Or Why the Government spoils your fun and free time.
Let me first preface this post by saying that being in the Industry whose life depends upon Alcohol and from my own personal enjoyment of it, I find the current Governmental trend of naysaying and nannying deeply offensive, hypocritical, ill-thought out, patronising and damn-right wrong; I'll try not to let this devolve into a rant but quite frankly I've got more than just the enjoyment of a GnT at the end of the day riding on it.
So first things first, lets start with definitions at it seems that no one really knows and the goal-posts have been moved many a time, to whichever political tune's been played at the time.
Units: Neatly summed as - "A unit of alcohol is defined as 10 millilitres (or approximately 8 grams) of ethanol (ethyl alcohol). This is approximately the amount of ethanol an average healthy adult can break down in an hour."
Binge Drinking: Now here's one that's changed from Drinking to get Drunk at the weekend to, more than two pints a day - "A popular 'definition' of binge drinking in the UK is the consumption of 50% or more of the recommended maximum weekly number of units of alcohol in 'one session', e.g. one night out. Thus, for a male the consumption of 4 pints of 5% ABV beer/lager would constitute 'binge drinking' ." However the current government definition is anyone who consumes more than their recommend daily limit is a "BINGE DRINKER", and so completely failing to understand the word Binge - 2 pints of 5% beer with a meal is not excessive.
Daily Limits: Because the era of common-sense is dead and we all need to be told how to live, we're advised not to drink more than 21 units a week - "regular consumption of between three and four units a day for men and between two and three units a day for women would not pose significant health risks, but that consistently drinking four or more units a day (men) or three or more units a day (women) is not advisable."
Which brings us neatly to the title of this post, the could, and from then to the why all this madness has come about to try and stop what should be a quiet pleasure and an inalienable human right.
When researching this post and having a vested interest, both professionally and personally, into these wonderful government guidelines I could find no hard evidence as to what happens when you drink more than 4 units a day. Nearly all the health pages and reference websites were filled with conditionals, may/could/might. The only definite ever stated (but not backed up with any link to scientific paper) was the "direct link between drinking and coronary heart disease" (ironic considering that drinking can also help lower the risk). And there's a very good reason for these conditionals: the Daily Limits were simply made-up as an intelligent best guess in the nineteen eighties.
And so from there to the why: Why are we being told how much to drink? Surely we as intelligent adults can live our own lives, no? Unfortunately not so, and for the very simple reason that the Nanny has more than just a mild concern for her wards.
Given that this country has a history of high alcohol consumption, an ingrained cultural leaning towards alcohol, its not surprising that with the lowering of the cost of alcohol in real-terms since the fifties, and the rise of social irresponsibility, that we have had a so called, albeit sensationalised-media-exploitation, "Binge Drinking Epidemic", (thankfully this social-trend is said now to be in decline) and with the Nanny also being in charge of healthcare spending it makes perfect sense - "If you drink too much, we have to clear up the mess, and that costs money".
However, firstly it's our tax-money (an irresponsible response but amusing nonetheless) and secondly why tell people to stop drinking when it is one of the major sources of tax revenue in the first place (just under 9 billion excluding the 17.5% from Alcohol-VAT in 2008). Thankfully when being told by the Nanny "what to do" she herself is confused.
But let's not be too frivolous, as Alcohol is a drug and an addictive one, we can see why the Nanny is scared and worried, when so often the picture is painted is one not too dissimilar from Hogarth's Gin Lane; but, amusingly and quite succinctly, there in we have it: people don't change, we all like a drink and society is not about to fall to the peril that is Alcohol. The only thing that has changed is that we're all now more informed.
"Lo! the poor tober whose untutored sense,
Sees bliss in ale, and can with wine dispense;
Whose head proud fancy never taught to steer,
Beyond the muddy ecstasies of beer."
George Crabbe 'Inebriety' 1775.
Suggested wine-style to try this week: Sweet German White, like a nice Riesling or Liebfraumilch.
P.S. I must apologise for there being too much whine and not enough wine in the above post but what with Sir Liam Donaldson being a "prime government Tool", I felt that a bit of real info and not media propaganda was needed.
As a final aside please do read this link as it puts a whole new level on the current "Alcohol and health" debate.
Tuesday 4 August 2009
Thursday 16 July 2009
In the Land of the Blind the One-Eyed Man is King.
Or "Wine Types and Styles, and what they taste of".
