Alright, let's try number two again.
- Ooh, that's darker!
- That's darker.
- [Michael] Darker? - I see less.
- Oop!
- [Michael] What about the color?
- [Becky] Purple! - [Maggie] More purple.
- So we expect less acidity.
Swirl it and then see how are the legs.
- [Becky] Oh, these are some fast legs.
- Yeah they're faster. - These ones are running.
- They're not as different from the Zinfandel
as it might seem.
So on this one we have decent acidity,
pretty good sugar still, and we've got much better tannins,
and the tannins are narrowly focused down
in the middle of your palate.
(sniffing)
- Mmm, that smells nice.
- Smelling the wine, we think, okay the sweetness
is definitely still there. We get more of that black plum.
- I'm sorry but were we not all drinking the wine?
- [Michael] No, you can.
- Okay! - Oh, we just did.
- We all just (laughs)
- [Maggie] Whoops.
- Try Wives Wine Time!
- I did it. - You did it!
- Why do people swish with it?
- You're supposed to get it on the top palate
'cause you have taste buds up there.
Did you know?
- [Ariel] What?! - Do it, do it, Margaret.
- But I don't wanna swish it in my teeth.
- Show us. - Do it, do it, do it, do it.
- But I can't do it.
- We're all gonna do it together, ready?
(mouth gargling)
- That made it grosser.
(laughing) Really gross.
- So tell me about the color.
What is the color telling us about the acidity?
- Purple.
- Mmm, warmer - I think more reddy, reddy.
- [Michael] And now, check out these legs.
- Check out the legs.
- [Michael] See the legs tell us about the sugar.
- There's fewer legs, right?
- Yeah - Am I wrong?
- It's thick!
- T-H-I-C-C, thick.
- Two Cs.
- No, more than two.
I would say... - Five Cs.
- [Becky] Three Cs.
- Like T-H-I...
(beatboxing)
- You notice how they are all dropping,
like in unison pretty close to each other.
There's a little less sugar in here than the other two.
- We've learned nothing.
- Not thick.
(laughing)
- So the Cab, we've got good acidity,
a little bit of that cherry flavor.
There's some sugar in there, but it's not as sweet
as the other two.
Pretty good tannin structure,
wider, sort of more expansive tannins.
Smell the wine again.
- This is more like blackberries.
- Blackberries? - Jammy.
- Alright, now taste it again.
(gulping)
- Not very dry.
- Not very dry?
- No, I mean it's super dry.
Like the driest thing I've ever tasted.
Michael, are you crazy?
- [Ariel] Let's blend some wine!
- So this is where you're gonna start to use
your lab equipment on the table.
Your graduated cylinder is 50 milimetres.
(object clattering)
- Margaret! - Calm down.
- Let's say I told you to do 70% Zinfandel.
- [Girls] Okay.
70 divided by two is 35.
So start there.
Now you're gonna fill the rest of it up.
- [Maggie] With the Syrah?
(wine pouring)
- Swirl.
(sniffing)
- Ooh, that's better.
- I like it better.
- Yeah, I dislike it less.
- It's not as acidic.
- It's a little smoother.
- You knew we would like that.
- That's why I chose that one.
So you guys have your three wines.
Get started with that first wine that you liked.
Which of the other two wines, or maybe just one,
you would blend into that wine to try to make it
a little but more balanced?
- Alright. - Cheers.
- Cheers!
- You guys using your beakers?
- Yeah! - Yeah.
What are you gonna use?
- Just my glass.
- She gonna eyeball it? - Ariel.
Ariel! - And my mouth.
- No!
- So I'm gonna start with the Cab
'cause that was my favorite,
but I think what I wanted was subconsciously
I really wanted the Cab to be really juicy.
So to make it less dry,
I'm gonna put in some of the Syrah?
- Get it, girl.
- Can we get Michael back in here?
- [Michael] You guys have to try on your own.
- Let's just go for it.
- I'll just do it.
- I liked the Zinfandel.
The only problem with it was it was super acidic
so I think I'm going to balance it out
with the Syrah and the Cabernet.
- I actually really liked the blend
of the Syrah and the Zin
so I'm gonna try recreate that, but also
add a little bit of body with this Cab.
- You have the same plan.
- Basically.
Take this, add this and this.
Done.
Blend.
- I think I'm gonna go 70% Zinfandel,
20% Syrah, and 10% Cab.
- I'm gonna do 65% of the Syrah,
15% of the Zin, and the rest the Cab.
- [Becky] 50% Cab, 50% Syrah.
(wine pouring)
(glass tapping)
- So this is the Zachfandel.
I forget the percentages, but thank you for having me.
This has been lovely.
(laughing)
It's light and fun like Zach himself.
(laughing)
- This is the Cabersberger blend.
It's 50% Cab, 50% Zin?
Syrah, it's 50%, yeah.
(chuckling)
Medium bodied.
Doesn't have a ton of tannins.
Oh no, it has a lot of tannins, it's dry.
Does have some lovely legs to stand upon.
So does Keith, very strong calves.
- [Ariel] This is a Fulmerlot.
