Vintage of aging wine writer hits sweet spot

A couple of big-ish milestones got me thinking about the vast, rapidly evolving world of wine and drinks, and my place in it.

On Nov. 13 my odometer flipped over from 49 to 50, which coincides with Uncorked having kicked off in the Free Press 20 years ago. (My first column was on celebrity wines — still a thing today!)

Factoring in the one or two weeks every year where I’ve not contributed a column in the Free Press due to illness, vacation, etc., that adds up to about 1,000 columns… 750,000 words. Yikes.

You can never know everything there is to know about wine, but there are days where it feels like I’ve written about every grape variety, wine-producing country or wine style under the sun.

Wine to go with (insert holiday meal here)? I’ve done ‘em all, many times over. It’s often when I taste a particularly compelling wine that the light bulb goes on and the subject for the next Uncorked is locked in.

I’ve recounted my winding path to the Free Press wine-writing gig in these pages before. Start with one decade working at private wine stores, mix in two English degrees and season liberally with being in the right place at the right time (and knowing the right person) and you’ve got a recipe for this here column.

The number of dedicated wine/drinks columns in Canada has dwindled over the years as budgets get tightened or the old guard retire (or expire).

Most such columns are written by freelancers, who don’t work full-time for the publication in which their work appears. It’s how Uncorked started out in 2005 — until I started working at the Free Press full-time in 2013, first as a copy editor and then as literary editor, while still doing the weekly wine/drinks thing.

I’m fairly certain that I’m the only drinks writer in Canada today who is actually employed by the organization for which I write.

There were a number of years where I’d get invited annually or more by some wine trade organization or other on media trips to various countries or regions — over 20 years I’ve visited multiple wineries on four continents.

When I started out, I was the sheepish “‘new guy” in the back corner of tasting rooms, eventually growing into a seasoned pro at easily navigating one-on-one discussions with winemakers or viticulturalists.

But the game has changed in a big way, particularly in the last five or so years. The COVID-19 pandemic saw international wine travel grind to a halt, and brought about the rise of virtual tastings, where producers would send samples to writers to try at home while winemakers attended by video.

At the same time, a wide and new range of voices have taken to TikTok, Instagram reels and YouTube videos to post drinks reviews of their own, with the newspaper wine/drinks columns, magazine articles and print newsletters of the world trying to clumsily adapt and carry on.

I’ve tried my best to keep up with the times, sporadically posting video wine reviews on my Instagram account. I do hereby pledge, in this space, that I’ll put in a bit more effort to make that happen more regularly.

The addition of so many new voices has helped democratize communication about wine and drinks, wrenching power away from the traditional old boys’ club in print — and this newly minted 50-year-old, who is now solidly in said club, thinks it’s a good thing. More voices and perspectives lead to more educated wine drinkers.

But (you knew there was going to be a but) there are some things to keep in mind when checking out such content creators and influencers — most importantly a lack of editorial oversight. That wine video review you’re watching on TikTok or Instagram could be a paid advertorial.

Many wine-trade orgs, whose budgets have largely shrunk, have turned to the people who get the most eyeballs online, leaving us traditional scribes back at home to scribble out our columns while content-creator types visit wineries, filming fancy, often overly gushing videos. Food for thought.

Should you be exploring social media apps for more wine and drinks content? Absolutely.

But do yourself a favour and take the extra time to search out reputable sources rather than shiny content that looks and sounds more like an ad.

Even if I live long enough to potentially pen another 1,000 Uncorkeds, I reckon in another 20 years most of us old-guard drinks writers will have gone the way of the dodo bird.

Until then, I’ll just keep popping corks and chasing that next brilliant bottle.

Wines of the week

Josep Ventosa NV 1941 Brut Premium

(Cava, Spain — $22.99, Calabria Market)

A Xarel-Lo, Macabeo, Parellada and Chardonnay blend, this Spanish bubbly is very pale straw in appearance and brings lemon-lime, green apple, chalky and grassy notes on the nose.

On the dry, light-bodied palate the lively bubbles in this cava deliver loads of tart citrus notes as well as green apple and chalky components, zippy acidity and a modest finish (it’s 11.5 per cent alcohol).

Made in the traditional method (fermented in the bottle) and aged for 14 months before release.

Fresh and fun. 3.5/5

Vale D. Maria 2024 Douro Superior Branco

(Douro, Portugal — $17.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)

A blend of indigenous grape varieties Viosinho, Rabigato, Arinto, Gouveio and Codéga, this Portuguese white is pale gold in appearance and brings aromas of fresh pear and apple as well as peach, herbal and subtle spice notes.

It’s dry and light-plus bodied, with those herbal and chalky flavours balanced nicely with red apple skins, firm peach, ripe pear and lemon zest notes, light acidity and, at 12.5 per cent alcohol, a modest finish.

There’s some nice texture to this white and a hint of spice thanks to two-thirds of the wine being aged in oak barrels for six months.

An elegant, fresh and well-balanced white that’s an very good value while it’s on sale (it’s regular $19.99). 4/5

Cantina Zaccagnini 2021 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo

(Abruzzo, Italy — $25.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)

Unlike the less expensive Montepulciano d’Abruzzo from Zaccagnini, which stays briefly in stainless steel vats until bottling, the riserva, also made from Montepulciano grapes, spends at least nine months in oak vats and then at least six months in bottle before release.

Inky purple-garnet in appearance, aromatically the deep blackberry, plum, blueberry and raspberry notes come with hints of lacquer, spice and pepper.

It’s dry and full-bodied, delivering big dark fruit flavours with a resinous, woody note, bright acidity, some underlying black pepper, medium tannins and, at 14 per cent alcohol, a long, warm finish.

Drink this rustic robust red now. 4/5

uncorked@mts.net @bensigurdson