General Rantings

[stevebody]

Thanks, guys! Exactly what I had hoped for: reasoned discussion and diverse viewpoints.

A couple of things:

Tandkvd: Your last statement was quite painfully accurate. Sitting here looking at Saturday...I don't know if the Seahawks will win but they can. You just never know which version of the team's going to show up. As for the M's, I LOVE what they've done this off-season. Beltre @ 3rd, Pokey @ Short, Boone @ 2nd, Sexson @ 1st...I'll take that every day. We'll see...

Foodie:

Yeah, wine educator is more accurate. In particular, I guess, he'd have been a RETAIL wine educator, since I was mainly learning the business of buying and selling, POS and promotion from him, with some expanded wine appreciation along the way. I'm waaay too flippin' opinionated to ever accomodate an actual "mentor", I think.

WoW:

Thanks for the terrior as buying guide thing re: Bordeaux. That, I think, is the most valuable thing about the discussion of terroir; not so much the fine distinctions of limestone/mushrooms/clay dirt in one bottle versus another but the gross stylistic differences that are - to a degree - dictated by the character of the land. I know terroir exists, of course. A good friend of mine apprenticed at Heyl in Germany and told the story of their one large, square plot of land that was quartered by two intersecting fences. I tried three of the wines and each quadrant was RADICALLY different. That mystery at the heart of wine is one of its most powerful lures, to me.

I cellar some wines, too. When my customers ask, I own up to that. I hold Amarones until the bottles look like dust bunnies. I understand its allure and the potential rewards, even if I think the value of it is overstated. I find a greater joy in finding fabulous $8-$20 bottles that are ready any time. I just have a tough time refuting an argument that says that we're not doing the winemaker's job. I hadn't thought of the Spanish example but, yeah!, those well-aged new reservas are, I think, great values and far more consumer-friendly.

Thanks again for the ideas!