In my post on the subject last week I briefly laid out my thought process that made it very difficult for me to come down on one side or the other on this issue. In the end I decided to add my voice to those who opposed the changes. I can now say that I am satisfied with the results of the vote, as I believe the decision offers the better chance of furthering a move back from international homogeneity towards quality, individuality and diversity in wine.
The question I would ask now is: Can supporters of wine diversity rest on their laurels now that the vote has been taken? My answer is an emphatic no! Official wine categorizations, particularly as they are structured in Italy, are limited in their ability to preserve tradition and diversity. After all, wine producers will continue to seek maximum profits by satisfying perceived consumer tastes. No law is going to compel producers to continue producing Rosso di Montalcino if they believe wines made form 100% Sangiovese don't appeal to the modern palate. Clearly throughout recent history, despite all efforts to regulate tradition into Italian wines, winemakers gave in more and more to satisfying a perceived clamor for wines that are over-extracted, high in alcohol, over-oaked, dense, and low in acidity. This has caused even the great traditional DOCG wines of Piemonte and Tuscany to become less and less characteristically distinguishable from each other and, for that matter, good wine produced anywhere else in the word.
As notable Italian wine authority Nicolas Belfarge MW points out in a recent Decanter.com article, much of this move towards internationalization of wine tastes has been less a product of real consumer desire, than a perceived need among producers to please a certain influential group of wine pundits who have invariably awarded the highest points to dense, deep-colored, oaky wines. Thankfully, as Belfarge points out, the pendulum may now be slowly swinging back in the other direction, as consumers are becoming more accepting of wines of a lighter color, higher acidity, and greater varietal character. In Italy we are now seeing a slow return to more traditional styles of wine-making as producers are, for example, backing away from aging their wines in new oak barriques and returning to the traditional large Slavonian oak casks.
I personally believe that much of the new interest in wine diversity among consumers is due to the greater availability of information through the internet, social media, and a new generation of plain-speaking wine writers and critics who recognize that consumers have a wide range of tastes, and are interested in exploring the new (to them) and interesting. I firmly believe that tradition-saving decisions such as the one last week in Tuscany will only be valuable if producers perceive a market for traditionally produced wines. That perception cannot come from regulation, but only from continued availability of information and consumer education. It is largely up to wine writers, educators, sommeliers and merchants to foster diversity; to show consumers what a great, big, beautiful world of wine there is out there to explore. I am convinced that if the current and future generation of wine drinkers are encouraged to expand their palates, producers will not only continue to make traditional wines like Rosso di Montalcino, but will do whatever it takes to achieve in them the highest levels of quality.
The question I would ask now is: Can supporters of wine diversity rest on their laurels now that the vote has been taken? My answer is an emphatic no! Official wine categorizations, particularly as they are structured in Italy, are limited in their ability to preserve tradition and diversity. After all, wine producers will continue to seek maximum profits by satisfying perceived consumer tastes. No law is going to compel producers to continue producing Rosso di Montalcino if they believe wines made form 100% Sangiovese don't appeal to the modern palate. Clearly throughout recent history, despite all efforts to regulate tradition into Italian wines, winemakers gave in more and more to satisfying a perceived clamor for wines that are over-extracted, high in alcohol, over-oaked, dense, and low in acidity. This has caused even the great traditional DOCG wines of Piemonte and Tuscany to become less and less characteristically distinguishable from each other and, for that matter, good wine produced anywhere else in the word.As notable Italian wine authority Nicolas Belfarge MW points out in a recent Decanter.com article, much of this move towards internationalization of wine tastes has been less a product of real consumer desire, than a perceived need among producers to please a certain influential group of wine pundits who have invariably awarded the highest points to dense, deep-colored, oaky wines. Thankfully, as Belfarge points out, the pendulum may now be slowly swinging back in the other direction, as consumers are becoming more accepting of wines of a lighter color, higher acidity, and greater varietal character. In Italy we are now seeing a slow return to more traditional styles of wine-making as producers are, for example, backing away from aging their wines in new oak barriques and returning to the traditional large Slavonian oak casks.
I personally believe that much of the new interest in wine diversity among consumers is due to the greater availability of information through the internet, social media, and a new generation of plain-speaking wine writers and critics who recognize that consumers have a wide range of tastes, and are interested in exploring the new (to them) and interesting. I firmly believe that tradition-saving decisions such as the one last week in Tuscany will only be valuable if producers perceive a market for traditionally produced wines. That perception cannot come from regulation, but only from continued availability of information and consumer education. It is largely up to wine writers, educators, sommeliers and merchants to foster diversity; to show consumers what a great, big, beautiful world of wine there is out there to explore. I am convinced that if the current and future generation of wine drinkers are encouraged to expand their palates, producers will not only continue to make traditional wines like Rosso di Montalcino, but will do whatever it takes to achieve in them the highest levels of quality. 
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