Since a resounding 90% of you wanted to know more about wine, and several friends have expressed an interest in knowing more, I thought it was high-time to give a quick rundown on the current best wine styles and types on the current market.
The easiest way to get to grips with wine is by remembering the grape type. This is the main reason why New-World wine took off in such a big way in this country (around about the 1990s). Instead of Vouvray and Bergerac, we now had Ozzy Chardonnay with a cute frog on the picture and, Chilean Merlot with some odd devil insignia, which as an aide de memorie is significantly better than some unintelligible Chateau name (not that I have anything against such things but for introductory purposes they really aren't the easiest).
So, without further ado:
Chardonnay: Quite literally the Queen of the White Wine World. I read once that Chardonnay has no flavour of its own and responds to whatever the winemaker does to it, whilst this is true in a sense its not particularly helpful and in a nutshell chardonnay comes in two styles (gross generalisation I know). Firstly the dry crisp granny-smith, lemon and honey of Chablis, Montrachet and any New-World Chardonnay that says its "Unoaked". Secondly, there's the rich full bodied style of Meursault, Corton and any New-World Chardonnay that's likely to have some oak influence, in France these tend to taste of lemon, butter, nut and golden-syrup, whilst in Chile/Oz/Argentina, they'll be jam packed with rich tropical fruit flavours specifically mango, melon, passion fruit. I'll leave the ABC crowd to a later missive.
Sauvignon Blanc: The current most popular white grape variety, made famous originally by Sancerre and Pouilly Fume, but more recently by the Nouveau Sauvignon sensation from New Zealand and more specifically Marlborough. Quintessentially Sauvignon tastes of limes to Chardonnay's lemons; Lime, grapefruit, gooseberry, catspee (yes I'm sceptical too, also refered to as a Geranium-esque taste) freshly-cut grass and herbs. Generally the crispiest, driest style of white on the market, but it can (and does) respond well to oak, as the American Market likes it.
Pinot Grigio: Like many, many Italian whites this one ticks all the boxes, when cheap, of being gluggable, flavourless and insipid. Possibly an over-harsh criticism as you can get many a fine Pinot Grigio but as we all know from trying it, Pinot Grigio tastes of two things: Pears and Almonds (if you're lucky). If done as the Alsatian's like it as a Pinot Gris you can get a rich, honeyed, heady, blossom and apricot scented aromatic wine, which the Kiwis are rather taking a shine to, as they try desperately to get away from the one trick pony that is Sauv Blanc.
Cabernet Sauvignon: This cunning cross between Sauvignon Blanc and Cab-Savs lesser known (and more stalky) brother Cabernet Franc is the King of Red Grapes, creating some of the finest (and most expensive) wines known to man, capable of hundreds of years of aging. By saying it's the King, it is quite the consort to Chardonnay's Queen in the sense that it responds very well to wherever its being grown and to the respective winemaker. Primarily though Cabernet Sauvignon tastes of Ribena (in the new-world) or Cassis (in the old). Joking aside it can also taste of blackcurrants, blueberries, pencil-shavings and cigar-boxes (in the old-world), blueberries, eucalyptus, and vanilla (in the new). Cab-Sav is one of the two primary grapes in Bordeaux (also affectionately known as Claret) the other being the grape below, and thankfully the two compliment each other very well as this style is mimicked all over the world.
Merlot: Possibly the easiest red to drink as its often lighter bodied than many reds and rich, warm and plummy in style; lighter as it is not as tannic as Cab-Sav and certainly not as obviously cassisy, with notes of currant and fruitcake (in the old-world) and chocolate and coffee (in the new). Chilean Merlot really helped bring this soft juicy grape to the forefront of the consumer's mind in the late eighties, ironically however it wasn't Merlot that was being bottled but its lesser known brother Carménère, which has everything one wants from Merlot and more; more chocolate, molasses, mocha, caramel and vanilla.
Syrah/Shiraz: A grape that mostly gained its fame thanks to the Australians, who really put it through its paces far more so than the French in its original home, where its often blended (and blended well no less) Australian Shiraz has to be one of the most iconic wine-styles available. Whilst the line is less clear than it is with Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris, I'd certainly, at least for clarity's sake, have producers who want the more elegant, nuanced style to be call it Syrah. Here the flavours are blackberry, black-pepper, smoke, nutmeg and often savoury gamey notes; a style that some Chilean and new-world producers are trying to emulate. In its spiritual home as Shiraz, the clever Australians can create massive overpowering wines that taste of (some of the above but also) blueberry, prune, and a general rich heady inky blackness.
