My Top 10 Reasons to Love Wine (If You Don’t Already) – #4
November 21, 2011
#4 Terroir
Terroir isn’t just a fancy-schmancy word thrown around by wine geeks, in order to confuse those who aren’t as “in the know”. Terroir is real!
The term terroir comes from the French word “terre”, but more accurately it means "a sense of place". Terroir is applied to vineyards to collectively reference the weather, the soil, sunlight hours, the slope of the hill where vines are planted, the macro climate of the region as a whole, right down to the meso/micro-climate of a row of grapes and their individual canopies etc.
No other agricultural product in the world can reflect where it comes from more than wine can!
If you don’t believe me, do your own experiment (it also gives you a random reason to throw a party in the name of “science”!)
-Purchase a few “decent quality” bottles of wine made from the same grape, but from different countries; for example, Sauvignon Blanc from Napa, Sonoma, New Zealand, Bordeaux, Loire Valley, and Chile.
-Gather a few friends around (maybe even ask them to bring a bottle).
-Taste the difference. You’ll be astonished!
