I just read a review of a highly rated wine that smelled of, and I quote, “petrol and old parchment with a hint of waxiness.” Oh wow. Sign me up for a bottle of that… Not.
I know some wine lovers feel that a wine like Riesling’s ability to morph flavors from fruit and flowers to gasoline and floor wax is a positive thing, but don’t count me among them. I like my whites fresh and fruity, and hope that my palate never becomes jaded enough to go pleasure hunting in the garage for new experiences.
Nor would you think that touting the fact that the bottle of wine you bought tastes of oil refining byproducts is a good thing. Is it just me or does anyone else find it strange that advertising bad tastes and smells as good components of a fine wine is commonplace in the wine world.
Here are a few of our favorites
- Cat pee (why was Mom trying to wash it off the drapes if it smelled so good?)
- Road tar (not the kind of hot summer day we like to be reminded of.)
- Petrol (just try to sniff some of this tonight and see how you feel in the morning.)
- Green pepper (we don’t eat them unless force is used. Drinking them sounds even worse.)
- Barnyard (if you’ve been on a farm, or at the zoo, no explanation necessary.)
Some of these terms are in our Enolish to English translator, check ‘em out.
So I admit it. Even after all these years, my relationship with the wines I drink may be a bit shallow compared to people who hang out with the complex, well aged sophisticates of the wine world. I am the eonologic equivilent of a man going through a mid-life crises. I tend to look for something fresh and young that retains the flavors of it’s origins to snuggle up with.
What do you think of the more challenging flavors in aged wines?
