Single Vineyard > Narrowly Defined Appellation > Broad Geographical Area?
Is more specific really "better?"
Is more specific really better?
Hot take: no.
Here in the land of wine nerds (here being both the place where I live in northern California, and occasionally, I admit, this blog), we like to make much of specificity when it comes to wine. I cannot tell you the number of times each day someone asks me, “But is it 100% Cabernet?” The assumption is that if a wine is entirely made of a single variety of grapes, it will be better quality.
Bordeaux would like a word. So would the Rhône Valley, Valpolicella, Champagne, Bolgheri, et al. Blends aren’t just a cost-cutting measure; winemakers blend to improve the flavors, aromas, color, texture, and aging potential of wine. I love a great single varietal Cabernet or Merlot, but together? These grapes are made to complement each other. And there is a reason even “single varietal” wines are usually only required to contain a certain percentage of the grape variety on their label: sometimes a tiny amount of something else, only 2 or 3%, can make an otherwise abrasive Cabernet drinkable without twenty years of aging, or give staying power to a a variety that might lack structure or robustness on its own.
Wine people also tend to get very particular about the specificity of the area where grapes are grown. Sometimes it’s good to be particular. Small geographically indicated areas often have regulations about what grapes can be grown there, how they are grown, and how much can be produced, and this can serve as quality control. If you have a wine from a single vineyard, it’s possible to learn the exact soil types, geographical influences, climate, and farming methods that exist there. That knowledge is solid gold to those of us who live to understand the effects of these factors on the aromas and flavors of what’s in our glass, and it’s pretty great if you care about sustainability, too.
But wines with great specificity are, well, specific. They show the quirks of their grape and their place, and sometimes that’s awesome, and sometimes it’s…not. In a good vintage we want the effects of the weather to shine through, but bad weather can drastically diminish quality. The unique characteristics of a single vineyard or small geographical area might make a very interesting wine, but they don’t necessarily make for a broadly accessible one. And then there is cost. Specificity in wine almost always comes with a higher price tag: single vineyard > small geographic indication > larger geographic indication > region or country designation.
Listen, I almost always want very specific wines that I can know a whole lot about and drill down on the whats and whys, but “better” doesn’t always mean “most interesting,” and it’s not always correlated with some objective standard of quality. Sometimes better is what best fits the situation. In some circumstances, you might want a blend or a wine from a broader geographic designation. Why?
Cost. One cannot always be drinking $100+ bottles, at least not in my world, and that is often the bare minimum for single vineyards or some geographic indications.
Broader taste appeal. Blends of different grape varieties, vineyards, and areas are made specifically to round out the edges and create a balanced wine that is appealing to as many people as possible. Are they always the most nuanced or thought-provoking? No. Are they more likely to be enjoyed by a wide variety of drinkers? Yep.
Consistency. I know not everyone is spending their free time reading ratings guides and vintage charts. Sometimes you just want to buy a wine and know it will be reasonably good without doing a dissertation’s amount of research on it. Wines that are just labeled “Napa Valley” rather than “Big Name Vineyard on Mount Famous Place” are made to give you the same experience year after year, regardless of the weather.
You actually want to be more nerdy and find an exceptional wine that might be even more fascinating for its lack of specificity. For example, some of the most interesting natural wines in Europe right now are just labeled Vin de France or Vins de Pays because they don’t fit into the rigid requirements for particular regions, and the broad labeling has nothing to do with their quality.
The short lesson here? If you want to experience a wine that is unique and shows off the characteristics of a place, you have the time and energy to devote to finding what you want, and you can afford to pay for it, specificity is usually the way to go. For casual, budget conscious drinking for a varied crowd, or if you really want to go wild, don’t be afraid to broaden the lens and look at blends and wider geographic areas.
I’ll be celebrating Christmas on Wednesday, so this week’s Through the Grapevine will be a bit delayed. Happy holidays to those of you who are also have festivities this week. Don’t forget, there is still a 20% off sale on all new paid subscriptions, including gift subscriptions, through Dec. 25. Thanks for reading, and sharing with your wine-loving friends! Cheers!
Interesting post. As a maker of many single-vineyard Cab Francs at Steven Kent Winery, my take is that it is not an issue of “better” or even one of specificity necessarily. It’s more a story about the people who farm that Faulknernian “postage stamp” of soil. How did they get there, doing that thing? How does their effort affect mine in the cellar? I think this is the true and deep value of these wines.