Ronin wrote:
I don't mean to be argumentative, but from what you wrote, I read as your
accepting the taste of a critic,

Roger's recommendations are not based on 'tastings', at least not
alone, but on drinking or the recommendation of the wholesaler, I
suppose.

The very methodolgy of tasting is IN PRINCIPLE incorrect. Wines that
are superb with meals often taste terrible alone. There is a
DRASTIC(!!!!!!!), HUGE (!!!!!!!) difference between the way a wine
tastes by itself and the way it tastes in a meal.

I drink Italian wines exclusively, so I have gotten to know almost all
of the basic types pretty well, and am familiar with many producers. I
do try a lot of different wines from time to time, but I do also expect
a certain degree of consistency from Argiolas, D'Angelo,
Mastroberardino, Lungarotti, Cerretto, Cavollotto, Taurino, Santadi,
Chiarlo, etc. I'm not in the least worried about what any 'critic'
thinks, nor in anyone else's opinions of the wines. I and a buddy give
Italian regional dinner parties from time to time, and we usually set
out an assortment of wines, based on the dishes. The last one we had
(Jan 28th, 12 people) featured dishes from all over Italy, so we had
wines from all over Italy: Vino Nobile, Primitivo, Valtellina, etc.
No-one asked about what the wine critics thought, and no-one had
anything but praise for our cooking and our wines, none of which was
cheap. Whether a different bottle of any of our choices would have
registered a point or two higher was the fartherst thing from our
minds. Wines are made to be enjoyed. Generally speaking, you get what
you pay for. If you expect a $10 wine to be as good as a $35 one,
you're usually going to be disappointed.

Tasting and analysis are a waste of time.

(your wine shop owner - which I also do,
but my owner upped and retired, so I'm looking for a new one - not an easy
task) and tasting (having a bottle open for sampling - most wine shops here
(Portland Oregon) have three or four open every Friday and Saturday. Past
experience I have come to rely on less as winemakers change (Kenwood's SB
gets 91 points by the new winemaker adding a healthy dose of Chardonnay - I
liked the old style much better. Ken Wright making monster PN in the late
90's, but I'm not happy with the early 0X's) and I'm always looking for
something new - I never would have discovered Greco di Tufo if I relied
solely on past experience.

As I said, over time I've gotten to have an idea of what a wine will taste
like with certain foods. For instance, I wouldn't buy a fat, soft nebbiolo
for a tomato sauced dish, but look for a leaner, more acidic nebbiolo. I
think it neither foolish, useless, nor a waste of time to taste before I
choose.


wrote in message
ps.com...
I seldom get a bad bottle. I buy based on past experience, the
producer, and the recommendation of the wine shop owner. I experiment
a lot. I never taste a wine before buying it, unless the wine shop
owner happens to have a bottle open for sampling.

Why not? Barberas, for instance, taste quite astringent by themselves,
and anyone who would try one in a tasting would probably think it's
bad. But put that wine in its proper context, with a Piedmontese dish,
and it tastes quite different. Tasting is quite useless, and therefore
a foolish waste of time.


Ronin wrote:
wrote in message
ps.com...
What Max writes is utter rubbish. Wines are not for 'tastsing' but for
drinking, and can only be evaluated (if they have to be evaluated) in
the context of a meal. Everything else is a complete waste of time. Why
do wines have to be evaluated anyway? Are you obsessed with having
something with more points? Why can't you just drink and enjoy? True
connoisseurs do not engage in such lunacy. I don't care how many points
my wine gets by any critic, and I NEVER have tastings, ever. I consider
this some kind of sick joke.

Grow up, people!


So, how *do* you buy wine? By label? Cost? Shape of the pretty bottle?

I taste, and over 50 years of drinking wine, have found I can tell pretty
much how a wine will "drink" with a particular style of food. But I'm
not
going to plunk down cash for a case of wine I haven't tasted, no matter
what
any critic says. Then after tasting, and deciding it suits my purpose,
I'll
buy and 'drink and enjoy'.