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<\/a>If you should happen to meet a winemaker, the conversation might be limited to \u201cI like your wine\u201d and \u201cThank you\u201d. But such a meeting is a rare learning opportunity. You should really make the most of it in the few minutes you\u2019re likely to have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- A little praise goes a long way.<\/strong> The winemakers don\u2019t often have direct customer feedback, so if you can say more than the fact that you liked their wine, their ears will perk up. For example, if you can truthfully say, \u201cWe opened your 2018 Pinot Noir last week and it\u2019s drinking real well, with heavy raspberry flavors\u201d the person who made it will be rightly appreciative. That will open the door for a more in-depth conversation.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- If you\u2019re just discovering their wines, discuss what you\u2019re tasting at that moment.<\/strong> A simple question such as, \u201cHow do you think this Merlot will change with age\u201d will indicate that you\u2019re interested in learning and might lead to a sale. You should get a fairly detailed answer. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Modern winemakers love sustainability.<\/strong> Climate change and water shortages are threats to their profession, so they are all becoming ecologists. If you ask what they are doing to sustain their vines and deal with changed weather conditions, you\u2019re likely to get a brief lecture on the subject.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Ask for recommendations.<\/strong> Especially in the US, winemakers may be responsible for a wide range of red and white wines. They are all their babies, and it would be a little rude to ask which of their wines they prefer. But asking which wines are the best values or the best years for a certain grape indicate that you want to buy some. And it lets them speak to the specifics of what they have created, not the generalities.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- It shouldn\u2019t have to be said, but be polite.<\/strong> If you don\u2019t care for the Sauvignon Blanc, you\u2019d better keep it to yourself. And there\u2019s no reason for you, an amateur, to be giving your opinion on any winemaking issues you may have to a trained professional.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
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The servers in a tasting room are, de facto, the faces of the winery. They explain the background of the label, the vineyard(s) and often the owners. In Europe, there is often a distinguished history of both wines and nobles that goes back centuries; the serve seems like little more than a vassal. In the … Continue reading Talking with Winemakers<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3374"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3374"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3374\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3376,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3374\/revisions\/3376"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/powertasting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
- If you\u2019re just discovering their wines, discuss what you\u2019re tasting at that moment.<\/strong> A simple question such as, \u201cHow do you think this Merlot will change with age\u201d will indicate that you\u2019re interested in learning and might lead to a sale. You should get a fairly detailed answer. <\/li>\n\n\n\n