Pinot Noir: One of the oldest grape varieties around and the progenitor of quite a few of the modern grapes we have on the market (Pinot Grigio, Pinot Blanc, Gamay, Auxerrois, Pinotage, Aligote), Pinot Noir is a venerable variety and certainly one of the hardest grapes to grow well, and as such the most elegant and subtle of grapes. In its original home in Burgundy Pinot Noir is finesse personified, tasting of cherries, raspberries, strawberries, game, leather, mushrooms (the last three when aged), whilst in the new world and specifically where its more successful (namely California, Chile and New Zealand) it can take on flavours of green-peppers, jam, glacie-cherry and candied berrys. My one piece of advice for this fantastic grape is it can't be grown well cheaply. Never spend less than £10 in France or £7 in the new-world if you want to avoid disappointment. When cheap it will taste thin, tart and rubbish.
Whilst there are many other nobles grapes worth mentioning and giving further discussion to, the best place to start is of course by going and drinking them!
"Dust into Dust, and under dust, to lie, Sans wine - sans Song."
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam st.23
Suggested wine-style to try this week: Oaky New World Chardonnay.
(P.S. I realise that the above hasn't got to the question of oak influence and its effects upon wine-flavour, but I'll leave that for another post).
(P.P.S. If people would like more wine info please come and visit me for an informal chat+Free tasting, its ever so quiet in Battersea)
Since a resounding 90% of you wanted to know more about wine, and several friends have expressed an interest in knowing more, I thought it was high-time to give a quick rundown on the current best wine styles and types on the current market.
The easiest way to get to grips with wine is by remembering the grape type. This is the main reason why New-World wine took off in such a big way in this country (around about the 1990s). Instead of Vouvray and Bergerac, we now had Ozzy Chardonnay with a cute frog on the picture and, Chilean Merlot with some odd devil insignia, which as an aide de memorie is significantly better than some unintelligible Chateau name (not that I have anything against such things but for introductory purposes they really aren't the easiest).
So, without further ado:
Chardonnay: Quite literally the Queen of the White Wine World. I read once that Chardonnay has no flavour of its own and responds to whatever the winemaker does to it, whilst this is true in a sense its not particularly helpful and in a nutshell chardonnay comes in two styles (gross generalisation I know). Firstly the dry crisp granny-smith, lemon and honey of Chablis, Montrachet and any New-World Chardonnay that says its "Unoaked". Secondly, there's the rich full bodied style of Meursault, Corton and any New-World Chardonnay that's likely to have some oak influence, in France these tend to taste of lemon, butter, nut and golden-syrup, whilst in Chile/Oz/Argentina, they'll be jam packed with rich tropical fruit flavours specifically mango, melon, passion fruit. I'll leave the ABC crowd to a later missive.
Sauvignon Blanc: The current most popular white grape variety, made famous originally by Sancerre and Pouilly Fume, but more recently by the Nouveau Sauvignon sensation from New Zealand and more specifically Marlborough. Quintessentially Sauvignon tastes of limes to Chardonnay's lemons; Lime, grapefruit, gooseberry, catspee (yes I'm sceptical too, also refered to as a Geranium-esque taste) freshly-cut grass and herbs. Generally the crispiest, driest style of white on the market, but it can (and does) respond well to oak, as the American Market likes it.
Pinot Grigio: Like many, many Italian whites this one ticks all the boxes, when cheap, of being gluggable, flavourless and insipid. Possibly an over-harsh criticism as you can get many a fine Pinot Grigio but as we all know from trying it, Pinot Grigio tastes of two things: Pears and Almonds (if you're lucky). If done as the Alsatian's like it as a Pinot Gris you can get a rich, honeyed, heady, blossom and apricot scented aromatic wine, which the Kiwis are rather taking a shine to, as they try desperately to get away from the one trick pony that is Sauv Blanc.
Cabernet Sauvignon: This cunning cross between Sauvignon Blanc and Cab-Savs lesser known (and more stalky) brother Cabernet Franc is the King of Red Grapes, creating some of the finest (and most expensive) wines known to man, capable of hundreds of years of aging. By saying it's the King, it is quite the consort to Chardonnay's Queen in the sense that it responds very well to wherever its being grown and to the respective winemaker. Primarily though Cabernet Sauvignon tastes of Ribena (in the new-world) or Cassis (in the old). Joking aside it can also taste of blackcurrants, blueberries, pencil-shavings and cigar-boxes (in the old-world), blueberries, eucalyptus, and vanilla (in the new). Cab-Sav is one of the two primary grapes in Bordeaux (also affectionately known as Claret) the other being the grape below, and thankfully the two compliment each other very well as this style is mimicked all over the world.
