Learning About Wine

If you’re a content member of the pure hedonist school of wine -“I’m not interested in learning, but I know what I like” - then life is simple: ignore the guff and drink up merrily!  However, if you are remotely curious, here’s a tip to help you keep it real on your journey in wine.

Like music for your sense of hearing, or painting for your sense of vision, wine can be high art for your senses of smell and taste: exhilarating, complex and romantic.  Just like music and painting, knowing a little about the context and techniques involved (the learning stuff) increases the sensory pleasure you get.

The critical thing to recognise in wine appreciation is getting the balance right between learning and your own sensory experience.  We are bombarded by other people’s ideas about wine: our parents and friends, newspapers and films, and the wine business have filled our head with ideas about wine: some right, some wrong.  It is easy to accept these ideas without testing them out on your own senses of taste and smell, but this is what leads to confusion when two contradictory ideas are presented, or to pretentiousness when we start bluffing about things we don’t really know.

The answer is remarkably simple and enjoyable: taste lots more wine!  Make a pact with yourself: for every idea you accept about wine you need to try 10 wines that prove the idea right.  Where can you do that?  At Summertown Wine Café we have 12 new wines each month open for tasting.  Our staff will be happy to give you some ideas, but the best thing is that you can taste the wine to decide for yourself.

Rob Malcolm