Learning To Appreciate Austerity In Wine?

[John_Morris]

@alan weinberg

can be an asset or detriment depending on the aspects around it (austere) and how the adjective is used.

And your knowledge of the particular wine and it’s likely evolution. An austere young Corton-Charlemagne isn’t the same as an underripe, overcropped, underfruited wine from someplace else that will never go anywhere.

[John_Morris]

@D@vid Bu3ker

Not all wines show their cards the minute the cork is pulled. Heck, most do not.

That’s because you’re drinking too well. Test that theory on a $15 Rosemount.

[David_Bu3ker]

Why would I spend $15 on Rosemount?

[Scott_Brunson]

@D@vid Bu3ker

Why would I spend $15 on Rosemount?

restaurant markup

[Bruce_G]

@Michael S. Monie

This is not about the merits of drinking AFWE wines. If fact, it’s not even about what are considered to be AFWE wines, these days. Because it’s not about wines that eschew full throttle flavor or wines demonstrating balance. It’s about austere wines. Wines that while being consumed the imbiber has to search for its qualities. It’s about what seems to me to be a nihilistic appreciation for certain wines. Is this visceral enjoyment or more of a cerebral exercise? What was the initial allure and the long termed enjoyment of the pursuit of such wines? Enlighten me, because I really want to understand. Thanks.

A great question/topic, Michael.

I can’t really speak to the initial allure, other than to say that it seemed the norm for fine wine when I began studying seriously (30+ years ago). Most of the highly regarded wines then had a bit of push-back to them: acidity and minerality for the whites, and tannic structure for the reds. Additionally, fruit preservation (and enhancement) wasn’t as common as it is now: it was not a widely shared goal (at least to the extent that we see today), nor were there as many tools available to get the job done on the production side. Finally, the levels of ripeness desired/achievable were lower than they are today.
All this combined to make wines with less overt fruitiness, hung on a more “austere” framework.

For me, I guess I’m an old dog who can’t be taught anything new.
While I understand what folks are doing these days in making these more hedonistic (indulgent? opulent?.. what’s the prefered antonym for “austere”?) I find it hard to warm up to them. I prefer more austere wines on both visceral and cerebral levels. I’d rather not be this way, as it limits buying options. But that can’t be helped.

[g.colangelo]

@R. Frankel

My problem with this term is that I can’t help but think of the actual word austere and what it generally means (see below). Yes of course a word can have different meanings in different contexts, but, for me, when I see this word I struggle to perceive it as a positive attribute. This thread has been really helpful for me because I’m curious how people use this word and what they really mean. But I wish there was a different word for what Marcus and others describe.

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Austere:
severe or strict in manner, attitude, or appearance.
“an austere man, with a rigidly puritanical outlook”
synonyms: severe, stern, strict, harsh, steely, flinty, dour, grim, cold, frosty, unemotional, unfriendly; formal, stiff, reserved, aloof, forbidding; grave, solemn, serious, unsmiling, unsympathetic, unforgiving; hard, unyielding, unbending, inflexible; informal, hard-boiled

Yes, but still you can enjoy the company of such a man. Not because when you see him/her you immediately get in good mood, but perhaps because you have learned to appreciate him/her for his/her qualities.
The same applies to wines, I believe. You sometimes encounter wines which give little immediate pleasure, but a lot of enjoyment, especially if you take the time it needs to appreciate them.
I like the descriptor.