- Without the Merlot.
- We had no Merlots, but I'm calling this a Fulmerlot.
Just because I can.
100% red wine.
It is full bodied with legs.
And also arms and a head.
- Mine is very dark.
- Can I see? - I would enjoy this
as a lipstick color.
- Ooh, wow!
- Look how pink yours is compared to mine.
- [Ariel] I seriously feel like Maggie's
about to pour that into your lap.
- Oh, yours is so much darker!
- Swirl
- I feel like my twirls have gotten
significantly like worse.
Good amount of legs.
Some are skinny, some are moving fast.
- Good amount of sugar.
- [Becky] Oh, good amount of sugar. How's your sugar?
Oh, yours is going quick.
Yours is going quick.
- Does that mean more sugar?
- That is a wonderful question.
That is excellent, thank you for you curiosity.
(laughing)
(sniffing)
- Smells like red.
- Very fruit forward.
(light upbeat music)
- What have I done?
- I shouldn't have poured the second one in.
I shouldn't have done it, I played with fate.
- [Ariel] You like the Cab better?
- I was like I can make number two better.
You can't!
- I was expecting it to be perfect,
and it's not.
- Blending is definitely an art.
- Blending's hard.
- Yeah, blending's hard!
- I mean it's drinkable.
I'm not saying...
- I wouldn't send this back. - That I wouldn't drink it.
- Yeah, like it's fine.
- This is pretty good.
I would pay $14 for this.
- It's still a little too acidic
so I think I should've put a little bit
more of these two guys.
- Fix that.
- Just eyeball it? - Fix that!
- Fix that, there are no rules, Maggie.
This is fight club.
Did it fix it?
- A little bit.
- Oh, I like yours!
- Yeah? - I would drink yours.
- Okay.
- What should I be tasting here?
- Red.
(upbeat jazz music)
- Taste like red.
- (laughing) I did it. - Good job.
It's very sharp, it like hit my tongue all at once.
And that one's a lot more round.
- Huh!
That's wrong.
- You can't sit with us. - You can't sit with us.
- You can't sit with us.
- There's only three chairs.
I like yours.
I feel like it's really light.
Maybe I don't know what I like in wine.
I feel like I said that I liked certain things
at the beginning, and then I was like nope.
None of those are actually true.
- At the beginning of our class,
I was able to guess which one was which,
and now I know nothing.
- The true skill is the consumption.
- I think so.
I'm more of a quantity over quality type of person.
Is that a thing?
- Alright, so you guys have a blend that you're gonna make?
- [Girls] Yeah.
- [Ariel] Are we making a whole bottle?
- You're gonna make a whole bottle.
- [Ariel] Let's do it.
- I say Maggie is the special guest today,
so we should do her wine.
I think she made a really good blend.
It was very balanced and very tasty.
- I think it was 60% the Zinfandel,
and then 20% the Syrah,
and 20% of the Cab.
- Perfect. Alright, so first I'm gonna give you the Cab.
I like to start the smallest amount
and then build on top of it.
- Oh, interesting!
I would've thought the opposite.
- Why we finish with the biggest amount
because it's the one that you probably like the best.
So a little overage is better.
- [Ariel] Wow.
- Oh my god!
- Go, Mickey, go.
- You got it, girl.
(triumphant music)
- I just get to pour it until it's--
- [Michael] Pour that wine.
(wine glugging)
(imitating glugging) - Make the glug noise, yeah.
- Perfect.
- Yeah! - Right there.
- Wow!
- Who wants to taste it?
(laughs)
- Maggie.
- Go, go, go.
- No.
- Go! - You're a nurse, Maggie,
you're a nurse.
- So pour slowly when you get towards the end.
'Cause otherwise, it's gonna go everywhere.
So slow down a little.
- Slow down. - Stop, stop, stop.
(laughing) - Just like that.
(laughing)
- You need to slow down, Maggie.
- It's all right.
- Slurp, slurp.
Is this why these are laminated?
- Yes.
(light guitar music)
- You can put a little this one.
- No that's good! - Maggie, Maggie!
- Maggie! (laughing)
- Alright, cork.
I'm gonna get a rag.
- That's probably a good idea.
- You've upset Michael.
- I'm not upset at all.
- Michael is filled with rage.
(bottle slams) - See how he slammed that?
- Did you see how he slammed that?
- Cork it, cork it.
- Woah!
That was way easier.
I didn't even think it was.
That was so satisfying.
- That was cool.
(corker snapping)
- Alright, bye guys.
(laughing)
- Thanks for coming to Try Wives Wine Time, Maggie.
- You did it, it's perfect.
- [Becky] You're first Try Wives Wine Time,
and it was perfect.
- We need to have everyone over and open.
- Drink some Zachfandel.
- We should probably put a cork in this video.
You know what I'm saying?
- Nailed it. - You know what I'm saying?
Thanks for watching another Try Wives Wine Time.
- Ready? - Ready?
- [Girls] Try Wives Wine Time!
(energetic music)
- It's fun.
- Dad, it's fun. - It's fun.
- Let us live.
- Let us live, bro.