And after the hangover, the response…
02Jul. 09
About two weeks ago, I wrote up an article about wine that got a few comments I’d like to address. First up, Jason said:
“…I have to add that Wine is also something White People Like. ”
This is, in fact, not true. White people love wine. Especially foreign wine, with hard to pronounce names. Bastard Sheep gave some good advice on selecting Australian wines (I personally have a massive old world crush at the moment), though I can’t stress enough that simply asking for advice is the most hassle free way to sort things out. He also mentioned that,
“The absolute most disgusting wine I’ve ever tasted was a $120 bottle that was corked…”
Always keep in mind that if your wine is faulted, you can send it back — whether or not you purchased it at a store or in a restaurant. Purchasing wine is not gambling, and if you shell out good money you should always receive an unfaulted bottle. The onus is on you, however, to report the fault — wine being what it is, it is impossible for the staff serving you to know beforehand what the state of any particular bottle is going to be. Dan left a comment too:
“Im not so sure those stereotypes are really that prevalent to a large chunk of Australia to be honest. I think it only applies to people who never drink it. Given the wine industry is so damn huge here it is a big part of our culture (most of it anyway). There are festivals which attract all kinds of people, far from the snobbery element. ”
While it is true that wine plays a large part in the culture of certain areas of Australia, this sadly doesn’t necessarily translate into a culture that is well educated about wine and wine quality — beer, after all, is also a large part of Australian culture, yet VB and Carlton Draught prevail. Of course, that’s not to say that everybody should be well educated with regards to wine. Given the vast amount of specialised information, doing so would obviously be impractical. The problem is that many people out there revel in the fact that they are part of a ‘wine culture’ without having the first clue as to what they are on about — they visited Whatsisname Vineyard, or had a fantastic Savignon Blanc, or read an article in a magazine, and with that they consider themselves knowledgeable. Often, they are also wrong — but with a great disdain for anyone who might tell them so, and it is from that I would conjecture that a great deal of backlash emerges.
As an example — cork taint has received a lot of press, so much so that pretty much anyone who has ever drunk wine has heard the term. I have, on more than one occasion, been treated like an idiot for pouring a taste of wine from a bottle sealed with a screwcap. Of course, the idea that you wouldn’t taste wine because it has been sealed with a screwcap is preposterous — there are somewhere in the range of twenty-five to thirty official wine faults, and of all of those only one is caused by the cork. Indeed, oxidation is the most likely wine fault, and it can affect any wine, no matter what method is used to seal the bottle. Yet, I am likely to be treated as an idiot because the people being served consider themselves ‘in the know’.
Next up, scam said:
“umm, all this wine snobbery needs to stop! craft brewing is where its at and i have been to more than a few wineries that were adding a brewery to cash in. quality beer (not crown lager) goes much better with food generally and is far more affordable.. i thought i should speak up for the craft beer lovers..”
Right off the bat, lets get one thing straight — I didn’t and wouldn’t say a bad word about beer. I wouldn’t say a bad word about pretty much any general class of beverage (specific products can definitely attract my ire, however). I’m a big proponent of good beer (especially considering the amount of crap on the market) and am always up for something new.
That said, I’d challenge the assertion that quality beer generally goes much better with food — matching drinks to food is not an exact science, and is dependent as much on the person being served as it is the food. From your comment, I wouldn’t be greatly surprised if you personally found beer to go better with food, and there’s nothing wrong with having that as your preference. As for me — my preference would be highly determined by my mood at the time more than anything else. Most of the time, I could go either way.
The final contender in the comments is David Maurice:
“Carn the goon,”
No.
“companion to young teenage girls in parks and hardened alcoholics alike, and never the twain shall meet.
Although wine, like art can be considered a luxury item, given the amount of interpretation is required in the consumation of same, whereas not many can claim with a straight face that they drink beer or raw spirts for the taste”
Yes, they can. Take scam’s advice from the comments, and go and get yourself a nicer pack of beer or bottle of spirits next time you go shopping. Or even better, go out to a nice bar and ask the staff their advice. You won’t regret it.
