You know what we’re tasting (see Rodney’s Wine Wednesdays Videos). Here is a look at what we are reading!
Notwithstanding the innovative vinification practices I see here at Crushpad, when it comes to wine, I am a big believer in the romance of terroir. Its the idea that every drop of wine is influenced by the natural environment where it is produced, which has also long informed my own clichéd analogies of places I have been and who I was when I visited those places. For example, the lemon lime (with hints of cat pee?) minerality of a nice Sancerre reminds me of the first time I left the US as an exchange student to France. A montage of images parades past me: One, a hastily constructed wooden deck, strewed with festive lighting, à la the film Roman Holiday, where I drink beer and dance to the song La Bamba next to my host brother celebrating Les Bleus’ World Cup victory. Another, humid summer air warming my face when I step off an over air-conditioned tour bus ferrying me through the Loire Valley. Or the realization that I have become the “crazy American teenager,” my conservative Chinese parents warned me to stay away from, the night I coerce my fellow students into breaking curfew, sneaking out of our hotel, and riding the Paris metro to the Champs de Mars. We spent our last evening in France drinking wine under the stars with the Eiffel Tower twinkling behind us.
So, for me its hard to separate the sense of place from the art of crafting wine, which is why I am such a huge fan of British wine columnist Jamie Goode’s blog www.wineanorak.com. At first glance, with its intermingling of articles, blog posts and far too much other text, the interface is a bit overwhelming. However, a quick perusal of “Recent Articles” or “Wine Travel” highlights pieces about New Zealand’s Martinborough and Wairarapa, Spain’s Rioja Alta, South Africa’s Elgin, Portugal’s Duoro River Valley, and more. Dr. Goode, yes, he’s not only an award winning wine writer but he’s got a PhD in Plant Biology too, really imbues a sense of people and place to products that would otherwise be bottles on a shelf from regions on a map. Below is an excerpt from the site where he spotlights the Gladstone Winery in New Zealand.
As a student of wine, I am fascinated by even some of the dated material in the “Wine Travel” section like “Visiting German Vineyards.” Here, Dr. Goode writes a different section for each of the well known German wine regions. He posts photographs, lists major producers, and writes wonderfully detailed profiles of select vineyards. I’ve attempted to explore many of these regions at my local wine shop and have supplemented my tasting adventure by walking through these historic vineyards, listening to Jamie tell the story behind the producers. I may only be surfing through the photos and reading the text, but, at times, Dr. Goode’s personable narrative (and the wine) conflates the experience into a private vineyard tour. Each section is punctuated by a tasting with associated wine ratings and notes. They are descriptive enough to pique my curiosity and inspire me to buy the wines and see how similar our palates are. I hope that a visit to this site can help some of you, glass in hand, to reach these faraway places from the comfort of your own home.
Have fun exploring and don’t forget to leave a comment about what you’ve been reading!
-Author, Daphne Feng, coordinates film production and social media in the Marketing Dept at Crushpad.
