Elizabeth Gabay MWNov 24, 2022
First post here (gulp) with a question.
How important is consistency in wine. Should every bottle, every vintage be as you predict?
Show threadMeg MakerNov 24, 2022

@Lizgabay Yes and no. A given #wine should conform to broad stylistic and regional expectations, but should also express vintage and other (preferably pleasant, but you never know) surprises.

Personally, I don't want a wine manufactured to be flawlessly consistent each year. Industrial wines are like this, and that's fine for many people.

But I value the way that wines express place, and place is variable.

Show threadBinTwoNov 24, 2022
@megmaker @Lizgabay ohhhhhh. Good one. I actually *don’t* expect a wine to adhere to broad expectations for the region. Increasingly I’m finding I’m a fan of a winemaker’s style over expectations of regional characteristics.
I don’t much like significant bottle variation within a given vintage but I don’t mind vintage variation at all. The only consistency I’m really looking for is consistent quality.
Show threadMeg MakerNov 24, 2022

@BinTwoWine @Lizgabay Interesting.

In some cases you'll get regional style whether you like it or not — if the wine is, say, Chianti Classico or Gigondas or whatever and subject to a tasting panel and strict appellation rules. Wines that don't pass end up being more broadly appellated, so the consumer has less hint of what's inside.

Consortiums arguably preserve style while scrubbing individual winemaker expression and creativity. Some shrug it off, but it's a commercially important decision.

Show threadBinTwoNov 24, 2022
@megmaker @Lizgabay some of my favourite producers aren’t worrying about appellation at all and just label everything as VdF.
Show threadMeg Maker

@BinTwoWine @Lizgabay Copy that. There are exciting wines being made everywhere there are strict rules. They're harder to sell, or perhaps just hand-sell for somms and off-premise. These makers push the boundaries of what their terroir and grapes offer and can shift the convo over time. We tend to think of wine as fixed categories, but it's always evolving.

That said, I do value some expression of the character of place and fruit, a nod to history and tradition, esp. if place is on the label.

Nov 24, 2022 at 3:17pmWeb
Show threadBinTwoNov 24, 2022
@megmaker @Lizgabay I like the wine to carry a sense of where it’s from. But not necessarily the winemaking traditions of that region as policed by AOC/ DO…
So, for example, the Malbec from Fabien Jouves has had so little interference it really does speak of the land his family have farmed for yonks. But I’m not sure most folk would guess ‘Cahors’ if tasting blind.