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:32 am
I too used to be of the opinion that wine wasnt worth it and would even go as far as not eating the food wine went into purely because i didnt like the taste.
I’ve never been much of a drinker at all, but as of late my tastebuds have evolved and now I quite enjoy a nice bold Pinot Noir with my steak\lamb and a nice light unwooded Chardonnay with my fish and pasta.
As for price… beer is around half the price of a mediocre wine (on a dollar per standard drink basis), but as with the majority of social interests in life, you dont just pay for the drink, you also pay for the culture. It’s almost considered rude to sit in a flashy restaurant and ask for a XXXX gold or a VB. I was once in a 4 star restaurant in southern qld and we were actually making guesses on what drink people were going to order. A large portion of the middle age males would get XXXX gold (which was poured from its bottle to a fancy looking glass so they could charge a little extra for it)
I come from one of the premiere winemaking regions in the country yet have never done a wine tour much less actually gone to a winery to buy a particular brand of wine.
I have been lucky enough to try Don Perignon and Cristal… but im not much of a fan of Champagne at the best of times. To me the $500+ per bottle really is wasted on my tastebuds
Ultimately i guess it comes down to you dont get wine at a night club… you cant water down wine with lemonade or coke so it’s not as economic for the bars to sell it in high volume situations, and its not something you can really throw down mega fast to get a big binge session underway fast.
July 2nd, 2009 at 12:21 pm
I’ve got news for you — they would have charged exactly the same glass or no glass. No matter how cheap the product, when you go somewhere fancy the mark up is going to be more for a number of reasons. And no, wine isn’t a massive money spinner.
Do you remember what year Dom and Cristal you drank (it makes a massive difference)? I wouldn’t recommend jumping straight into anything that expensive right off the bat anyway — try some lower end ones first (non vintage might be a place to start) and work your way up on special occasions. Champagne really, really, really is worth it! :-D
July 2nd, 2009 at 7:27 pm
I may be picky but this sounds a bit like a straw man -
“The problem is that many people out there revel in the fact that they are part of a ‘wine culture’ without having the first clue as to what they are on about – they visited Whatsisname Vineyard, or had a fantastic Savignon Blanc, or read an article in a magazine, and with that they consider themselves knowledgeable.”
Im sure some people ‘feel’ like they are being all sophistimacated an’ all going to vineyards and such, but im not sure these same people would verbally go around claiming some kind of expertise. Who are these people that revel in being a part of a culture? What kinds of things would they say? Am i being picky?
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:28 pm
Don’t take me as saying that people actually go around saying “I am an expert on wine.” The attitude displays in the way they ‘drop’ information and treat people who do have better knowledge. In a way, what I’m describing is the frustration many people have probably felt if they have worked a job dealing with customers who think they know more than you do — the problem is that this particular situation is ridiculously common.
As an example (and I could pick any number), I once had a lady complain about her glass of Sav Blanc, telling me in no uncertain terms that I had poured her a Riesling, that she knew a Riesling when she tasted it and that she insisted upon a glass of S.B. After opening up a brand new bottle straight out of the fridge just for her and pouring her an identical glass of wine to the one she had just complained about (with no apology) I thought that would be the end of it, but no — after she finished that glass, she ordered another one, but insisted that this one be ‘properly chilled’.
Examples that extreme would happen probably once a month (keeping in mind I only work two shifts a week at the moment), and many other less extreme examples occur far more often (depending on the amount of wine sold over any particular period, but on average probably once a night — which considering the amount of wine sold in proportion to other drinks is actually rather a lot.
July 3rd, 2009 at 10:18 am
I think you are right there, the people who either drop little tidbits or make a spectacle of themselves when tasting a wine are certainly no straw men.
I like experts to be a little humble and not to flaunt it, thats for the wannabees to do. An expert should only reveal themselves when asked or when it is appropriate to utilise their knowledge. Otherwise keep it in your pants.