Which of the following scenarios is likely to result in more pleasure? Scenario one: you open a bottle of wine from a favourite region and variety(ies) that you purchased several years ago and it meets all your expectations. Scenario two: you open a bottle of unusual wine from a completely different region or varieties that was gifted to you and it delights with its style and quality. All else being equal, I would argue that the latter scenario is the more pleasing one because of the element of surprise. When I purchase classic regional wines, I research them beforehand and generally have a pretty good sense of what I can expect from each. They aren't always exactly what I anticipated but generally show good varietal typicity and represent fair to excellent value regardless of the price I paid. I am generally pleased and rarely surprised by these wines.
As a result, I often add new and unusual bottles to my shopping cart. Part of this is the joy of exploring the wide world of wine and the learning that comes from going outside your comfort zone but mostly, I purchase these wines because I tend to have far fewer expectations so when I open one, I am eager to embrace whatever experience awaits. Sometimes, the wines under deliver and I might decide this is not a region or variety I will search out in future. Other times, these wines offer a level of quality and pleasure that has me asking, "where have you been all my life?" There is nothing like being transported to a different part of the world through a wine. When I'm asked have you ever been to Georgia, or Crete, or Corsica, or Taiwan, I might respond not yet, but at least I've enjoyed wines from those places. As a huge advocate of diversity in the wine world, I fear the industry is becoming far too homogenized with so much Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, and Cabernet Sauvignon getting all the attention. By purchasing a wider range of wines, I hope to do my small part to support wineries at home and around the world that are doing something different or embracing innovation.
It is fair to say that most wine-interested consumers will only buy wines from places and producers they are familiar with. Perhaps it's an inexpensive Cabernet from their favourite producer in California with all its dark fruit, overt clove and mocha flavours, soft tannins, seductive sweetness, and warming alcohol. Nobody wants to risk spending their hard-earned money on a bottle that might disappoint so this can be a reliable 'sure thing'. The problem is, while you may enjoy your $20 Cali Cab day after day, you could be getting even more pleasure from something entirely different that might cost less money. Maybe its a Malbec from Cahors or Mendoza, or a ripasso Valpolicella. Unless you adventure outside the box once in a while, you'll never know what you've been missing.
Last summer I was camping in Québec and stopped by a new winery near Granby south of Montreal. The owner of Vignoble Picbois, John Baldwin, is a former restaurant manager in British Columbia. In the 90's, he was running the prestigious Bearfoot Bistro in Whistler while I was at Raincity Grill and C Restaurant in Vancouver so I was eager to see what he was up to in his new life as winery owner and winemaker. My experience with Québecois wines is quite limited, and while I've been delighted with many I've tried, every new wine comes with few expectations. Only two wines were available for purchase the day I visited John, so I bought a couple of bottles of each to stuff into the fridge of my 1993 Eurovan Camper van for the trip home.
Recently, I opened my final bottle of the 2022 Rosé alongside some pan-fried cod with garlic brown butter and poached local asparagus. The wine is a blend of two white varieties: 42% Vidal, 42% Geisenheim, and 16% Sabrevois, a red variety. What could this unusual blend from these strange hybrid grape varieties produced in a wine world backwater possibly offer compared to a classic rosé from Provence or Spain? Why would I waste my money on such a risky purchase? As it turns out, it was an absolute delight brimming with elegance and freshness. Masterfully blended, it offered pink peppercorn, citrus, and sour red fruits notes with herbal and pine notes. Mouth-filling, dry, but nicely rounded after 2 years, it was perfectly balanced, wonderfully complex, and had a surprisingly long finish. No surprise it was only one of three Québecois vineyards that won a gold medal at Sélections Mondiales. I reached out to John to share my enthusiasm and he informed me of a new wine, the Cuvée Seduction, that has recently been released and promises to blow my socks off. So the new wine adventure continues and I love it. Something else new and unusual to experience in the months ahead.
There is no doubt, life is too short to drink bad wine, but I would also add, life is too short to drink too much of the same wine, no matter how good it might be.
As the French say, Vive la Différence!
