Nomadic Wines

Terroir

I thought this was an interesting article posted on the WineReviewOnline. Terroir is one of those concepts that is easy to understand cerebrally but hard to understand on a sensory level. I think one has to try a lot of wine in order to recognize terroir of a vineyard or appellation.

I think the author is trying to create a story. I think terroir is real but I also enjoy blended wines. I don't think there are many people who would say blended wines are worse than terroir-centric wines - his so-called "terroir snobs". Sure there are people who prefer wines where they can identify terroir, but I bet they respect the winemaking abilities if winemakers making blends.

For example, I enjoy both single vineyard and blended wines from one of my favorite wineries - Siduri. Their Pisoni single vineyard Pinot Noir is always a special wine, which I think is based on its vineyard terroir. On the other hand, for pure drinking enjoyment, they make regional blends (like the Russian River Valley blend) that are very tasty.

I would encourage people to try both types of wines, but look for the terroir when you taste wines from a specific region. Being able to understand the signatures of vineyards/regions/wineries is very rewarding -- it is the point when the brain and the tongue meet.

Labels: opinion, terroir, wine

posted by nomadfromcincy @ 4:11 PM