August 4, 2006

Don't Judge a Wine by its Label?

Picture yourself wandering up and down the aisles of your local liquor store, having been sent there to "pick out a nice bottle for dinner." Maybe you know everything about wine and you know EXACTLY what to pair with the chicken pot pie.

Not everyone has that skill, however, and most people are relegated to choosing their wines based on three factors - price, varietal and label. While it's often easiest to go for the prettiest bottle on the shelf, we've found an interesting article at Wine X magazine that says that might not net you the best of wines. In fact, they even offer the following motto: "choose ugly- drink lovely and if more has been spent on design than wine, decline."

It is a sad fact and a perplexing paradox. The look of a bottle is of no importance but also the utmost. It has no bearing on the taste but is the main reason for purchasing. Visual appeal is one way a wine drinker can be tricked into buying something that is not as good as it should be. Consequently it is incumbent on an enthusiast to hone their senses of taste and smell and totally ignore their sense of style. It's crucial, especially for the fiscally challenged. Some of Australia's best wines and best bargains lurk under some of the most god awful labels. Boutique wine labels are like people's houses - there's plenty that's quirky and gaudy but for plain ugly bargains the big companies rule.

from Wine X

Note - We're fans of Wine X online; if you're a bigger fan of reading on ink and paper you can get a subscription at Amazon for $15 for 6 issues.

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