Terroir
When it comes to wine, there’s an important concept that we try to adhere to when we’re deciding what wines to stock in our shop. Terroir (pronounced “tare-WAHr”) used to be a pretty novel concept reserved for wines of elevated status and most likely from traditional, old world wine growing regions. I mean, how difficult can it be to grow a grape vine? They’re pretty vigorous, meaning they will pretty much flourish anywhere. Well, as anyone who has planted an annual in their yard can tell you, keeping the plant alive is easy, whether it flowers to its optimal result is a different story. The grapevine is no different. Certain vines will flourish in cooler climates with rocky soils, while other vines prefer warmer climates and alluvial soils. Every vine reacts differently to their growing conditions and surroundings. As a result, each wine produced will have flavor and taste variations.
Choosing a wine is a lot like writing a news story. Who, what, where, when all play a factor and “terroir” is the encompassing term that binds all these concepts together to “explain” your glass of wine. It’s what makes wine as a beverage interesting. We think so, and hope you do to.