Useful Tasting Notes

I got my crunders in a twist the other day, not that unusual for me I know, my ass can be like a lawn mower at times but I’ve been making a concerted effort to practice my inner chill as of late, but something I read the other day just…argh! I don’t read many blogs, not because I don’t like them or anything, just so many hours in a day and truthfully many of them are so redundant, all the same stories just blended up and spun off in someone else’s voice. Either that or they are posts about crap that I already know or don’t care about, not really that interested in spending my free time reading that they grow Cabernet Franc in the Loire Valley…got it thanks. If that sounds kinda, “Snaahh, (lame attempt at a nasal snooty sound) I’m so learned” sorry, don’t mean to come off that way but I’ve been doing this wine thing for like, a bit and not that we can’t all use a refresher but….

So I have my little set of blogs that I pop in on every day, either to read new posts or follow the comments and one of those just so happens to be a blog written by a professional, (meaning print media) wine writer. So I was reading his latest post and I was nodding along in agreement, appreciating his candor and writing before clicking on the comments, that’s when my lawn mower started. There in the comments section was some jack hole, (just so happens it was a wine..blogger) telling this print media guy what he should have included in his post. Like, “It may have been helpful had you included xyz” wtf?!



Okay first of all, it bugged me that this guy was telling someone else what they should have written, or how it should have been written…um, he’s a writer dude, don’t pop off to someone that has FAR more knowledge and background than you, that shit just crimps my nozzle, (you know, if I had a nozzle) like nothing else. It’s like when someone comes in the shop and tells us what se, “should be” carrying…really, is that what you stock in YOUR wine store? Anyway, I’m getting off topic, how unlike me…

The issue at hand was what should have been included in the article/post…tasting notes. I read the article and it was on wines that are not at all typical, wines that express themselves through texture and structure, I dig that kind of crap but this cheese wanted, “tasting notes” as if that is going to help people understand wines like the ones that were being featured. The whole thing just annoyed me and made me really think about “tasting notes”.



I write them, I have to write them for the newsletter and for shelf talkers but…you ever have to write up 25 Roses in one sitting? Kind of brutal and the thing is…they are or can be pretty similar, one thing that you can really focus on, “texture”. When I read tasting notes I always look more to things that describe the mouth feel, level of acidity and structure, those things tell me more about the wine than reading something like, “berries” um…blueberries, raspberries? I understand that people want an idea what the wines are going to taste like but when I see those long drawn out flavor descriptors I just roll my eyes…taste is so subjective, people’s palate’s so diverse. Sometimes I smell sweaty skin in a wine, (Chablis most often) now I personally LOVE that smell but can I really put it in a tasting note? Well, I do, more often saying something like, “freshly” sweating skin to make it sound less…animal, but I loves me some “animal” smells…if I leave that out am I doing a disservice to the consumer? Are most people going to pick that out? I think it is more important and useful to describe what the wine is going to feel like…sure some basic flavor profiles are needed but I think it is perfectly appropriate to focus on how the wine is going to feel in the mouth….



Just my opinion, means nadda, just ranting and wondering if anyone else feels the same?