The Wine Savant: A Guide to the New Wine Culture (24 page)

Wine for Dummies
(McCarthy and Ewing-Mulligan), 14, 27

Wine from Sky to Earth
(Joly), 72–73

wineglasses:

Bordeaux, 35

breaking of, 35

Burgundy, 35

Champagne, 35

cost of, 35

evolution of wine in, 27, 30, 127

grape-specific, 34, 35

ordering wine in, 86, 88

pouring and overpouring in, 88–89

refilling of, 88–89

Riedel family, 35

shape of, 7, 35

Spiegelau, 35

wine guides, 5–6, 7–8, 14–15, 26–27

wine investment funds, 53

wine lists, 25, 36, 82, 83

high-priced, 87–88, 89–90

online, 87

price checking of, 87

winemaking, 62

artisanal, 32

bizarre practices in, 68–69

competition in, 8–9, 154

fermentation process in, 60, 63, 65, 77–78

improved practices in, 8–9, 68

industrialized, 154

manipulation of flavor, texture, and color in, 68, 75–78, 79

quality of, 48–49, 60

sealants used in, 57–58

sterile filtration in, 132–33

traditional vs. modernist, 63

see also
vineyards; wineries

wine mavens, 7

accessories for, 34–36

education of, 21–41

evolution of, 31–34

must-have books for, 26–27

three rules for, 21

Winemonger, 51

wine regions, 32, 51

obscure, 8

see also
specific countries and states

wineries, 3, 66

artisanal, 32

boutique, 99, 146

California, 103–4, 108–9

customer service of, 59

direct sales and shipping from, 44

family-run, 114, 116, 124

proliferation of, 43, 99

ranking of
à la
1855 Bordeaux classifications, 103, 104

returning wine to, 59

visiting of, 168

wines, 3–11

acidity and astringency in, 23, 29, 34, 40, 56, 67, 77, 91, 133

additives in, 61, 75–79, 102, 168–69

advice on, 4, 5–6, 7–8, 11, 14–15, 37, 42–43

aging of, 17, 56–58, 62–65, 79, 100, 129–30

alcohol levels in, 19, 33–34, 61, 62, 65–68, 91, 96, 100, 101, 102, 133

as “alternate asset class,” 53

aromatic complexity of, 22, 24, 28–30, 35, 56, 63, 73

attempted dumbing down of, 17–18

authenticity of, 60, 73, 119

balance of elements in, 23, 30, 133

best time for drinking of, 30

big, dramatic, 62, 66–67, 91

biodynamic, 7, 68–75, 76–77, 102

blue chip, 53

boutique, 99, 146

by-the-glass, 86, 88

chemistry of, 29, 38–41, 56, 76–77

as cocktail beverages, 17, 68, 131

collecting of, 8, 10, 17, 26, 50, 53–57, 74, 113, 119–20, 170

concentration of flavor in, 22–23

connection of human experience and history to, 9–10

consistency in, 45

“corked,” 38, 56–57, 58–59

cost per bottle of, 4, 21–22, 26, 34, 36, 44, 45, 48, 54, 87, 89, 99, 137, 140–50

counterfeit, 10, 44, 54–55

damage of, 38–40, 76

debate and argument about, 60–65, 96

depth of color in, 22–23, 30, 38–39, 68, 76, 102, 119

dirty, 79

discount, 50

drinking a wide range of, 21, 26

education in, 5–6, 7, 9, 11, 15–17, 21–41

enzymes in, 61

fashions in, 8, 33, 99

feelings of anxiety and inadequacy about, 14–16, 18–19

under 15 dollars, 142–43

in 15–25 dollar range, 142

fortification of, 168–69

frequent drinking of, 21

gateway, 31, 59

importing of, 49–53, 78, 84

maximizing pleasure of, 7, 9, 15, 19–20

metaphors for taste and aroma in, 6, 15–17, 22, 24, 28–30, 63

most desirable qualities of, 22–24

natural, 7, 75–80

négociant
, 116–17, 122

objective qualities of, 37–39

obscure, 36

off-dry, 92, 134, 135

Old vs. New World, 32–34, 100, 103, 107–9, 145

ordering of, 36, 81–89, 91–93

organic, 7, 77

oxidation of, 38–39, 57, 58, 63, 78, 119

pairing food with, 4, 7, 67–68, 81–93, 131

personal discovery of, 32

physiological and psychological effects of, 9, 18–20

political allegiances linked to, 12

possible health benefits of, 18–20

pouring and overpouring of, 88–89

quality in, 60, 79, 94–98

quality-price ratio (QPR) of, 140–50

quiet, subtle, 62

rating and judging of, 38, 42–43, 45–47, 66

recommendation of, 37, 42–43, 59, 87

relationships and, 25–26

romance of, 32, 53, 58, 110

sense of place and vineyard (
terroir
) reflected in, 18, 23, 50, 60, 67, 68, 96, 98–100, 102, 107, 132

