Non-pro wine writing should be done how?

originally posted by richard slicker:
emoticons are the way forward.

schnait.jpg
fb.
Click to expand...

was that bottle of Schnaitmann so bad?
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
I think the aromatic descriptors in most notes are arbitrary and nearly random, and are not shared in a common vocabulary. In the chapter Mark L recommends (as do I), Asimov parses tasting notes for the same wine by three professional critics. You can get to structural elements amid the underbrush, but really they have no flavors in common. Are those cherries "baked" or in "compote" or "smashed"?
Click to expand...

Pretty ironic, considering that this approach was developed for the express purpose of forging a shared, easily understood common vocabulary amongst wine folk.
 
originally posted by Lou Kessler:I was under the impression that the Politburo closed off these kind of discussions when someone mentioned Hitler or Stuart Yaniger.
Click to expand...

Lou, Can we assume that you are being flippant? Otherwise, I hope that you or someone will send me a private message or email explaining the context.

. . . . . . Pete
 
originally posted by Bruce G.:

Pretty ironic, considering that this approach was developed for the express purpose of forging a shared, easily understood common vocabulary amongst wine folk.
Click to expand...

Hi, Bruce, so glad to see that you are looking in now and then.

So I presume that you refer to aroma wheels and other such efforts, from your alma mater most prominently?

I don't think that is the sort of effort at rigor (leaving aside the practicalities of making it work) that you see from the Laubes, Molesworths, and Sucklings of the world. Do you?

Do you find the wheel and related things work for you?
 
originally posted by SFJoe:
Hi, Bruce, so glad to see that you are looking in now and then.

So I presume that you refer to aroma wheels and other such efforts, from your alma mater most prominently?

I don't think that is the sort of effort at rigor (leaving aside the practicalities of making it work) that you see from the Laubes, Molesworths, and Sucklings of the world. Do you?

Do you find the wheel and related things work for you?
Click to expand...

Joe:

Yes, was speaking of the work done at UCD that led to the publishing of the Aroma Wheel. Though the folks at Davis certainly weren't the first to say "Hey, this wine smells of [insert appropriate noun here]", they took that idea and ran with it, developing a fairly useful sensory analytical tool as a result.
I may be mistaken, but I think that the popularization of the Aroma Wheel is largely responsible for the fruit salad style of tasting note we see so often in the English speaking wine press.

Which, as others point out, leads to a lot of silliness.
But that's not the fault of the original work. The Aroma Wheel works well enough. With training it is possible to consistenly dissect a wine's aromatic profile in a way that is reproducible, not only for oneself, but also across members of a group who are similarly trained.

As a more commonly employed system, though, it has its problems.
As you say, the people who use it aren't necessarily all that rigorous in their approach. You can extend that criticism to the people who read and rely on them, as well. Training is integral to the methodology, and without it the results might vary quite a bit.
More importantly, the system wasn't intended to be a vocabulary list from which laypersons comprise the bulk of their tasting notes. It was designed to be used in very specific instances, to very specific ends.
"This wine tastes of cherries" is, after all, a pretty useless line in and of itself.

Regards,
 
The two dozen or so individuals who read my tasting notes are friends and former customers, so they know exactly who it is that says X tastes like cherries, or Y smells like fabric softener. There is an implicit (and sometimes explicit) understanding that I reserve the right to be boring and also to be wrong, and sometimes both. I never promised anyone that I'd write like Thor Iverson.
 
originally posted by David Erickson:
The two dozen or so individuals who read my tasting notes are friends and former customers, so they know exactly who it is that says X tastes like cherries, or Y smells like fabric softener. There is an implicit (and sometimes explicit) understanding that I reserve the right to be boring and also to be wrong, and sometimes both. I never promised anyone that I'd write like Thor Iverson.
Click to expand...
Thor's writing has always been to pithy for me to appreciate.
 
A little something from Keith Levenberg on the subject.

I did once use "hedonistic" in a note, but only after someone called me an "irresponsible hedonist" because I was insensitive enough to declare that the first job of wine was to taste good, and only secondarily to be produced sustainably. Apparently, in certain circles, having the temerity to say that you do not particularly enjoy Coulée de Serrant is equivalent to being a climate change denier.
 
originally posted by Lou Kessler:
I understand
originally posted by David Erickson:
The two dozen or so individuals who read my tasting notes are friends and former customers, so they know exactly who it is that says X tastes like cherries, or Y smells like fabric softener. There is an implicit (and sometimes explicit) understanding that I reserve the right to be boring and also to be wrong, and sometimes both. I never promised anyone that I'd write like Thor Iverson.
Click to expand...
Thor's writing has always been to pithy for me to appreciate.
Click to expand...

That's a pithy.
 
originally posted by David Erickson:
Apparently, in certain circles, having the temerity to say that you do not particularly enjoy Coulée de Serrant is equivalent to being a climate change denier.
Click to expand...
Is that right?

Which circles are those?
 
originally posted by David Erickson:
A little something from Keith Levenberg on the subject.

I did once use "hedonistic" in a note, but only after someone called me an "irresponsible hedonist" because I was insensitive enough to declare that the first job of wine was to taste good, and only secondarily to be produced sustainably. Apparently, in certain circles, having the temerity to say that you do not particularly enjoy Coulée de Serrant is equivalent to being a climate change denier.
Click to expand...
This being my particular hobbyhorse, I will hereby ride it again. "Hedonist" is not a word that can properly describe wines of any kind, even the ones Keith thinks it does apply to.
 
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
I don't know. I once had a bottle of wine that ate all my expensive chocolates.
Click to expand...

Well, OK, I'll make an exception for that one and other bottles that exhibit similarly purposive actions.
 
originally posted by Jonathan Loesberg:
This being my particular hobbyhorse, I will hereby ride it again. "Hedonist" is not a word that can properly describe wines of any kind, even the ones Keith thinks it does apply to.
Click to expand...

Aren't you a literature professor? Shouldn't you know that your radical literalism is the enemy of all that is creative and good about art and expression?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top