Wine on the Wing

Published: 16/11/2011 - Filed under: Home » Archive » 2011 » November 2011 » Lifestyle » Home » Features » Home » Archive » 2011 » November 2011 »

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The consumption of wine while onboard an aircraft can be a wonderful, enriching and fun experience. The movies you watch may be funnier, the guys sitting next to you more interesting and you’ll tend to fall asleep quicker. Of course too much can cause dehydration and inebriation – but moderate levels of wine will definitely enhance your flying experience. And since wine (unlike hard liquor) is meant to be enjoyed with food, the acids, sweetness and unctuousness of wines served onboard can actually improve your enjoyment of your in-flight meal itself. In general, the longer the flight, the better the wine. Of course, not surprisingly I’m speaking about the wines served in First or Business Class cabins.

I recently conducted an experiment based on my curiosity about what happens to “Wine on the Wing,” or wines served at altitude aboard commercial aircraft. After all, at 35,000 feet in the air the barometric pressure, temperature, velocity, G forces and humidity are all much different than on terra firma. Even the noise level is different on a plane than in a normal home environment. Our noses and eyes react, our craniums tighten, our skin dries out and our taste buds most assuredly change. But what about the wine in the bottle?

Unlike other beverages, wine is delicate and seemingly “alive.” Wine undergoes constant evolutionary changes from the time it’s created until the moment it passes our lips. How does flying affect it? And do customers recognize a difference?

The Flying Laboratory

So I decided to try out a selection of airline wines in their native environment (at altitude) and the same selection on the ground. As it happened I was off to London on assignment, so Virgin Atlantic Airways became my laboratory. I sampled all the wines – including economy wines – in the swanky Upper Class portion of the aircraft during my nonstop San Francisco to London flight. Then while in London, I made my way to the St. James Street office of Berry Bros. & Rudd, the esteemed British wine supplier who administers the Virgin Atlantic wine program, to sample the identical wines. To wrap up my trans-Atlantic tasting, I sampled the wines once again on the journey home. They were interesting flights to say the least.

Tastefully decorated in taupe, tan, and violet with off-white accents, Virgin Atlantic’s modern Upper Class seating is somewhat like sitting in a spaceship. The seats recline fully and plush duvets help induce sleep on the ten to eleven hour polar flights. My first tasting, conducted at the smart, onboard intimate Upper Class bar occurred at exactly 33,020 feet somewhere over Northern Canada. A few fellow passengers joined me for a time, asking questions, taking my suggestions and eyeing me curiously before retiring for the night. Even members of the crew came by to chat about the wines, though they didn’t join me. I plugged away sample after sample because in the end, I needed to taste through the complete wine list. If you’ve never tried it, the Virgin Atlantic’s Upper Class bar is quite civilized. Passengers can sit or stand beside it and meet fellow fliers while having a drink or two. My return tasting took place alone, somewhere in the dark skies above Greenland.

After arriving in London, I met with Mark Pardoe, Master of Wine and wholesale director at Berry Bros. & Rudd, at the company’s vast, three story building. Berry Bros. & Rudd, in the exact location on tony St. James Street since 1698, was originally a coffee and spice merchant before moving on to the whiskey business and then into wine. The shop is still an elegant suit-and-tie establishment exuding appropriate British class, history and integrity. BB&R has extensive wine holdings and conducts all sorts of wine classes and tastings in its cellars.

“Working with Virgin Atlantic has been a very good association for us,” said the dapper Pardoe as we poured through the wines in the very cold cellar. He discussed the tendencies of the various wines that are selected to be served aboard “Upper Class,” as Virgin Atlantic’s premium business class service is styled.

“Most importantly, the wine needs to exhibit as much vitality, energy in the air as on the ground. It can’t be dead,” said Pardoe. This means that wines served on planes need to expressive, somewhat big and flavorful, not nuanced. In the air, everything is subtracted; flavor profiles, tannins and acid are perceptibly reduced for our high-flying palates. As a result, certain elegant wines from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Oregon and Italian Brunellos for instance, while gorgeous on the ground, might not show themselves properly in the air. It wouldn’t be the right fit.

Boxing Above Its Weight

Not surprisingly, budget is an important concern for an airline’s wine program, and Virgin Atlantic is no exception. The experts like Pardoe who select the wines to be served onboard shoot for a variety of approachable styles, as well as seeking out and presenting up-and-coming, lesser known or undervalued appellations. Pardoe’s wine budget does not allow Chablis but instead he’ll look for little known but high quality Chardonnays.

