New World vs. Old World – Who’s Got the Power?
Diversity. It’s supposed to be a good thing and not a bad thing, right? Most of us were taught at a very young age that there are lots of different people, religions and beliefs in the world. As we grow and mature we learn tolerance, understanding, respect and compassion to appreciate the things and people that are different from us and our own personal experiences.
So, if we were taught that diversity is a good thing, then why is the wine industry so hell bent on pouring one homogenized, “cookie cutter” flavor, and style of wine down our throats?
I recently attended a blind-tasting and sampled about 40 different wines comprised of whites, reds, and sweet wines. And guess what? Nearly all of the whites (as a collective group) and all of the reds (as a group) tasted stylistically the same – in a scary sort of way! No joke. Only a handful of these wines stood out in the crowd, and it wasn’t just me and my palate that noticed the frightening similarity. At the end of this tasting, when the identities of these wines were revealed, all of the tasters conveyed similar thoughts.
In defense of all the wines that were poured that particular evening, each one of them could be found across the US for less than $15 and had production numbers that exceeded 10,000 cases per year. Let’s face it, 40 wines priced under 15 bucks with big production numbers is certainly not enough empirical data to make a proclamation that all wines are beginning to taste the same. However, if you’re an everyday wine drinker like myself, who spends on average between $10-15 on a bottle of wine, it should be very apparent, “New World” style wines have a strangle-hold on consumers in the world of “inexpensive” wine – and they’re not about to loosen their grip anytime soon.
One can place blame for this often repeated and copied blueprint on the likes of influential critics that prefer their wines overripe, over-oaked, and high in alcohol. You can even blame California, Australia, South America and others (Europe too) for flooding retailers’ shelves with wines that are separated more by a marketing budget and less by their unique characteristics.
The bottom line and reality of it all, is that it’s getting harder and harder to tell the difference between two wines because so many of them have been made devoid of the slightest individual personality that gives drinkers a sense of where they came from.
My question is: Has diversity and geographical nuances, that were once common in wines from different parts of the world, been sentenced to a slow and painful death?
The Mercy Rule is in effect.
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Tags: 2 Responses to “New World vs. Old World – Who’s Got the Power?”
Great question. As a person who loves discovering new wines that are unique and distinctive, the trend towards homogenization is indeed disturbing. I've been thinking about this a lot recently. It seems that the new wines are far more consistent than they used to be in the past, which means that you are less likely to get a truly BAD wine. The downside seems to be that you are also less likely to find a truly amazing wine. I'd personally take the risk of having a lower quality wine during an off vintage if it meant that I had the opportunity to taste something sublime during a good one.
Love your thought process Ben and agree with your comment. So many Pros and Cons on both sides of this topic. Man, can you imagine how difficult it must be on wineries and their winemaker(s) to strike the right cord that appeals to a wide range of drinkers – both average consumers and critics alike year after year? New World sure seems like the “safer” bet between the two. But at the same time, by taking that same familiar path, what's really differentiating your wine(s) from everybody else? At the rate it's going, we might as well start making our purchases based on how much we like a particular label. Because for so many wines sadly, it’s seems to be about the only thing that’s separating them on a retailers shelf besides the price tag.