the blog of Jan. 17, 2006

Burgundy vs. California

The last best new wine I had that I can recommend is Camelot Zinfandel. I thought it had rich berry flavors and Lisa thought it was peppery... Whatever the case is was close in taste some of the better Blackstone reds. Someone might come along and say, "but all these wines taste the same!" To which I would say I don't mind, because it's an agreeable taste.

All the same the old winemaker from Burgundy featured in the "Mondovino" documentary would probably call these wines "tricksters", industrialized wines for a mass market. I found his comments fascinating. He somehow indicated that these wines are horizontal while the traditional Burgundies are vertical. Strange as that sounds, it made sense when I recently tried the Gachot-Monot Beaujolais Paul bought us for Christmas. It was a strong wine that hit you in the side of the head with a two-by-four.

With all due respect to my Burgundian forbears, I think one's pallette for wine is no different than one's taste in say, books -- meaning that it all depends on where you're at in your life journey. There's no right or wrong apart from what's right or wrong for you.

The old Burgundian winemaker makes me think of the Zen masters who slap you in the face for the sake of enlightenment. The California wines just taste good on their own terms.