Apology for a Digression Concerning Digressions
It is a fact universally accepted that nothing is what it seems and so our list is not a simple catalogue, a digest of wines and prices, but a succession of anfractuous diversions and distractions. As one of Sterne’s characters remarks in Tristram Shandy “Digressions, incontestably, are the sunshine; they are the life, the soul of reading” - Rather a picaresque digression surely than the humdrum hawking of product after product, for, in our view, the liquid in the bottle - in every bottle - has the potential to be the starting point for many narrative journeys. There may be a scientific purpose to the expedition, or the narrative voyage may be sentimental, fanciful, argumentative or philosophical but the intention is always to arrive by some means at some sort of chaotic truth: to get under the skin of the grape/dive into the ferment (faites vos metaphores, mesdames et messieurs) by unpacking the many and varied impressions and sensations that wines unveil to us and revealing our own very personal responses, whilst at the same time examining the objective criteria that make a particular wine what it is, such as the personality of the grower, the methods employed in the winery and vineyard, the history, topography and climatic conditions of a region and finally the local gastronomy and culture. The truth, as Wilde remarked, is rarely pure and never simple (but then he never tasted branded wines).
“To create a new strain of super-wine with a fraction of Nature’s resources and a fool for an assistant” (Black Books)
The list is furthermore underpinned by an agenda insofar as we try to challenge assumptions and promote what we regard as good practice. Without wishing to sound precious it is important to believe in what you are doing and not just push wine for the sake of it. Our aim is to buy and sell real or natural wines and we try throughout our list to clarify and articulate what makes these wines special. We believe that typicity (wine that tastes where it comes from) can be achieved through a combination of sensible winemaking practises involving minimal interventions, through sustainable agriculture and promoting of biodiversity, adhering to natural organic solutions, working by hand, fermenting with natural yeasts, not using additives, the minimal addition of sulphur and light or zero filtration. Wherever possible. These are guidelines not axioms. We simply want our wines to taste natural and to reflect the nature of the vintage. Two further points regarding balance in wine: firstly, when we taste we seek a paradigm of “tastiness,” therefore we favour wines that display proportionate alcohol. Secondly, where oak is used, we look for integration and suitable enhancement - rather than overly-constructed wines. Palpable extraction of flavour is rarely charming since the many rude variables rarely harmonise, although critically these faux-complex, souped-up, powerful, plummy, toast-and-jam wines are still given the benefit of the doubt by writers who should recognise the emperor’s new clothes when they don’t see them. Sometimes the aspiration to excellence neutralises the individuality of the wine because it seeks to impose identity rather than reflect typicity. In the ratings war where points means prizes - and consequent higher prices - journalists, wine-buyers and customers still fall hopelessly for tricked up wines. The wine we tend to enjoy most and drink is wine that expresses its fruit in a refreshingly pure way. Viniverri - true wines.
Make the goblet full of wine, for wine is so good
Especially when it’s pure, without any falsehood
Masnavi of Hafiz - Book of the Winebringer
If only.
Trading In Uncertainties
The wine trade is Panglossian, happy in its supposed certainties, and when I read the trade papers I know I’m in la-la land and when I hear the latest Nielsen figures generously massaged by the wine boards of every country I am compelled to believe that everyone is a winner and all is indeed for the best. Progress is measured in novelty for novelty’s sake, modernity, expansion, market share; whilst discernment is viewed as snobbish and elitist. Quirkiness and imperfections are still distrusted rather than cherished. In this Looking Glass world winemakers are encouraged to make wines to please the market which suggests that wine is commodity designed to appeal to people obsessed by price point or image. It is difficult to imagine an artisan cheese-maker saying to him-or-herself: I wonder if this unpasteurised Stilton will appeal to the man in the street? Perhaps I should make something totally denatured to be on the safe side. Whilst the agenda is set by supermarkets, however, individuality is bound to be marginalised to a certain extent. The recent Nielsen statistics revealed that 71% of the wines consumed in this country are either brands or supermarket labels. Are we happy with mediocrity, with safe, unchallenging wines made by flying winemakers, with brands and recognisable labels, with playing the game, with the complacent determinism of the trade or shall we pluck convention by the nose and articulate a strong independent agenda?
Science Mission Creep
When we think of science applied to wine we imagine big stainless steel, thermoregulated tanks, white coated technicians in laboratories precisely analysing the sugar levels, dry extracts. This is the future perfect world � nothing is left to chance. In terms of winemaking corrective or cosmetic surgery becomes an end in itself, whilst in terms of wine appreciation the question that is always asked is: “Is it good?” not “Is it true?” People who live in future perfect world want everything to be quantifiable. This passion to understand disconnects us from the mystery of things. Our imagination, as Bunuel remarks, is a crucial privilege; it gives us our freedom - we should, therefore, cherish the unexpected.
The Gimmick and the Bandwagon
Other countries drink to get drunk, and this is accepted by everyone; in France, drunkenness is a consequence, never an intention. A drink is felt as the spinning out of a pleasure, not as the necessary cause of an effect which is sought: wine is not only a philtre, it is also the leisurely act of drinking.
[Roland Barthes (1915-1980), French semiologist