"8 Wines Every Wine Lover Should Know"

There's an interesting article on WineFolly.com (and if you don't know about WineFolly, you should definitely check it out) called 8 Wines That Every Wine Lover Should Know

http://winefolly.com/review/8-wines-every-red-wine-lover-know/

It is actually a blog rather than an article, so I will cut some slack on that. It's not all that well conceived and executed, and lacks focus. It's unclear whether the writer is talking about specific wines or general wines of a category or wines of a specific place. there's sometimes a disconnect between the photos and the text as well.

It's also unclear whether this was a suggestion to "have" or to "know" certain wines. You can talk about the legendary DRC wines al you wish---it's not going to get me one bit closer to actually tasting the wines of DRC BECAUSE I CAN'T AFFORD even a small samle of any of them. (Actually, I don't need to. I already know----i.e., have tasted---the wines of DRC through multiple vintages.)

"We would not know great Pinot Noir wines today without a little DRC." Thereby consigning the vast majority of wine drinkers to never really understanding great Pinot Noir if you haven't been able to indulge yourself in DRC. Again, are talking about knowing or tasting here? Seems to be tasting; and that, sadly, is a very limited club when it comes to DRC.

The whole Clairet-Rose'-Claret-Bordeaux Blend thing totally lost me.

Is Chateau Fortia meant to be the singular iconic must-know/must have of Chateauneuf-du- Pape? Hmmm. Can't understand or appreciate CdP without quaffing Chateau Fortia? I don't think so.

You're subtitling it the birth of Amarone, but you picture and cite Bertani Secco-Valpolicella as your icon? (Mind you, I used to sell the Bertani, and I have always loved it, but Bertani wasn't the birth of Amarone. Precursor at best. Amarone was born when winemakers, not having the climate/grapes combo to make big, rich, lusty red wines, came up with the Passito concept to artificially manipulate the wines to higher alcohol and greater density, primarily for their own consumption and only relatively recently (in Italian time spans) for public consumption. The Secco-Bertani is great---but I don't see the "therefore it follows" to Amarone, because Bertani didn't beget Amarone. (Which doesn't lessen the deliciousness of Bertani one whit.)

Yet despite all my niggles, it's an article worth reading....and thinking about. Good points are made; wine histories are revealed, and it gets to the essence of why certain particular wines inhabit a special and significant place (besides just tasting good).

I think in this case, Hoke, I am going to thank you for reading it so that I don't have to.

If game changing is the criterion, I would claim that 17th century Château Haut-Brion under Arnaud de Pontac is the correct choice for the ancestor of modern structured and age-worthy Bordeaux and other red wine. Pontac introduced wine-making and bottling techniques making this possible. Likewise it is arguable that the monks at Clos de Vougeot were more formative of modern Burgundy than the predecessors of DRC.

As for old Bordeaux "clairet" being the origin of modern rosé, IMHO that is rubbish. Prior to Pontac most "red" wine had been pink since Roman times with a few exceptions like Cahors, where Malbec gave exceptionally strong pigmentation. By the early 20th century Bordeaux "clairet" and other pinks were virtually extinct. Mass tourism, particularly from the French introduction of compulsory congés payés (= paid holidays) in 1936, encouraged a taste for light gluggable wines like rosé grown in holiday regions.

Personally, I wouldn't elevate Amarone to the pedestal of a leading wine. For Italian game changers, I would look towards the origins of Barolo, Brunello, Bolgheri or Chianti.

Wot no Germans?

Enough carping for now.

I cut her some slack, Tim, in that this was a blogpost and she was romancing over her own favorites. So she chose what pushed her buttons.

You're right though: the rose/clairet business was mangled. If she wanted to go with rose', and I would, because it has deeply influenced my own drinking as well as having a significant impact on wine in general, then Provence Rose' would be the way to go.

Agree also about Amarone---somewhat grudgingly---as it is just one part of the evolution (albeit perhaps the final part, assuming they won't make sparkling out of a la Australians and Canadians ) of Chiaretto, Bardolino, Valpolicella, Recioto, Amarone, and Ripasso. Even if she wanted to praise it in the category of passito wines, there are far better.

Yeah, no Barolo? What's up with that?

And, wait: no Northern Rhone.? Nothing from the syrah center of the world?

Rioja/Tempranillo?

Yep, no German. Guess Riesling doesn't do it for her. Also no Alsacienne. And which Champagne might she have chosen if she had chosen champagne?

So what was the 8th wine?

Clairette might mean clear, but claret doesn't.

I don't have confidence in her conclusions

Muddled article, JC made the right decision

Rioja/Tempranillo?

LdH Tondonia is listed.

I actually count 6 actual wines:
Lafite- for history I'd go for Haut Brion but that's a quibble. I thought the ridiculous "OG" clairette part was just a subset of Bordeaux.
DRC- are we talking entire estate or just one wine? They picture La Tache, yet article references the actual Romanee-Conti in contrasting 18th century prices. Again, quibbles. Bigger issue is saying every red wine lover should know DRC or Lafite at current prices.
Tondonia - good choice to me, though not really currently representative of most Rioja. LdH is my favorite, but I'd probably think La Rioja Alta or CVNE were better choices for broad representation (with plenty of history)
Bertani- so for other wines, you chose the creme de la creme, for Amarone (which wouldn't make my top dozen of red wines to try) you do Bertani? Before Amarone I'd do Barolo/Barbaresco, Left Bank merlot blends, Chinon & other Cab Franc, Cote Rotie/Hermitage, etc. If doing iconic wines how about Grange?
Fortia - CdP would be on my list, but I'd say Beaucastel
BV- I love old GdlT (I have one remaining bottle of my birthyear- 1960- plus a few others) and it certainly has history. But last couple of decades I wouldn't put near top of list of American cabs, and even in 70s maddeningly inconsistent (apparently bottled by barrel). I think something like Ridge Montebello or Heitz's Martha would be better example. Or Stags Leap or Montelena to get in mention of Judgement of Paris.

While I think no one could do a consensus article, most people here could do a better one than that (and count).

Hoke wrote:
Rioja/Tempranillo?


LdH Tondonia is listed.

Damn, Dale. Major elision on my part. I guess I somehow forgot that because I don't even think of LdH as Rioja any more. It's just LdH, and different from everything else. I also think of it as "we were orange before orange was cool" or "we were orange before you even knew what orange was".

Agree about the Bertani---it's hardly the one I would choose. That is a clear case, I think, of nostalgic affection crippling analytical reality. Which I am actually cool with, and totally understand.

Agree about the George des Latours---the last several vintages were mere shadows of the first several. It's not even in my sighing list anymore. And Ridge has survived the test of time (although we won't really know until Paul Draper is gone, will we?).

And definitely Beaucastel.

I want to circle back to make a major point, along with a suggestion:

If this is your first awareness of the rather good wine site, http://WineFolly.com, I strongly urge you to go to it and peruse the site fully. The proprietor, Madeline Puckette, is a totally dedicated winegeek, truly obsessed, and does a fine job putting things out in an engaging and sometimes provocative way. Her mantra is "Simplifying Wine"---but all of us bitten by the bug of vinosity know that is a quixotic quest.

One thing alone would elevate her site (beyond her sheer enthusiasm, I mean), and that is her visual breakdowns of molecular sources of flavors. Fantastic stuff!. Well worth checking out.