shipping of, 44

showcasing of, 90

single-vineyard and single-grape, 118

speculation and investment in, 53–54, 114

“spirit” of, 54

spoiled, undrinkable, 38, 56–59, 78, 79, 119

spoofulated, 7, 60, 61

storage of, 8, 10, 26, 32, 34, 44, 163

subtlety and complexity of, 32

sweet, fruity, 5, 91, 132–34, 135

texture or “mouth feel” of, 23, 24, 28, 31, 34, 68, 76

thinking analytically about, 27

for 25 dollars and under, 148–50

undervalued, 55–56

value, 7, 21–22, 122–23, 140–50

vintages of, 7, 25, 36, 44–49, 54

writing about, 9, 11, 13–16, 17–19, 24, 26–29, 33, 36, 38, 84, 127–28

wine sales:

in big-box stores, 43

competition in, 43, 50

direct-to-consumer, 44

distribution system and, 44

in drugstores, 43

online, 44

regulation of, 43–44

in restaurants, 36, 59, 81–89, 91–93

shrewd buying and, 7, 21–22, 42–59

in supermarkets, 43

supply and demand in, 54, 66, 68, 169

wholesale, 43, 44

see also
restaurants; wine shops

Wine-Searcher.com, 45

wine shops, 7, 94

available selections in, 4–5, 42–43, 65, 152, 153

browsing in, 44

comparing prices among, 45

competition among, 43

e-mail offers from, 45

point of view in, 43

proliferation of, 43

receipts from, 59

recommendations from, 42–43, 87

returning wines to, 38, 56–57, 58–59

salesmanship in, 42–43, 46, 50

shipping and delivery from, 44

temperature in, 44

wine tasting in, 42

wine snobs, 7, 13–15

as easy marks, 10

excesses and affectations of, 3, 4, 13, 15, 16

Wine Snob's Dictionary, The
(Kamp and Lynch), 14

Wine Spectator
, 9, 15–16, 36, 42–43, 45, 47, 48, 99

wine tasters, 38–41

genetic dimensions of, 40–41

good, 38

“nontasters” vs., 39

“supertaster,” 7, 39–41

wine tastings, 7, 17, 26–31, 37, 48, 84, 167–68

for appellation designation, 106

blind, 34, 45, 46, 94–95, 123, 142

of Champagne, 35

organizing of, 168

pitting French against California wines in, 14, 94–95, 96, 97, 100, 108

in wine shops, 42

Woodside, Calif., 101

World of Fine Wine
, 73–74

World War II, 133

Yale University, 96

School of Medicine, 29

yeasts, 77–78, 102

Yquem, Château d', 144

1996, 28

Zellerbach, James, 129–30

Zind-Humbrecht, 69

Zinfandel, 91

California, 96, 108, 109, 145, 146

Geyserville, 96

Sonoma County Three Valleys, 145

Zinfandel grape, 65

Zraly, Kevin, 83

Praise for

T
HE
W
INE
S
AVANT

“Entertaining and edifying. . . . [Steinberger] deftly shows how any and all of us can be savvier about wine.”

—Bill Ward,
Minneapolis Star Tribune

“[Steinberger] covers the touchstones of all things wine, doling out brief historical illustrations and personal opinions as carefully as someone might pour a Barolo—that is to say, without waste.”

—Marc Bona,
Cleveland Plain Dealer

“For the last decade, I have considered Michael one of the best wine writers in the world. You are about to find out why.”

—Gary Vaynerchuk, owner and host of
Wine Library TV

“One of the greatest wine writers on the planet.”

—Tyler Colman, DrVino.com and author of
Wine Politics

“The author's opinions, wit, and honesty enliven the writing.”

—Peter Hepburn,
Library Journal

ALSO BY MICHAEL STEINBERGER

Au Revoir to All That:
Food, Wine, and the End of France

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

M
ICHAEL
S
TEINBERGER
is the wine columnist for
Men's Journal
. Previously he was the wine writer for
Slate
magazine. A James Beard Journalism Award winner, he has written for
The New Yorker
,
Vanity Fair
, and the
New York Times Magazine
, as well as numerous other publications. His first book,
Au Revoir to All That
, was about the rise, fall, and future of French cuisine. His website is winediarist.com.

Copyright © 2013 by Michael Steinberger

All rights reserved
First published as a Norton paperback 2015

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Book design by Cassandra Pappas
Production manager: Devon Zahn

The Library of Congress has cataloged the printed edition as follows:

Steinberger, Michael.
The wine savant : a guide to the new wine culture / Michael Steinberger.—First edition.
pages cm
Includes index.
ISBN 978-0-393-08271-5 (hardcover)
1. Wine and wine making. I. Title.
TP548.S72174 2013
663'.2—dc23

2013031572

ISBN 978-0-393-24156-3 (e-book)
ISBN 978-0-393-34977-1 pbk.

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