Gout de Terroir

There is so much discussion about the subject of "gout de terroir". It is a French term which is used to describe a wine whose taste has been influence by the geography of the vineyard where the vines are grown. It is meant to include the soil of the vineyard and the macro and micro climatic conditions of where the vineyard is sited. Thus "le terroir de Gevry-Chambertin" would mean "the area of Gevry-Chambertin" when applied to wine. It is not meant to mean that the wine has acquired a taste of soil.

Many wine technologists have questioned whether wine can really have a "gout de terroir" or a taste of regional character. The debate continues along the lines that it is wine faults or the type of wild yeast on the outside of the grapes, how the wine is made etc. which really influences the taste of the final product. Of course, there are many influences on what makes a wine taste good or bad or different. I would have thought that it was obvious that the soil and climate have a considerable influence. Soil too dry and the grapes will perish. Too much rain and the grapes will rot. Not enough sun at the right time and the grapes will not ripen. If you try to grow Syrah grapes in the South of England you will fail to make good wine, despite global warming.

This argument reminds me of Edward de Bono's book "Practical Thinking" where he describes "Four Ways to Be Right and Five ways to be wrong". He points out the example of a Doctor who can recognise, immediately, that a child has got measles and does not need a battery of blood and biochemical tests to confirm the diagnosis. This is recognition rightness.

I often wonder whether the protagonists on both sides of the argument have spent more time reading and writing about the subject than actually tasting wine.

Anyone who has drunk many many bottles of Epineuil, Irancy, Chitry and Coulanges-la-Vineuse reds will instantly recognise that all these wines have a distinctive "gout de terroir" despite who makes the wine. This recognition rightness can be applied to the other wines of Burgundy and also to the wines of Champagne, and many other wines from other countries.

I also ask myself why the most modern wine producers make soil surveys, of potentially new vineyards, before they make plantings?

Many "bulk made" wines have been produced in vineyards where the soil and climate are unsuitable for the grape varieties grown. They are fermented with standardised yeast cultures and are often adjusted for acid and sugar levels; they are treated before bottling to remove naturally produced crystals to make the wines look good. Some of these wines will have been treated with wood chips to make them taste as if they have been matured in oak barrels. The result is that the wines all taste to same no matter where they come from. It is difficult even to taste the difference between a "Merlot" wine and a "Cabernet Sauvignon" wine. Try a blind tasting with your friends and see the results. No wonder the marketing men want to quash any thoughts that wine should have a distinctive regional flavour.

I prefer wines with regional character no matter how the taste is produced.