Get your GEEK on: Wine as a dialog.
For years, you have been instructed what to drink, sometimes beaten over the head with it, by carefully tabulated scores and tasting notes from big wine publications and wine ‘experts’. This one-sided directive, or monologue about the proper and appropriate wines to drink…which label, which region is hot…the absolute best time to drink, which to hold…has been a force in the world of wine. Which is all fine and great and useful in a way. At least we are getting advice on a very complex subject, right? And, familiar taste, a brand you know…a region you can point to on a map, and someone endorses it?! However, what happens when you don’t care for the juice in the bottle? Are you wrong or weird? Freak!
But, the part of the equation that matters most, what I hold most dear, is what YOU like to drink and how you taste. Your impressions and feedback, and the way you approach drinking, are much more precious than the elevated ramblings of one guy, or even a panel, tasting hundreds of bottles in isolation, without food, without break, against others of various provenience. If you like a wine that is out of vogue, gasp!, may I suggest that you continue to do so. Drink what you like. Yeah, I said it.
Now, I am also absolutely a proponent of expanding your palate and wine experiences, too. Know WHY you love that one wine. Own the obsession, and understand it. Find a wine shop you trust…like Lush…that will listen to what you like and do not particularly care for, get you educated, and offer multiple suggestions. Talk about it or take notes, but make sure you have your say in this dialogue. Try other wines, alternate regions or varietals, brands, and styles…with food and without, in a lineup of wines or solo. Learn a little bit, or not. But, do drink what you like. Of course, your tastes may shift and change, but embrace your particular leanings and preferences. You are the best critic and expert of what you like to drink. So, salute!
rd
Tags: brand, Rachel, tasting panel, varietal, wine magazines