It's easy to make an opinion. To get a consent of your opinion - is a total different challenge.
I feel so strongly after reading several articles on the internet that denying the existent of "terroir", or what Matt Kramer would so poetically called it, the sense of place in wine. After several attempts in trying to put it in print, all those proves that I could squeeze out of my resources to defend my belief that terroir truly exist, I finally gave up.
Obviously, we are discussing a subject that today's science has disapproved. That somewhat, terroir or mineral that's found in wine has no relationship whatsoever with the piece of earth that the wine was raised.
Being a fanatic of Burgundy wine and knowing that the burgundian would pride themselves for the uniqueness of their soil that constitute the individualistic of their wine. I felt a strong responsibility to defend those anti-terroirists out there. However, I soon realized one issue that stop me for pursuing further - the individual perception of greatness. It would be pointless to discuss the concept of terroir if the audience does not share the same significant. It's like everyone coming to the dinner party for a different reason. Some uses wine as a form of tool to enter to a social circle, other simply treat it as the trendy, yuppie's hobby. Obviously, there is no lack of serious drinker, which look upon the excitement of the fast changing wine world, some also quickly realized that the huge demand for a niche group of fine wine can equally be as lucrative like the commodity found in stock exchange. But the fact remained. How many people truly pay attention to what they have consumed? How many of us really look beyond wine as not just another alcoholic beverage?
We are living in the world that are "plague by sameness". One of my designer friend recently told me, "did u realize the problem with our shopping malls? It's all the same! You see the same Levi's store, McDonald's, Starbuck's, Giordano, U2, Watson everywhere. Where is the diversity?" The fact that, the same scenario can well apply to the modern wine drinking world. Reliability, predictability has becoming the key element to succeed in the consumer's world, much like Coca-Cola or McDonald's burger did. Their success lies in the secure return of the same. "We are happiest of course when every year behaves more or less the same. Especially for those recently-come-to-the-party wine connoisseurs, who behave a lot like a child; they never seem to tire of hearing the same song played over and over again." said Randall Grahm of Bonn Doon Vineyard.
Speaking of terroir, it linked almost exclusively with old world wine. The fundamental of terroir lies on the differences in wine. Brian Croser of ex. Petaluma has so correctly pointed out the essence of terroir," the product with terroir is unique. Nobody else can make that wine unless they own that piece of ground". It was through such respect of nature, the acceptance of ambiguity that the burgundian becoming the touchstone for terroir. In Burgundy, the formation of what today the village crus, premier crus and grand crus were through generation of Cistercian monks who studiously compare vineyard-to-vineyard, plot-to-plot and carefully delineate and codify. To them, they do not ask the land to replicate the qualities of another, but instead, they look for distinction. "Chambertin was Chambertin if for no reason that it consistently did not taste like its neighbor Latricieres", quoted from Matt Karmer's book, Making Sense of Burgundy. In the same context, burgundian believed that terroir can only be found, not made, which explains why, winemaking, grape variety were merely the vehicle of the voice. "Man must humble before their vineyards. The genius resides in the vineyards and not in the hand of man. Man can only take something away from the vineyard, but can not add anything important", said Frédéric MUGNIER.
I recently read a book from a Canadian conservationist, Terry Glavin on extinctions. In his view, the increased modernization, globalization, monoculture where the dark side of sameness have slowly taken away our biological and cultural diversity. He further said that, "we may be headed for a titanic human struggle between two human "survival myths", those of engineers and of naturalists. The engineers are those who fear and hate nature, who loathe complexity and diversity, who espouse the murderous ethic of the Puritans, who seek protection from fear and danger and death in genetic engineering, cryogenics, the homogenization and desensitization of humanity and culture, separateness from "nature as other", immortality, and the extermination of all life that is not in the service of humans. The naturalists are those who suffer the grief of biophilia, who embrace complexity and celebrate diversity, whose ethic is one of sacred responsibility and respect for all life on Earth, who oppose technologies that increase ecological fragility and uniformity, and who accept that we are part of, not part from, all life on our planet."
The naturalists in this case refer to the terroirists. Were they deeply ingrained by the belief that wine is made by nature, not by man? The fine examples should reflect their place of origin. The engineers or anti-terroirists in this case rely on technologist and belief all great wine can be make in any corner of the world with the help of modern, sophisticated gadget and talented winemaker. Science, which demand proof by replication has fail to deliver the true value of terroir. - AT
"Truth is not that which can be demonstrated by the aid of logic. If orange trees are hardy and rich in fruit by this bit of soil and not that, then this bit of soil is what is truth for orange trees....Logic, you say? Let logic wangle its own explanation of life".
- Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Wine, Sand and Stars
I feel so strongly after reading several articles on the internet that denying the existent of "terroir", or what Matt Kramer would so poetically called it, the sense of place in wine. After several attempts in trying to put it in print, all those proves that I could squeeze out of my resources to defend my belief that terroir truly exist, I finally gave up.
Obviously, we are discussing a subject that today's science has disapproved. That somewhat, terroir or mineral that's found in wine has no relationship whatsoever with the piece of earth that the wine was raised.
Being a fanatic of Burgundy wine and knowing that the burgundian would pride themselves for the uniqueness of their soil that constitute the individualistic of their wine. I felt a strong responsibility to defend those anti-terroirists out there. However, I soon realized one issue that stop me for pursuing further - the individual perception of greatness. It would be pointless to discuss the concept of terroir if the audience does not share the same significant. It's like everyone coming to the dinner party for a different reason. Some uses wine as a form of tool to enter to a social circle, other simply treat it as the trendy, yuppie's hobby. Obviously, there is no lack of serious drinker, which look upon the excitement of the fast changing wine world, some also quickly realized that the huge demand for a niche group of fine wine can equally be as lucrative like the commodity found in stock exchange. But the fact remained. How many people truly pay attention to what they have consumed? How many of us really look beyond wine as not just another alcoholic beverage?
We are living in the world that are "plague by sameness". One of my designer friend recently told me, "did u realize the problem with our shopping malls? It's all the same! You see the same Levi's store, McDonald's, Starbuck's, Giordano, U2, Watson everywhere. Where is the diversity?" The fact that, the same scenario can well apply to the modern wine drinking world. Reliability, predictability has becoming the key element to succeed in the consumer's world, much like Coca-Cola or McDonald's burger did. Their success lies in the secure return of the same. "We are happiest of course when every year behaves more or less the same. Especially for those recently-come-to-the-party wine connoisseurs, who behave a lot like a child; they never seem to tire of hearing the same song played over and over again." said Randall Grahm of Bonn Doon Vineyard.
Speaking of terroir, it linked almost exclusively with old world wine. The fundamental of terroir lies on the differences in wine. Brian Croser of ex. Petaluma has so correctly pointed out the essence of terroir," the product with terroir is unique. Nobody else can make that wine unless they own that piece of ground". It was through such respect of nature, the acceptance of ambiguity that the burgundian becoming the touchstone for terroir. In Burgundy, the formation of what today the village crus, premier crus and grand crus were through generation of Cistercian monks who studiously compare vineyard-to-vineyard, plot-to-plot and carefully delineate and codify. To them, they do not ask the land to replicate the qualities of another, but instead, they look for distinction. "Chambertin was Chambertin if for no reason that it consistently did not taste like its neighbor Latricieres", quoted from Matt Karmer's book, Making Sense of Burgundy. In the same context, burgundian believed that terroir can only be found, not made, which explains why, winemaking, grape variety were merely the vehicle of the voice. "Man must humble before their vineyards. The genius resides in the vineyards and not in the hand of man. Man can only take something away from the vineyard, but can not add anything important", said Frédéric MUGNIER.
I recently read a book from a Canadian conservationist, Terry Glavin on extinctions. In his view, the increased modernization, globalization, monoculture where the dark side of sameness have slowly taken away our biological and cultural diversity. He further said that, "we may be headed for a titanic human struggle between two human "survival myths", those of engineers and of naturalists. The engineers are those who fear and hate nature, who loathe complexity and diversity, who espouse the murderous ethic of the Puritans, who seek protection from fear and danger and death in genetic engineering, cryogenics, the homogenization and desensitization of humanity and culture, separateness from "nature as other", immortality, and the extermination of all life that is not in the service of humans. The naturalists are those who suffer the grief of biophilia, who embrace complexity and celebrate diversity, whose ethic is one of sacred responsibility and respect for all life on Earth, who oppose technologies that increase ecological fragility and uniformity, and who accept that we are part of, not part from, all life on our planet."
The naturalists in this case refer to the terroirists. Were they deeply ingrained by the belief that wine is made by nature, not by man? The fine examples should reflect their place of origin. The engineers or anti-terroirists in this case rely on technologist and belief all great wine can be make in any corner of the world with the help of modern, sophisticated gadget and talented winemaker. Science, which demand proof by replication has fail to deliver the true value of terroir. - AT
"Truth is not that which can be demonstrated by the aid of logic. If orange trees are hardy and rich in fruit by this bit of soil and not that, then this bit of soil is what is truth for orange trees....Logic, you say? Let logic wangle its own explanation of life".
- Antoine de Saint-Exupery, Wine, Sand and Stars
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