what to say when it's bad

In Paris I could easily believe (sorry, my comment was a little cyptic in my last post, but that is what I meant).

But I find it difficult to believe that old people in any other wine growing area drink Bordeaux. Their range of experience might be narrow, but it will be local to where they live.

That kind of people does acknowledge that there is local wine, but they view it as something not quite as classy and impressive as a Bordeaux. And even their knowledge of local winemakers is usually limited to a couple of names that may be a few decades out of date, known names coasting on their past reputation. Over here in Bandol very few people know of Tour du Bon or Terrebrune, they do know P******x, which even some wine buffs try to convince themselves they like because they feel some kind of reverence for the name, when in fact in a blind tasting the stuff would not fare better than a coop wine from the pump.

Steve Slatcher wrote: []

No one is more romantic about their country than the French. There are endless programs (including the most watched 1pm news program) that are nothing more than travelogues and propaganda for how great the country is. (And much of it is pretty fine, too. These programs can be pretty charming. Anyone seen the guy who toddles around in the London Cab, exclaiming at the wonders of local produce?)

Anyway the French consider Bordeaux wine to be national heritage and an example of Gallic Superiority. Wines from the regions, with the exception of Burgundy and that to a lesser extent, don't enjoy the same status as "patrimoine."

-E

Ah, this is excellent and just what is called for. I don't have much tact but I'll be delighted to retain yours. ;)

-E

^^^^^^^^

Mike, please, what are you talking about?

Don't forget that a name overfamiliar to you might be completely unknown to others.

M.

P.S. Who invented this extremely silly system of using stars instead of letters? None of the explanations I ever read convinced me. Copyright infringement definitely is *not* an issue.

M.

Ack.

I would add Champagne to this short list. But then many French do not consider Champagne as a wine.

M.

That is also true, somehow the bubbles make into something else... and most French people do not know that most Champagne is made from grapes grown by thousands of small growers, despite the final brand name.

Of course, what I meant is that everyone tends to know one or two names that might have been the best 20-40 years ago, and these reputations last a long time, despite contemporary evidence showing that all that is left is the name...

Indeed silly.

][

I wonder if the custom originates in American syndicated comics, "The Funnies."

Of course you cannot print a curse word (know amusingly in American as "bad words" but in French as "big words") in an American newspaper; so much for the first amendment! So the comics artists got around it by using &^%@# * in place of "bad words," which was OK perhaps because it would not corrupt the innocent.

Back on topic, maybe I should have said "This will take the paint of the %&$^*@* windows!"

-E

So please, once again, what *is* the name, what does "P******x" stand for?

M.

Oh, I mentioned it without asterisks in the last post, (Ch.) Pradeaux. IMHO vastly overrated, with rough green tannins that do not mellow with age.

Thanks a lot!

M.

Erm... Yellowtail Shiraz. Need I say more, Ernie? :(

p.s. Sorry to have missed you last time out, but circumstances got in the way...

Ian, and how many times, when the DO serve a "foreign" wine, they them quickly explain "oh, it's a winery started by a Frenchman over there". Happened recently with a NZ SB, tasted like a Loire wine... :-)

Ah yes, I was there! He said this in front of 100 people, but you were a gentleman and waited to tell him in private that he was wrong about Tokaji Aszu! :-)

Ah, but that putrid sample I inflicted last time wasn't my creation; it was a 2005 2 Buck Chuck (not Yellowtail) syrah, bottled and sold just four months after harvest. And I was looking for input from experienced tasters on what that horrible stench was, not validation of my imagined talents.

The observation by Monsieur R., "BLEEAGGHHH!", was perfectly appropriate in those circumstances.

Mark Lipt>