Fattorini has been reading again. The book in question is Andrew Barr's 1988 classic, Wine Snobbery. Ten years ago Barr shocked the wine world by suggesting (among other things) that wine makers and merchants often hoodwinked their customers
with practices that varied from the dodgy to the downright dishonest. But what really caught Fattorini's attention was his criticism of wine writers.
''It says here that wine writers who accept free samples and invitations to tastings and trips abroad can never be truly objective in their criticism of wines.'' Fattorini looked up at his colleague, who has gained emeritus status in the matter of travelling on behalf of the reader. ''Well, it stands to reason, doesn't it?'' he continued hesitatingly, ''if you're unkind to them they won't invite you back, so you have to write nice things whether you like their wines or not.''
''Fair enough,'' said Shields, determined to defend the concept of the journalist who cannot be bought for the price of a lunch, ''but what happens if I'm invited to a tasting and I try . . .'' he thought for a moment, ''. . . Chardonnay de Salento, Le Trulle, 1996. Now I think this wine is great, but now you're telling me that just because I tried it at a free tasting I can't tell people about it. And, anyway, a wine merchant would be a fool to put wines on tasting that they didn't think were good in the first place, wouldn't they?''
''Well, yes,'' said Fattorini, now looking a little uncomfortable, ''but I still think that you would be leaving yourself open to manipulation by the wine merchant.''
Shields paused for a moment as a number of rather disturbing images generated by this last comment passed through his mind. ''Not at all,'' he replied, ''if I don't like a wine I just don't mention it, but in the case of a wine like Chardonnay de Salento, Le Trulle, 1996,
I can find out lots about it at the tasting.
''For instance, did you know that Le Trulle are little conical houses found throughout south eastern Italy? That's where the wine is from. Interestingly, this region used to produce enormous amounts of rather poor quality wine.
''In fact, at one stage, Puglia - the local region - was on its own the world's sixth largest wine producer. Chardonnay, the grape variety, is not native to this region, but if you try it I think you'll find that it is excellent quality wine.''
''Are you reading this from notes?'' Fattorini interrupted, sensing something unusual about Shields' posture and furtive glances down at his desk. ''No!'' retorted Shields, rather defensively. ''I just think it's an interesting wine. It is a great example of co-operation between the 'new' and 'old' worlds of wine making. Local producers teamed up with the 'new world' skills of Kym Milne, a highly regarded Australian wine maker. He helped them get the most from local conditions and tidied up production methods. This means that Chardonnay de Salento, Le Trulle, 1996, is a wonderful combination of Aussie fruit and Southern Italian character.
''And of course, being Italian, it goes superbly with all kinds of food. But I would particularly recommend fish and chicken dishes and pasta, especially with creamy sauces. All this for around #3.50 at your local Oddbins and other outlets.
''And anyway,'' concluded Shields, as he leaned back in his chair, ''even if I was being influenced by a wine merchant, how many times do you think I could possibly plug a single wine like Chardonnay de Salento, Le Trulle, 1996, in our column without it looking ridiculous?''
l Joe Fattorini is highly critical of wine writers who use their position to pick up free samples and trips to wine producing regions. Tom Shields is in two minds about it.
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