Some of Mark Pardoe’s in-flight staples include wines with ample tannins, medium alcohol, low acid, and those being juicy and fruit forward. “I also like to offer a quirky wine such as crisp Gruner Veltliner, a Sauvignon Blanc from Slovenia or a Cabernet/Shiraz blend from Brazil.” The wine program rotates about every three months with the “staples” remaining longer. Pardoe has strong opinion about his white wines. “No oak on any of my whites and it has to be refreshing too,” he remarked. “Is the wine authentic; is it something I’d like to drink at home tonight?” Good points all, which can be applied to many wine situations. Like any customer service-related business, the airlines have flight attendants report back about which wines consistently seem to be enjoyed by passengers and about those don’t seem to elicit any enthusiasm.

“I look for a wine that ‘boxes above its weight’,” said Pardoe.

During my tasting, Virgin Atlantic’s white wine list included a bright and fruity 2008 Monterey County Chardonnay from Mountain View Vintners. This moderately priced California Chard was well balanced with 100 percent malolactic fermentation (a process that smoothes out the malic acid in the grapes) but no oak barreling. It’s an easy-to-drink, clean, fruit driven wine. Also, it pairs well with the creamy Yukon Gold Potato Soup. I actually preferred this wine when in the air versus on the ground. It seemed more in balance when restrained onboard. I felt the same way about the French Marsanne/Viognier blend. It was so-so, a bit astringent in London, but in the air – nimble and different. A happy partner to the lighter cuisine such as shrimp, chicken or pasta dishes served onboard. This wine was also enjoyable by itself.

For the reds wines, the Argentine 2009 Vina Dela Malbec tasted consistently pleasing on the ground and in the air. It had a violet yet brambly nose and a big bold fruitiness without overripe characteristics. The Malbec was rugged but agreeable – Pardoe chose well. However, the 2007 Dano Crianza Garnacha blend from the Spanish Montsant region became too thin at this height. The wine’s body was too lean and the nose suggested more than it delivered. At sea level this wine had more vibrancy. Of course individuals may have very different, but equally valid opinions about what they like in a wine, whether flying across the world, sampling in a restaurant or opening a bottle at home.

For sparkling, Virgin Atlantic served the moderately priced but eminently enjoyable Champagne De Sousa Brut. This bubbly proved predictably refreshing, slightly stone-fruity and crisp with no appreciable difference between the flavors in the air or within the shop. The only difference was in the stemware offered. Most planes – sigh – for reasons of cost, lack of storage space or security don’t carry proper stemware.

Raise a Glass

Actually weight too is another important and ever-present concern for airlines, and today more and more wines are starting to appear onboard in plastic containers. Sure, these containers don’t look or feel as great as impressive heavy bottles, but for an airline, every extra pound translates into added fuel – and cost. “Plastic liters bottles offer incredible weight savings which are critical for airlines,” said Pardoe. “Some of these are hugely successful such as some inexpensive Spanish wines. Next month we’ll have two Aussie wines in plastic bottles. In the end it’s five to 10 percent cheaper than glass.” Interestingly, these wines are shipped in giant tankers from Australia to Bordeaux where they are bottled in a special French plastic wine bottling line. I sampled and enjoyed the 2009 La Rosa Tempranillo from Spain, straight from its plastic bottle. The wine was relatively simple, strong but unobjectionable. The plastic bottle was a non-factor in the appreciation of this Tempranillo.

If you find a wine that knocks your socks off on a flight, well…great! That means that the airline’s wine specialists have done their jobs well. However you should be aware that you may not always be able to purchase the exact wine at your local wine shop or specialty store. Some of the wines onboard are special proprietary blends crafted especially for the airline, and others at times may be entirely sold out. Plus the onboard environmental factors discussed above certainly will have changed when you pop that cork at home. Better advice – when you find something you really like, note the varietal, region and style (light, acidic, oaky, fruity etc.) so you can find something similar at home.

Remember, when flying, even more than on the ground, dehydration becomes a huge issue. Keep your fluids up and drink plenty of water. (I try to match one glass of water per glass of wine) So when you’re traveling on business, commuting or on vacation to an exotic location, will the wines taste better – or worse? “A person’s emotional and environmental factors tend to combine at altitude more acutely than on the ground,” said Mark Pardoe.

So raise a glass and toast your seatmates across the aisle, knowing that your wine on the wing has been carefully and thoughtfully chosen just for you.

Virgin Atlantic Airways flies from nonstop from New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and other US cities direct to London. Visit virgin-atlantic.com

Bob Ecker is a travel, wine and culinary writer living in Napa, California. He is also a wine judge at major competitions across the US.