(Selling wine is pretty much a government monopoly in Ontario, so Vintages and the LCBO – owned by the Ontario government – are the "convenient" consumer choice. They're also the largest purchaser of wines and spirits in the world. Monopoly can do that for you.)
How do I make My Picks?
I like wines that offer something different.
I favour independent or family-based wineries who share their approach to making their wine: how they grew the grapes and what they did to bring the wine from harvest to bottling. (Winemakers who don't share these details, but whose wine I still find intriguing and worth your consideration, are listed under Honourable Mentions.)
I prefer winemakers who let the vineyard and terroir express itself; winemakers who adapt to the vineyard and the terroir, not the other way around; winemakers who don't view themselves as the wine’s master, but view themselves as the servant of the wine. Winemakers who hate to be called winemakers.
Then I share, briefly, what I learn with you.
I don't consider anyone else's wine ratings or reviews when choosing My Picks. Reviews, if they are done well, are important at either end of the quality spectrum…to identify faulted, poorly-made, or over-the-hill wines…or (at the other extreme) to identify the sublime. Most wines fall in a vast middle-ground: technically sound, good but not great.
For those wines, like any other form of critical review, wine reviews are mostly subjective: they are more a reflection of the reviewer's personal likes and dislikes than they are an objective evaluation of the wine. (Yes, I put my tasting notes in that category as well.)
It’s more important to taste for yourself than to follow someone else’s palate and preferences blindly. And much more fun.
Then why follow My Picks? Because I don’t tell you that a wine is good, I tell you whether a wine is interesting, different, and worth exploring. I leave it to you to decide if a wine is more great than good. And yes, I buy every bottle myself.
What am I looking for?
Organic and Biodynamic: I'm always on the lookout for wines that are certified organic, Biodynamic, even natural. Check my post about Biodynamic wines at http://daveswinedomaine.blogspot.com/2009/12/bio-dynamic-part-1.html
Off the Beaten Track: I'm keen on:
- lesser-known indigenous varietals or blends from the Old World,
- unusual blends from the New World, or
- underappreciated regions.
Value: I'm looking for good wines at less than $30. Again, I do go over, but that's not the focus.
And I try to keep the list to a dozen.
So if you're looking for something different in the world of wine, try some of My Picks and, even better, let me know what you think!
So if you're looking for something different in the world of wine, try some of My Picks and, even better, let me know what you think!
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