Written by Alessandro Marra
Bringing wine closer to people with a simpler and more direct language is a difficult task, but not impossible: at Slow Wine we are convinced that nothing is lost.
The Union des Sommeliers in Paris in 1907 (which later became the Union de la Sommellerie Française in 1970), the Italian Sommelier Association in 1965, the Italian Sommelier Federation of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs in 1972, the Court of Master Sommeliers in England in 1977: they are the first sommelier associations born in the world. Even if the initial focus was not on the tasting technique, these associations must be recognized, if nothing else, for having contributed to the diffusion of wine culture , codifying a functional language to translate into words the taste-olfactory sensations identified in the act of tasting. Of course, some formalisms have remained both in the service - «legacy of the sommellerie as servitude», wrote Gabriele Rosso in the article "The taste of water" in issue 8 of L'Integrale - and in the language, which has remained almost unchanged, except sporadic exceptions, from an era in which making wine had a completely different meaning compared to the current moment.
I would say that today we have gone a little further: many believe they can talk about wine by breaking it down, vivisecting it, discussing chromatic and olfactory nuances, or simply describing aspects that are completely irrelevant to the focus of the producer's vision.
I was thinking about it just a few days ago, when the sommelier in front of me was struggling to explain to me the meaning of that symbol on the capsule of the bottle. But why? Instead of talking to me about the company's new production paths, about why those wines had found a new meaning compared to the past; instead of telling me about the most recent choices based on the (real) environmental and social sustainability of production: nothing, was it so important to tell me about that damned symbol ? But oh well.
It is a fact that wine generally instills fear in non-experts. In a country where we are all chefs and coaches – by the way, the European Championships have started, eh 😉 – many, too many feel inadequate when talking about wine. Yet we are only talking about wine, a cultural product, of course, but not who knows what complex engineering work. Many people are not able (yet) to melt in front of a good glass of wine and the phrase that we hear more and more frequently - putting our hands forward - is "I don't understand anything about it, but...". In short, wine represents a slippery slope that is better not to tread too much! Is it the fault of a language that is too rigid, perhaps even old , no longer in step with a new grammar of wine? Yes! Even if the criticism itself certainly cannot be said to be exempt from responsibility: for a long time, in fact, it has contributed to increasing the distance between wine and the real world. A bit like the commercial parable of that sweet , peach-scented pink wine that everyone likes, absolutely everyone, except the experts: will it perhaps mean something?
We at Slow Wine are aware of the importance of (re)bringing wine closer to people (and people to wine), especially at a time like the current one in which consumption shows more or less significant slowdowns depending on the type, not lastly due to the health trends that have spread around the world.
But then - and here is the short circuit we have already talked about in Inside America, a focus on wine in America with Iacopo di Teodoro - young and very young people are increasingly moving towards mixology, preferring the consumption of spirits to wine. How do we explain it? A choice that goes against the grain, don't you think?
A new language of wine
Then again - we know it, you know it well - there isn't even a single possible way to talk effectively about wine. Often it is much easier and more effective to close your eyes and simply let yourself be carried away, trying to translate the sensations of tasting into images. A good way to practice the art of tasting without ending up being prisoners of a language which, however vast and precise, perhaps fails to fully capture people's feelings about wine.
This article appeared in Issue #12 of the new Slow Wine Newsletter, for those who love good, clean and fair wine.