Merlot: Possibly the easiest red to drink as its often lighter bodied than many reds and rich, warm and plummy in style; lighter as it is not as tannic as Cab-Sav and certainly not as obviously cassisy, with notes of currant and fruitcake (in the old-world) and chocolate and coffee (in the new). Chilean Merlot really helped bring this soft juicy grape to the forefront of the consumer's mind in the late eighties, ironically however it wasn't Merlot that was being bottled but its lesser known brother Carménère, which has everything one wants from Merlot and more; more chocolate, molasses, mocha, caramel and vanilla.
Syrah/Shiraz: A grape that mostly gained its fame thanks to the Australians, who really put it through its paces far more so than the French in its original home, where its often blended (and blended well no less) Australian Shiraz has to be one of the most iconic wine-styles available. Whilst the line is less clear than it is with Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris, I'd certainly, at least for clarity's sake, have producers who want the more elegant, nuanced style to be call it Syrah. Here the flavours are blackberry, black-pepper, smoke, nutmeg and often savoury gamey notes; a style that some Chilean and new-world producers are trying to emulate. In its spiritual home as Shiraz, the clever Australians can create massive overpowering wines that taste of (some of the above but also) blueberry, prune, and a general rich heady inky blackness.
Pinot Noir: One of the oldest grape varieties around and the progenitor of quite a few of the modern grapes we have on the market (Pinot Grigio, Pinot Blanc, Gamay, Auxerrois, Pinotage, Aligote), Pinot Noir is a venerable variety and certainly one of the hardest grapes to grow well, and as such the most elegant and subtle of grapes. In its original home in Burgundy Pinot Noir is finesse personified, tasting of cherries, raspberries, strawberries, game, leather, mushrooms (the last three when aged), whilst in the new world and specifically where its more successful (namely California, Chile and New Zealand) it can take on flavours of green-peppers, jam, glacie-cherry and candied berrys. My one piece of advice for this fantastic grape is it can't be grown well cheaply. Never spend less than £10 in France or £7 in the new-world if you want to avoid disappointment. When cheap it will taste thin, tart and rubbish.
Whilst there are many other nobles grapes worth mentioning and giving further discussion to, the best place to start is of course by going and drinking them!
"Dust into Dust, and under dust, to lie, Sans wine - sans Song."
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam st.23
Suggested wine-style to try this week: Oaky New World Chardonnay.
(P.S. I realise that the above hasn't got to the question of oak influence and its effects upon wine-flavour, but I'll leave that for another post).
(P.P.S. If people would like more wine info please come and visit me for an informal chat+Free tasting, its ever so quiet in Battersea)
Tuesday 30 June 2009
Pingo Gringo, Chardollay and Riohjar
Or "Wine Snobbery - The Bane of The Wine World".
I've been selling wine, in one way or another, for coming on 5 years now; its been an interesting time to say the least, not just in learning about the myriad of wines out there, but more intriguingly to the way that we as a people approach wine, and the glories that it entails.
First and foremost, wine is an alcoholic drink: a source of pleasure, hopefully, a great accompaniment to social times and relaxation; but given there are so many different styles its amazing what limited selections people submit themselves to.
I started my career in wine, as many have, serving it to others, and whilst most were quite happy to go for a nice Chilean Merlot or Australian Shiraz on the reds, the requests for white wines always astounded me. From "Yeah I wanna nice medium-dry Pingo-Gringo" to "Oh no I don't drink Chenin its too sweet" I was always intrigued as to how these people had formed such steadfast opinions based upon so little. (Wine Informative Aside: nearly all white wine in this country sold and consumed is dry; medium-dry, medium-sweet do not refer to the flavour profile but to the level of residual sugar, the actual grams per litre. Wines can taste fruity whilst still being dry.)
This kind of Flavour-Arrogance is all well and fine, you like what you know, but it's made despicable when you have someone who thinks their opinion is well informed when they're plainly pig-ignorant. I'll cite two examples: the first is the "I can't stand Chardollay", mispronouncing aside, this statement is then usually followed by "but have you got any chablis?". Casually damning an entire varietal just because it's deemed unfashionable (a point I'll address in a later missive).
The second example concerns Rosé. I'll let you in on a little secret, the style of a Rosé has nothing whatsoever to do with the colour; (EJG have done no one any favours with their innocuous blushes) nor whether it'll give you a raging hangover or not. And yet, many people are convinced that they know what colour to go for to find a wine they enjoy.
The point I'm labouring to make is about wine information and misinformation. As with any subjective pleasure there are as many intellectual-studies as there are old-wives' tales; the key thing to realise is that being ignorant of something is fine, you can always learn more. What is far far worse is to arrogantly claim knowledge, make some sweeping generalisation and have it being at best, make you look like an idiot, or at worse being detrimental to your enjoyment and others. of such a great human creation.
"In vino veritas et praevalebit. Agreeing with the author, there is truth in wine and it will prevail...in a bit."
Stevie Smith
Suggested wine-style to try this week: Italian Pinot Grigio - yes there are some very good ones out there, suprisingly.
(Nice to see Red wine coming out on top of the poll, no one voted for Rosé, even given the weather we've been having.)
I've been selling wine, in one way or another, for coming on 5 years now; its been an interesting time to say the least, not just in learning about the myriad of wines out there, but more intriguingly to the way that we as a people approach wine, and the glories that it entails.
First and foremost, wine is an alcoholic drink: a source of pleasure, hopefully, a great accompaniment to social times and relaxation; but given there are so many different styles its amazing what limited selections people submit themselves to.
I started my career in wine, as many have, serving it to others, and whilst most were quite happy to go for a nice Chilean Merlot or Australian Shiraz on the reds, the requests for white wines always astounded me. From "Yeah I wanna nice medium-dry Pingo-Gringo" to "Oh no I don't drink Chenin its too sweet" I was always intrigued as to how these people had formed such steadfast opinions based upon so little. (Wine Informative Aside: nearly all white wine in this country sold and consumed is dry; medium-dry, medium-sweet do not refer to the flavour profile but to the level of residual sugar, the actual grams per litre. Wines can taste fruity whilst still being dry.)
This kind of Flavour-Arrogance is all well and fine, you like what you know, but it's made despicable when you have someone who thinks their opinion is well informed when they're plainly pig-ignorant. I'll cite two examples: the first is the "I can't stand Chardollay", mispronouncing aside, this statement is then usually followed by "but have you got any chablis?". Casually damning an entire varietal just because it's deemed unfashionable (a point I'll address in a later missive).
The second example concerns Rosé. I'll let you in on a little secret, the style of a Rosé has nothing whatsoever to do with the colour; (EJG have done no one any favours with their innocuous blushes) nor whether it'll give you a raging hangover or not. And yet, many people are convinced that they know what colour to go for to find a wine they enjoy.
The point I'm labouring to make is about wine information and misinformation. As with any subjective pleasure there are as many intellectual-studies as there are old-wives' tales; the key thing to realise is that being ignorant of something is fine, you can always learn more. What is far far worse is to arrogantly claim knowledge, make some sweeping generalisation and have it being at best, make you look like an idiot, or at worse being detrimental to your enjoyment and others. of such a great human creation.
"In vino veritas et praevalebit. Agreeing with the author, there is truth in wine and it will prevail...in a bit."
Stevie Smith
Suggested wine-style to try this week: Italian Pinot Grigio - yes there are some very good ones out there, suprisingly.
(Nice to see Red wine coming out on top of the poll, no one voted for Rosé, even given the weather we've been having.)
Wednesday 17 June 2009
A bottle a day keeps the doctor away.
In an ideal world it would do. As then I could preface my name with Doctor, as I'd be a purveyor of goods that improved the health of anyone who walked through the door.
I suppose I should give some explanation of what and why of the title:
Plonk, as everyone knows, is cheap/inferior wine that you don't drink out of pleasure but rather to either get drunk on something that's less bloating than beer or to look sophisticated (and most likely fail in doing so.) For my sins, the first bottle of plonk I bought wasn't one, but three, with the then amazing Tesco's 3-for-£10 deal (ahh the heady days of underage economy drinking); and it clearly had one of the two above desired effects, as I have no recollection at all as to what on earth it was. Thankfully it was quite the eye-opener and although, naturally, I'd had wine at home, I never bought wine till I went to university, where I remembered the pitfalls and horrors of cheap wine.
From that to Petrus is quite a step (as mentioned before, one I actually have yet to take). Château Pétrus is considered one of the top wines in the entire world; Farr Vintners puts the latest drinkable vintage, '98, at £1708 per bottle; quite the payout for a simple pleasure. However, as many of the wine-world's top critics name-drop it in their works, like some famous celebrity friend, and the alliteration with Plonk, I thought it suitably apt.
