Mondovino

[chin]

I finished watching the 10 episodes last weekend.

Before the topic focus on Robert Parker, the producer made a few interviews. You can see the message from the following screen captures.

1st set was with the Valandraud owner who benefited enormously from high Parker rating. The 2nd set was with this very small 1-acre producer who has his plot right next to Mouton's.

[hangchoi]

That's why nowadays bordeaux wines are totally different from what they were in the old days......

My view is that the climate and environment of bordeaux should not make wine like that. Or I should say RP's palate is more on the American's wine.

[chin]

The producer interviewed Parker at his Maryland home. How Parker responded to many questions was very typical American self assertive with a hint of moral grand standing.

When asked how does it feel to have such large influence on the market and pricing of wine, Parker basically says he earned it by working harder.

Political languages also came in often in the interviews. In more than one occasion, Parker claims that he "democratize" the wine world. Yet the French actually labeled him a "dictator" because his person taste now dictates price, thus how wines are made. The result of Parkerizing wine is the lost of diversity in wine.

This woman, a sales assistant in a French wine shop, tells what a Parkized wine is like. New oak is apparently one of the characteristics.

[chin]

The use of chemicals (pesticide, I assume) was mentioned in a few occasion.

One of the tells of use of chemical is the lack of grass near the vine. I forgot which domaine in Burgundy was this, but as the camera moves from one plot (where the owner refused to use chemical) to the next (where chemical was used regularly), you can see the land became bare.

[chin]

These women were enjoying the wine made by a widow who started to plant vine when her husband got sick.

Their comment echos a joke that we made all the time - I don't want to go to the heaven, because all my friends and family are not there.

[chin]

Back to the Parker like ratings...

One of the interviewee was making a very concise comment, "Ratings simplifies information."

As much as we may claim that we don't want our judgment be colored by guys like Parker, our mind may not work that way. We may always want to have approval and assurance from 3rd party, and expert ratings served that needs well.

Anyway, the DVDs are in my office. Hang you can come pick up any time. Call Emily if I am not in the office.

[hangchoi]

This woman, a sales assistant in a French wine shop, tells what a Parkized wine is like. New oak is apparently one of the characteristics.

It may be too simple to say that. Oak using is a technique adopted by all wine makers. There are a lot of options of oak using, New oak vs Old oak, seasoning or not, their combination, types of oak, time spent on new / old oak, etc.

Even the traditional wines are using new oak. Wine making has hundreds of years of history. In the old days only wooden vats were used for making wine.

New oak does impart certain flavours into wine but, as usually, overly oaked wine makes more harm than good.

My view on Parkerized wine is "overly concentration of fruit and extensive new oak ageing". The result is a hugh, big, burly wine with tons of fruit and strong oaky flavours. It lacks the elegence of a wine. Some Parkerized wines are so concentrated that it is like an unaged Port. The result is that the wine usually has stronger flavour then the food. French food emphasizes its delicacy, freshness so a parkerized wine may overpower it.

[hangchoi]

Back to the Parker like ratings...

One of the interviewee was making a very concise comment, "Ratings simplifies information."

As much as we may claim that we don't want our judgment be colored by guys like Parker, our mind may not work that way. We may always want to have approval and assurance from 3rd party, and expert ratings served that needs well.

Anyway, the DVDs are in my office. Hang you can come pick up any time. Call Emily if I am not in the office.

Thanks....but I think I will pick it up when I am back......

[hangchoi]

The use of chemicals (pesticide, I assume) was mentioned in a few occasion.

One of the tells of use of chemical is the lack of grass near the vine. I forgot which domaine in Burgundy was this, but as the camera moves from one plot (where the owner refused to use chemical) to the next (where chemical was used regularly), you can see the land became bare.

Again, this may be too simple to say. Weed control is quite a topic in viticulture (i.e. grapegrowing). It is a matter of choice: weed can prevent soil erosion, prevent nitrogen leaching, reduce vine vigour and improve soil structure. However, it also cause competition of water and nutrient, increase the frost risk, hamper the machine working, and house the pests and disease.

Chemical weed control undoubtedly save manpower but it incurs a lot of impact on the quality. Most burgundians will only do weed control manually in order to protection their limited yield.

[hangchoi]

Finished watching the 2-hr movie and the first 4 episodes.

What impressed me is that those small winemaker/vinegrowers love so much on their land / vines.