The minute I decided to write this post, I knew that the title alone might unleash a firestorm the likes of which this blog has not seen before. Wine drinkers are a passionate lot, and there are very strong opinions when it comes to what makes a good wine. I'll save you all a little suspense and say from the outset that I don't think that varietal correctness ALWAYS matters in every situation, but let me explain myself before you throw any large stones in my general direction.
For the serious wine connoisseur, or for professional critics, varietal correctness is very important. When you are evaluating a Cabernet Sauvignon, you expect it to have the color, nose, and palate of a Cab. Regardless of whether you enjoy the taste of the wine, if it doesn't match up with what you expect from the varietal, you can't really call it a "good" Cabernet. Even for a casual wine drinker, it can be pretty disappointing when you buy a wine expecting one thing and end up with something entirely different. From the perspective of a person evaluating wine, varietal correctness always matters, and is a significant factor in determining the quality of the wine.
A complicating element can be where terroir ends and typicity starts to come into play. Some wines have famously different expressions of the same variety, such as the difference between a Marlborough Savignon Blanc and a French Sancerre, or a California Chardonnay and a Chablis. Over time a lexicon of the characteristics of these wines has developed, and is somewhat in flux as new location gain caché, but still there is general agreement about what constitutes a varietally correct version of these wines. Living in a still maturing wine region here in Texas, I sometimes hear deviations on standard characteristics ascribed to terroir, where it might be more correctly described as a wine devoid of true varietal expression. The line can be a fuzzy one.
All of that being said, the average consumer doesn't necessarily have any idea what the varietal characteristics of a given wine are, so they don't really care whether their Sangiovese tastes like a "typical" Sangiovese, as long as they enjoy the experience of drinking the wine. When I have shared a new wine variety with friends over dinner, they only know whether they like the wine or not, and generally poo-poo any comments that I make regarding the typicity of the wine. Though I'm venturing into the now clichéd every-man territory that us bloggers are becoming famous (or infamous) for, my friends might find it mildly interesting (and even that is a stretch sometimes) to know whether the wine is typical for the variety, but ultimately they only care how the wine tastes. Clichéd though it may be, ultimately the only good wine for you is the one that you enjoy.
As a person who writes about wine, it is important to me whether a wine is typical. As a wine drinker, I can say that I have had wines that I was able to enjoy drinking that weren't really good examples of what their variety should taste or smell like. My evaluation of wine will always include evaluating whether the wine has the characteristics that a good example of that variety should, but I also try to keep in mind whether a person who has no basis of comparison for the variety is likely to enjoy the wine. To sum it all up, just because I don't find the Sangiovese from earlier to be typical doesn't necessarily make it a bad wine, but it might just make it a bad Sangiovese.
I’m more for the “if it’s good and you like it, drink it” bunch, but as a fellow wino, I guess my expectations are tainted or at least tilt toward typicity. But at the end of the day, it’s the lips, tongue and nose of the final consumer that matter the most…
Wouldn’t you agree?
Cheers Ben, great post!
Brian
http://norcalwingman.com
I agree completely. I think that people should drink what they like, and I personally tend to have a hard time liking something that I spend the whole time thinking, “this isn’t supposed to taste like this” about. Still, I think that if you enjoy it, you should drink it.
Thanks for the comment Brian!
Great post, get ready for the barrage!! I do agree with the if it tastes good, drink it philosophy, but sometimes I find myself asking questions about the varietal integrity. For instance, often it tastes as though some varietals may have been blended with other wines even though they say they’re 100%. At the end of the day though, if a wine says Pinot noir, I hope it would taste like Pinot noir.
For sure, I am with you. Personally, I want a varietally correct wine for the most part, especially when it comes to Pinot. I tend to be turned off if a wine doesn’t taste like what it should. I’m mainly thinking about the way the average consumer sees it. I would say that there are a lot of wine drinkers, especially out here in the wine boonies, who have never really tasted a varietally correct Pinot, but would still say that they like Pinot (maybe just because of Sideways, but whatever.) I say, if they like “Pinot noir”, then it ultimately doesn’t matter if what they are drinking really tastes like a correct Pinot should.
It can certainly be a shock to be expecting a certain style then getting hit in the teeth with something entirely different. It’s probably the primary way to evaluate a wine, to take into account the varietal and the terroir. That’s also a very traditional way of thinking.
Of course, winemakers often doctor their wines with additives and process modifications. You can have a good-tasting wine created from a non-traditional wine process. Can you call it a great wine? I can make you a fan-flippin-tastic gin and tonic, by the way. Maybe it’s the best you’ve ever tasted, but I still just followed a recipe and used components other people created and researched. Would you pay 50 dollars for it?
