Add Globalization to Tasting Criteria

I received an email from a famous publicist inviting me to the New York preview of Mondovino, "the definitive wine movie for those in the business." I was elated. I'd heard about it, but was perplexed. Was I in the business? Did I forget that late night trip to the basement where a picture of St. Vincent of Saragossa, the patron saint of wine was set aflame and placed in my hands while I repeated, "May I burn like this picture if I ever drink Ripple"? Maybe.
Mondovino is the newest wine movie. But Mondo (as those in the business call it) poses the question, what if all wine tasted the same? It decries the "globalization of wine" and the crass pursuit of filthy lucre as the winemaker's goal. That part I didn't understand too well. What it excels at, however, is showing some great vineyards in Napa, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Tuscany, Argentina, Sardinia, and even Brazil. That part I understood.
The film's premise is the success of wines crafted for the American palate and how that success endangers some traditionally made wines, because big money tempts the winemakers to tweak the formula. On this point I agree with the director Jonathan Nossiter, son of a foreign correspondent and former sommelier at Balthazar in Manhattan.
Where I disagree is that tweaking is necessarily bad. The goal should be great wine at affordable prices.
And while I disagree with the premise that all wine is being "vanilla-ized" I must state that Jonathan Nossiter is a gifted storyteller, filmmaker, and documentarian. If you've ever drunk a glass of wine, you'll like this film. What I particularly loved about the film is the footage of the Sardinian winemaker who uses the obscure Malavasia grape to make wine that's virtually the same as it was in the Middle Ages; the winery in rural Brazil; and the Staglin Family Vineyard in Napa.
Seeing the finished product I suspect Nossiter wisely decided not to do the whole world of wine, as suggested in the title, but concentrate on the globalization angle and get people to think. Here he hits a homerun! Since seeing the movie, every wine I sample has an added a globalization quotient to its critique.
And I have a new appreciation for unusual wines, even the bad ones. Does anyone remember Charbono, a deep, black Californian grape? Found an old bottle of this in a Branford wine shop, and while it wasn't 1997 Araujo Estate ($337.50 a bottle) it offered a taste of a grape that's nearly extinct.
Perhaps the major wine producers need to set aside some cash to protect and fund the small traditional producers, much like Britain's National Trust. Save our historic vines!
Wine is a living, evolving creature. There will always be new techniques, blends, and tastes. Sumerian wine wasn't Greek. Roman vines didn't transplant exactly into Gallic wine. Wine's history's full of embargoes, alliances, frauds, and changing tastes. And, if wine's carved in stone, then why's Australia so successful? And where's the great South African Constantia dessert wines today? Yes, marketing plays a part, but it can't save a marginal product. Remember New Coke, the Edsel of the Eighties?
Wine will always have a past, but more important, it will always have a future. Nossiter so aptly captured this promise and enthusiasm in the words of wine zillionaire Tim Mondavi.
Mondavi says, "I think when we colonize space, some of the cargo will include rootstocks, and we'll taste the fruit of other planets."
Now that's exciting.

Wines to Note

Pinot Noirs

Kendall-Jackson 2003 - $9.99: This one's softened and made for immediate drinking. It's globalized, but consistent. Plum and apricot with a pleasing finish and smell. (BOLD TO COLON)Beaune 1er Cru "Les Greves" 1999 - $36.49: From Champy Pere & Cie. A nice Burgundy, but needs more aging. Big tannins and some structure. Too fussy to be globalized. Revisit after 2008.

Cote de Nuit-Villages 2002 - $29.99: from Nicolas Potel. A sharply structured Burgundy. The tannins never puckered, the fruit was light like a crushed strawberry in a glass of club soda. A step up from a plain Cote de Nuit, but a step below a premiere cru. Best of the Week!

Cabernets

Echelon 2001 - $9.99: from California's Central Coast. Big structure for the price.

Concannon 2002 - $8.99: Central Coast. Less structure, more fruit. Globalized, but good.

Chateau Peyfol 2003 - $19.99: Cabernet's Franc and Sauvignon and a touch of Merlot. Great wine with vertical structure and the ability to age or drink now. From the French heat wave harvest. Slightly tweaked for American palates.

Chateau Lynch Bages 2001 - $39.99: A great fifth growth Bordeaux, that needs more time, and may be overshadowed by subsequent vintages. Super price. Should age well.

Trends

Spain is the new Australia. Look for cutesy names to avoid (Wrongo Dongo $6.99) and lots of plonk looking for market share. One winner is: Canforrales Joven Roble $8.99 from La Mancha. Tannic, but with huge character and flavor.