Is it my imagination or...

WINE TALK
1

is Berserkers a more European wine oriented board?

This puzzles me because most people seem to be from the States and, unless my figures are out of date, three quarters of the wine consumed in America is produced there.

Best regards,
Alex R.

2

Are you trolling, Alex? [popcorn.gif]

3

You’re right, Alex, but the board is not European generally versus New World-focused. The topics tend to involve (a) a subset of European wines and (b) hard-to-get Californian bottlings.

I raised this in a thread a few months ago, pointing out how we tend to focus on a few European areas: Burgundy, Barolo and Germany, for instance, but not much on Spain or Tuscan wines, or even Bordeaux. As the former group happens to be my focus, I have no complaints, but it was striking to me how seldom we’ve seen threads on Aussie wines, say, or Priorat, or even anything from California that doesn’t have a waiting list.

4

Rated highly by WA (other than David S) = dismissed out of hand? [stirthepothal.gif]

Interesting tho. Keeps things manageable if Tuscany = Brunello and Spain = LdH or “classic” Rioja.

Then the WS board = CA and things are nicely organized!

Now if I could only find a board devoted to the wines of Switzerland . . . [drinkers.gif]

5

Ah, the poor neglected Swiss!

I was surprised you didn’t mention your overlooked Hungarian friends, Greg, but now I see that you’ve given them a plug in another thread.

In defense of WB, where else could you find such informed discussions of theoretical reclassifications of Cotes de Nuits plots?

6

It’s not your imagination, Alex, I have noticed this as well and brought it up in a previous post as has John as he mentioned above. My myriad attempts to turn this board into a Canadian icewine, Australian stickie, Italian Passito, fruit wine, Alsace wine and Port wine oriented board have sadly all failed miserably. Some people just don’t have an open mind. neener

7

This is a collector-oriented board. Wines meant to drink young–which is true of most CA wines, even expensive ones–don’t play into collecting very well. Either the wines must be very rare, or they must have a known track record for aging.

There are actually many interesting small producers and regions in CA. But they get lumped in with Napa and its 28 Brix plus water and tartaric style (sometimes fairly, sometimes not).

8

A lot of it is the quirks of us members. In California, Copain gets a lot of play, and Edmunds St. John did for a while, but also lots of cult wines I’ve never heard of. Lopez de Heredia gets an extraordinary amount of attention.

9

That is a “newish” trend. Many of the participants have moved on from Cali wine and it seems a bit out of fashion. A few years back on the other board, where most of Berserkers were active, you would get a huge amount of info, primarily on Cali wine. Not that there hasn’t always been incredibly knowledgeable folks on European wine but it seemed to be a smaller group. It used to be if there was a Kosta Browne thread, it would be pages long. Now I would assume some wouldn’t even get a reply unless it was provocative.

Jason

10

When it’s mailer season, there are lots of California threads.

And on today’s home page there are a boatload of posts on American themes:

TN: 2008 Myriad Rutherford

TN: Two Syrahs w/ ChristmasDinner…(short/boring)

TN: Ramsay AlicanteBouschet '94…(short/boring)

TNs: 09 Radio-Coreau Savoy Chardonnay & 90 Lafon Volnay Santenots-du-Milieu

Downtown Napa Tasting Recs?

Snake Farm

What is your favorite Oregon Chardonnay - Sub $25

TN: 2009 Hobel Cab, Napa

Any thoughts on Tyler Pinots?

Clos Pepe thoughts?

TN: 2007 Copain Syrah Spirit Rock Alder Springs Vineyard

TN’s: Holiday Wines- Myriad, Far Niente, Cade etc…

TN: 2010 Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc

TN: 2002 Shafer Cabernet Sauvignon (USA, California, Napa Valley)

1991 Smothers Brothers Cabernet Sauvignon Remick Ridge Ranch

2010 Willamette Valley Pinots

TN: 2007 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain

2011 Niagara, ON and BC Icewine Harvests Are In

Different Thomas bottlings?

TN: 2009 Betz Family Syrah La Côte Rousse

Hightlights from my trip up the CA coast

11

Indeed it seems this board is focused on European wines …if one only reads the threads on European wines.

Anyway I find a good balance here.

12

We’ve evolved. We’re all hipsters here now. [wow.gif]

13

+1

14

It seems to go in waves. Sometimes there are lots of USA wine threads and sometimes it’s Europe’s time for threads. Maybe it corresponds to when we all get paid have money to buy expensive imports [wink.gif]

Seriously, at least for Cali wines, I see a lot of old Cali Cab posts and a lot of young popular wines (Copain, Kosta Brown, etc) but the middle ground sometimes is lacking. I think the best reason is what G. Dyer mentioned, we’re mainly a collector-oriented wine group. As such we like to try them when young, then cellar them until they mature many years later. It leaves a bit of a gap for those bottles in their teenage years.

15

Andy’s correct. The emphasis changes. For the first year and a half of the community’s existence, there were essentially no Burgundy threads, yet look at how Burgundy dominates the discussions now. We were primarily California focused for quite a while, and the Europhiles got frustrated. It’s ebbed and flowed, and changed focuses several times throughout the years, and will likely continue to do so. Once Virginia or Michigan attain prominence in winemaking, I’m guessing we’ll be concentrating on those threads instead.

pepsi

16

Yeah, baby! We’re comin’ for that ass!! [highfive.gif]

17

…yet look at how Burgundy dominates the discussions now…

[cheers.gif] …merci.

18

Doesn’t this qualify our current Beserker-population better:

19

And, to all those who complain that there isn’t a wide range of topics, I point you to the “Accidental Double Post” discussion.

20

Every internet discussion board that I’ve seen has a certain zeitgeist. Some topics, and points of view on those topics, become the dominant ones, and people become more likely to post about those subjects and when they agree with those points of view. It’s not necessarily (or usually) the actual majority view, I would guess, but it becomes the direction the board goes in.

On this board, it’s clearly Burgundy; the low alcohol / traditionalist side of the alcohol / oak / modernism debate about wines (particularly pinot); certain new world producers like Rhys; Piedmont; German (but not Austrian or new world) riesling; Loire Valley; bashing Parker and Laube; and a few other things.

I think that if a regular poster here drinks an Australian Shiraz and likes it, he most likely won’t post about it. If he drinks a Rhys or a Burg the next night and likes it, he’s far more likely to post. If he drinks some higher alcohol / modernist wine and hates it, he’s more likely to post than if he liked it. Consciously or subconsciously, people are more likely to post about things that will attract attention and which will be well received, and gradually it shapes the overall outlook of the board.

It probably sounds like a lamentation on my part, or an implication of some sort of bullying or intolerance, but I assure you it’s not. It’s just how internet discussion boards work, and I find it an interesting phenomenon. There are obviously exceptions to the zeitgeist (people who unapologetically post about enjoying Pavie and Turley and Shiraz), but they are exceptions.