Terroir (no, not terror — try to stop thinking about terrorism for at least a day) is a term used in wine that explains how wine speaks of the earth is comes from. What a wonderful and romantic way to travel the earth. The next time you visit your favorite wine market, pick up a bottle of an Argentine Malbec and travel to the Mendoza region of Argentina. The picture below is a traditional Argentine wine decanter that is still used in many homes and parrillas (grills).
Somehow, the wine tasted better served from the friendly and humble penguin, a perfect companion to the grilled provelleta (cheese aged for a minimum of 30 days, grilled to perfection and topped with olive oil, oregano and chimichurri), Each parrillero (grill master) has his own style based on a custom mix of tradition, skill, and intuition.
Was the house wine as good as last week? Or is the provelleta better today? There are too many variables to even contemplate. It is all part of the experience that can never be duplicated or replicated the same way twice.
Terroir helps us to remember that while consistency is good to a reasonable degree, if abused, it can choke out and kill originality. Good wine, like good food should never be consistent. It’s not natural. Huge restaurant chains (think McDonalds) are successful for their consistency, not necessarily because the food is of high quality. They can never replace the romance of the cozy local parrilla or some other little gem that you have discovered where you live.
Article comments