Returning to Plonk, there are a few things I feel I should mention given that a blog about wine at the very least should be informative. Firstly, assuming that you are wanting to drink more than just gut-rot there are some very good reasons why buying a £5 bottle of wine will be outstandingly better, both in taste and quality, than buying a £3 bottle.
Sad to say, like many things in life, the reason for this is tax: the Duty currently on a bottle of wine is around the 160p mark. In a £3 bottle of wine over half of the cost is pure government greed (a point I'll address in a later missive). Now factor in transport/labour/administration/retail-mark ups and you've got very little left in the bottle, in monetary terms, that actually involves the wine. Say that Duty is 160p, transport from wherever 40p, administration and labour costs another 30p, leaving you a mere 70p to include retail profit, wine-making cost and wine-maker's profit. All in all I imagine that the actual cost of the wine in terms of production might be around the 5p mark.
Now consider if you move up a price-point from £3 to £5, suddenly you've got a massive 270p's worth of potential wine-value. Certainly a better bottle, in value, taste and quality.
Two main points I'm trying to highlight from this: firstly, that in wine it's always worth spending the extra couple of pounds; and secondly that you get what you pay for.
"Wine maketh merry; but money answereth all things."
Ecclesiastes ch. 10, v.19
Suggested wine-style to try this week: New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc - preferably from Malborough.
I suppose I should give some explanation of what and why of the title:
Plonk, as everyone knows, is cheap/inferior wine that you don't drink out of pleasure but rather to either get drunk on something that's less bloating than beer or to look sophisticated (and most likely fail in doing so.) For my sins, the first bottle of plonk I bought wasn't one, but three, with the then amazing Tesco's 3-for-£10 deal (ahh the heady days of underage economy drinking); and it clearly had one of the two above desired effects, as I have no recollection at all as to what on earth it was. Thankfully it was quite the eye-opener and although, naturally, I'd had wine at home, I never bought wine till I went to university, where I remembered the pitfalls and horrors of cheap wine.
From that to Petrus is quite a step (as mentioned before, one I actually have yet to take). Château Pétrus is considered one of the top wines in the entire world; Farr Vintners puts the latest drinkable vintage, '98, at £1708 per bottle; quite the payout for a simple pleasure. However, as many of the wine-world's top critics name-drop it in their works, like some famous celebrity friend, and the alliteration with Plonk, I thought it suitably apt.
Returning to Plonk, there are a few things I feel I should mention given that a blog about wine at the very least should be informative. Firstly, assuming that you are wanting to drink more than just gut-rot there are some very good reasons why buying a £5 bottle of wine will be outstandingly better, both in taste and quality, than buying a £3 bottle.
Sad to say, like many things in life, the reason for this is tax: the Duty currently on a bottle of wine is around the 160p mark. In a £3 bottle of wine over half of the cost is pure government greed (a point I'll address in a later missive). Now factor in transport/labour/administration/retail-mark ups and you've got very little left in the bottle, in monetary terms, that actually involves the wine. Say that Duty is 160p, transport from wherever 40p, administration and labour costs another 30p, leaving you a mere 70p to include retail profit, wine-making cost and wine-maker's profit. All in all I imagine that the actual cost of the wine in terms of production might be around the 5p mark.
Now consider if you move up a price-point from £3 to £5, suddenly you've got a massive 270p's worth of potential wine-value. Certainly a better bottle, in value, taste and quality.
Two main points I'm trying to highlight from this: firstly, that in wine it's always worth spending the extra couple of pounds; and secondly that you get what you pay for.
"Wine maketh merry; but money answereth all things."
Ecclesiastes ch. 10, v.19
Suggested wine-style to try this week: New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc - preferably from Malborough.
Tuesday 16 June 2009
Like the first sip of an opened bottle:
I take the plunge.
Let me first preface my blog with two thoughts:
Firstly, that blogging is and can be a license for sloppy journalism and I'll be having none of it! Secondly, that I have yet to try Petrus. I certainly intend to one day, but alas working with wine doesn't really reward one fiscally enough to indulge in such wonders.
Let me first preface my blog with two thoughts:
Firstly, that blogging is and can be a license for sloppy journalism and I'll be having none of it! Secondly, that I have yet to try Petrus. I certainly intend to one day, but alas working with wine doesn't really reward one fiscally enough to indulge in such wonders.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