Another thought: If you tasted that wine blind and thought it was fantastic, then found out it was a significantly different varietal, would you be impressed or disappointed?
We believe unique and interesting make good wines that are recognizable. Thomson Vineyards produces Merlot fruit that exhibits some Cabernet qualities; most winemakers and consumers find it unique and interesting and don’t take issue with it hinting at another varietal.
As consumers become more educated and up and coming generations define their own preferences, three categories will become better defined in the market 1)”if it’s good and you like it, drink it” 2) “does it meet the punch list of what wine critics/educators tell me a Pinot Noir should taste like? check check, agreed, good wine” and finally 3) “if it’s obscure and different it’s the new luxury and hard to find – makes for good wine”
I tend to fall into categories 1 & 3. Brian you’re the leader of the first group, I claim the third! I’ve never been the girl who goes for conformity and teal boxes with white bows.
I think this very question has a lot to do with why much of Europe (particularly France, Italy, and Spain) previously never labeled wines by grape varietal. Varietal was always secondary to place. But is calling something “terroir-ily correct” as subjective as “varietally correct”??
I know what you mean about the shock of the unexpected when it come to wine, and I tend to feel the same way, but that seems to generally only be an issue for us wine geeks. For the average person, if they like it, they like it.
I am 100% with you when it comes to additives, etc. that change wines. I think that this usually surfaces in an attempt to make wines more typical though, rather than less. Maybe I’m wrong, but in this area I usually see people dumping Mega-Purple, etc into wines to make them seem more like what people are expecting from that variety. And no, I wouldn’t want to pay $50 for those wines.
I’m not sure how I would feel about that. I might be a little disappointed, but maybe that’s my problem, and not the wine’s. If I liked the wine, isn’t it a little ridiculous to decide I don’t like it because it wasn’t what I thought? I think it just all comes down to what the purpose is. If I’m judging a wine, sure, it needs to taste like what it is. If I’m Joe Blow just enjoying a glass of wine, isn’t my enjoyment the only thing that matters?
Thanks for the comment Jennifer. I like your thoughts about the 3 different categories. I can see little pieces of each one of these categories in my own thoughts. I like a wine to taste “correct”, but if I’m just enjoying drinking some wine, that seems secondary to whether I enjoy the experience, and I do always enjoy something unique and interesting too.
Joe, you are brilliant. I think your point about labeling is spot on. Seems the issue that a lot of us have with wines being varietally correct is pretty directly tied to single variety labeling. We probably wouldn’t have the same hangups if the wine were just labeled by the region, or even some random name, like Conundrum.
Most excellent point Joe, but obvious why it doesn’t work domestically. When regions such as Walla Walla are producing many different varietals, how would you distinguish a Walla Walla Cab, from a Syrah, from a Merlot. Each of these grapes expresses the terrior, but hopefully in a varietally unique way. And I’m not crazy about the random name idea either, it sounds too random, kinda like an old Calvin Klein commercial. I generally follow this philosophy when tasting. I try to identify the varietal (if blind) but like a good book, I tend to look more for whether the wine has a good beginning, middle and end.
I’m not discounting “varietal” thumbprint aromas and flavors at all; I’d like to think I can distinguish a Syrah from a Merlot from a Pinot Noir. But I don’t know if “correct” is the right way to say it. I think what we may deem “correct” are telltale aromas and flavors for each varietally-labeled bottle, but these telltales differ by region (Barossa Cab can be “varietally correct” in a completely different way from left-bank Bordeaux, leading me to posit that perhaps these wines are more-accurately described as regionally correct…).
Ugh… I can tell you my first experience with Mega-Purple. Had a Malbec at a meetup at a Mexican restaurant (that was a dumb idea, btw, even glancing at the wine list). From a disgustingly deep purple colored wine, I got cherry koolaid and vinegar. The first time I’ve ever let an entire glass go to waste (well, maybe not the first).
And you’re right… there are different contexts. When judging (which I add, again, is traditional), the wine is judged on its ability to represent its varietal and terroir. Otherwise, yep, the enjoyment is the only thing that matters.
Varietal correctness certainly does matter in many instances. It is what the wine is supposed to be and can really help consumers know and learn what to expect. That doesn’t mean a wine that isn’t varietal correct is bad. In fact I applaud winemakers when they step out of the realm of normal, even if it’s just to make a fun porch pounding wine every once in awhile. Drink what you like, make what you like, and have varietal correctness serve as a base point of comparison.
Thanks for the comment Jacob. I actually agree with the comments that say that is does matter. For the record, I think that your point about consumers knowing and learning what to expect is the single biggest reason that it matters. I just think that a wine isn’t necessarily bad if it isn’t “correct”, but it is a bad example of that variety.
Cheers!