Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Bloody blog

Freedom…
The French seem to always know it all… Is freedom incompatible with wine?

This Beaumarchais saying “If censorship reigns, there cannot be sincere flattery”, and the slogan of France’s largest newspaper, “Le Figaro” (that’s fortunate!), is harder and harder to apply for journalists in the wine world. It is even harder for wine professionals who are only allowed to shut their mouth and keep their opinion for themselves.

If it is obvious for all of us that our freedom should not infringe on other’s freedom. However, it is difficult, today, to give our true opinion of a wine, even for me. I try to be as tactful as possible and my friend François Mauss won’t tell me to do otherwise.

When will the Guide for Good Manners be published exclusively for followers?
An oenologist is only allowed to say good things about the wines made by his colleagues. Otherwise, beware of the whip!

Stéphane Toutoundji (who I am not a client of) writes about it in his blog « Ras la bouteille » (“enough” – really appropriate in this case). I don’t know who he is writing about. I must have read it but forgot the part. He must have had to erase it. I simply hope that it is not about one of my friends who only wants good notes.
Actually, I don’t know of any cru from our area that everyone likes (except Mouton Rothschild 1945… but it is not a Saint Emilion).

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