I have to say that a recent post by Steve Heimoff confirmed my desire to never be called or considered a wine critic. His attitude and the attitude of his fellow "journalists", such as Jancis Robinson and others are that of spoiled, insecure, arrogant children. Furthermore anyone who is trying to follow in their footsteps is disillusioned and simply trying to imitate a flawed system whether they know it or not. A point system is a point system is a point system. It matters not whether that point system is made up of 100 points, 89 points, 29 points, or 5 points, it is still useless to properly describe and help people understand wine. There are so many wonderful drinkable wines to be discovered that it seems useless to rank and quibble over scores.
My aspiration is to be a wine writer, and my approach is
much more in the style of a knowledgeable wine steward or importer. This line
of thinking has been born out of a desire to never offer anyone a bottle of
wine that can not be appreciated or enjoyed in some manner (I have never had a
wine from Kermit Lynch I
did not enjoy). It does not always have to be expensive and it does not always
have to be great, but it should always be a pleasure to drink. It must be well
balanced and food friendly first and foremost. It must be made in a natural
thoughtful way by someone who I want to support with my buying power. This is
the approach that I am taking with my writing.
There are people out there who say that you should review badly made wines as
well as the good...I disagree. What is the point? If I do not like their
offering this year, that does not mean that they will not do better the next.
Why give them a bad name if they are truly ascribing to let the land speak. I
am not perfect and I do not claim to be GOD when it comes to wine. I know what
I know and I trust my palate. I am always seeking to learn more and understand
the greater picture of this wine world I work and live in.
The goal of this blog is not to feed my own ego or even to dethrone the current
evil that is wine publication today, although that would be a nice byproduct
(the dethroning not feeding my ego). There are enough people out there trying
to achieve both of those ends. I am quietly attempting to preserve the soul of
the vine by offering you one authentic producer at a time. I will also throw in
a jab or a controversial idea here and there just to make people think. We must
think, and we need to reevaluate our own thoughts on wine.
I leave you with one of my favorite quotes and one that has driven me to find another way.
“Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.”
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
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