Hamish Anderson: Gone to ground

On why there’s a paradox at the heart of modern terroir

Iam having trouble with terroir at the moment. Never have so many words been written about the subject; winemakers use buzz words such as ‘hands off’, while the natural wine movement is at the top of the agenda. As someone who embraces the notion of terroir, I should be happy about this. We should be living in a golden age of terroir-dominated wines. The trouble is that terroir falls down when you explain it to consumers.

It seems simple: different wines from a defined area will share some of the same characteristics. Happy days for the punter: find a region you like and you can continue exploring the range of producers and order from a wine list safe in the knowledge that you’ll get something that tastes broadly similar every time.

The trouble is, as we all know, this is not reality. I recently went on a trip to Rioja with a group of staff who were interested in wine, but not experts. During the day I explained terroir, and everyone seemed reasonably happy with the idea. Then I ordered two bottles of Rioja over dinner. A traditional Reserva from Contino and a modern-style Allende. Everything was going well until one of my group pointed out that they tasted completely different. Where, they asked, was the terroir in them?

This perfectly illustrates the consumer’s bemused relationship with terroir. Rioja has, in 30 years, gone from producing one distinctive style of wine to a variety of styles: from traditional, oxidative bottles through to very ripe, ultra-modern numbers. So how on earth are consumers meant to tell what they are going to get when purchasing a bottle with the word ‘Rioja’ on it?

Rioja is not an isolated example. At the Bordeaux Union des Grand Crus 2009 tasting, I found it hard to find a common thread in wines from appellations such as Margaux and St-Emilion. While Alsace produces racy, early-picked whites or opulent bottles with residual sugar, all from the same year and vineyard site.

The choices open to winemakers today are vast compared to 30 years ago, with so many blueprints on how to make great wine. They might well be seeking to express their vineyards, but they create a reality where one region now produces many more styles under the umbrella of one terroir.

In 50 years maybe they will have agreed what ‘Rioja’ or ‘Alsace’ should taste like (although I doubt it and hope not). In the meantime, consumers will have to rely on pot luck, sommeliers, journalists and merchants to guide them in their choices.

Editorial feature from Imbibe Magazine – January/February 2012