Livio Pastorino

Tasting Piscos

Cocktail Magazine edition No 68, grateful for the Opportunity.

It was a pleasure to take part in a pisco tasting event for export by a relatively new company, Tierra del Pisco, led by Sebastián Tuesta, a Franco-Peruvian who is exporting high-quality pisco to Europe. I extend my sincere congratulations to him for this endeavor. We were invited to taste the piscos in the tasting room of the Wine and Pisco Institute in the presence of the producers. It's worth noting that this room, the largest in Peru, had been closed for over two years. We worked with four tasters and sampled 14 piscos of the following varieties: 4 Quebrantas, 1 Negra Criolla, 1 Uvina, 3 Italias1 Torontel, 1 Moscatel, 2 Albillas, and 1 Mosto Verde (Must Green), Torontel.
I'm going to share my thoughts on the piscos I liked the most. Remember that tasting is subjective, and everything is open to discussion. I particularly enjoyed the Mosto Verde (Must Green), Torontel and the pure Torontel from the Valle Sagrado brand, produced by the Tres Generaciones winery in Ica. I gave them the highest scores. I couldn't help but recall the famous Tres Esquinas Mosto Verde Quebranta, produced some time ago by the same winery. If you come across a bottle, don't hesitate to buy it. It's very good.

In the category of pure Quebranta, the highest-rated one for me was from the Santa María Magdalena winery in Pisco, Ica. It's an unmistakable and top-quality Ica Quebranta. It was followed in score by the Pisco Madre of Ica, Valle Sagrado de Ica, and Victoria de Los Sánchez from Lunahuaná, Cañete, Lima. Let me make an observation. We all know that Ica concentrates the majority of pisco production and Quebranta grapes. It's also true that Ica Quebranta pisco has its own characteristics. Most tasters are familiar with it, and it's very difficult for a Quebranta sample from another region to achieve high scores due to its uniqueness. In the case of Victoria de Los Sánchez pisco, it's clean and correct, but I detected slight citrus and floral notes that are not typical of Ica Quebranta. That's why my score was lower. We don't know how Quebrantas from other regions may present themselves, as climate, terroir, geography, and so on can change. That's why producers need to find their own descriptors for their grapes and piscos in each region and collaborate with tasters to work on this. An Ica Quebranta will never be the same as one from Lima or Tacna. The same goes for Italia, Moscatel, or Albilla. There's work to be done in that regard.

The only Negra Criolla of the evening was the De Carral pisco, a winner of medals in national competitions. It's a typical, balanced, and well-rounded pisco. Excellent! Most piscos of this variety come from Arequipa, Moquegua, and Tacna. They are fresh, dry, neutral, and herbaceous.

The pisco Uvina from Victoria de Los Sánchez surprised with its aromas of fresh olive leaf, white fruits, loquat, red fruits, and black raisins. I awarded it a gold medal.
Among the Italia piscos, I liked the Valle Sagrado and the one from the Santa María Magdalena winery. They have subtle aromas of tropical fruits, citrus, and blonde raisins. They are elegant and balanced.

The Victoria de Los Sánchez winery presented their Moscatel. A fresh and subtle pisco.I gave it a bronze medal.

In the Albilla category, we had competition between Valle Sagrado and Santa María Magdalena. In my case, I preferred the latter. Very well done. My reference for these piscos is memories of chamomile. I awarded both of them gold medals.

It was an excellent opportunity to share with friends, tasters, and producers, as well as to taste high-quality spirits. Remember to drink pisco responsibly.

Til next time!

By Livio Pastorino Wagner Sommelier, Specialist, and Pisco Taster Registration: CRDO-PISCO 2020 RCO-034-2011
@elmagozurdo

Pisco & music

Cocktail Magazine No. 68 September 07, 2023

 

Cocktail magazine (spanish) in issuu

 

 

September 2023

 

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