The Wine Talibans

by Luigi Buonanno 07/13/17
1098 |
|
I talebani del vino

The title might sound slightly bitter, and it might upset some…

The wine trend in London has changed considerably in the past five years, and this is in part due to the growth and development of new areas in the city. The food and wine scene in East London is now emerging - and that is a great thing! Ten years ago, a very few people would have imagined that Hackney and Shoreditch could be positioned amongst the most trendy areas. While Mayfair, Soho and Camden Town still represent the most popular areas, East London is now full of new wine bars and restaurants.

The wine scene has changed likewise, and we increasingly experience wine bars with large selections of organic, biodynamic and natural wines. So far so good: I personally don’t have any problem with either of those wines, and actually I found some of my latest discoveries to be organic and/or biodynamic.

What I find misleading is the way these wines are sold and promoted. Being organic, biodynamic or natural is no guarantee of quality: it is definitively a plus - and considering the way we treat our planet, any attempt made to reduce chemical intervention in the vineyard and the cellar is very honourable - but at the same time we all want to drink good, not faulty wine. And when I am served faulty wine and told that it tastes like that because it is natural as an excuse: that is where the problem lies.

Recently I complained about a faulty wine in an East London wine bar, and the sommelier’s reply was: “You’re clearly not into real wine, sorry but we don’t serve wine with pesticides” (whatever that means!). On another occasion, I ordered a bottle of white wine and the sommelier came along with a different bottle: “Sorry sir, unfortunately the bottle that you have ordered is out of stock but I can recommend this orange wine”. I replied: “Orange wine? Is that a (good) thing?”. I don’t usually enjoy questioning sommeliers or testing their knowledge, but I wanted to understand why she recommended that particular wine instead of a different bottle of white. She replied: “Yes sir! This is a natural wine! It is macerated on the skin, and that’s why it is orange”. That is absolutely correct, but if I order a sea bass you can’t bring me lobster because it still swims in the sea, right?

I could go on and on about other experiences with sommeliers and waiters using the biodynamic, organic or natural wines as selling points. One of the main goals of any operator or restaurateur should be promoting and encouraging people to experience good wines that represent the terroir, the grape variety and reflect the vintage. But the very first thing must be the quality of the wine.





Editorial of the week

Events

March 2024
Su Mo Tu We Th Fr Sa
·
·
·
·
·
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
·
·
·
·
·
·

Newsletter

Subscribe to the "DoctorWine" newsletter to receive updates and being kept informed.
Update Privacy Permissions (GDPR)

YOUTUBE CHANNEL

OUR SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNEL