The Perception Amplification

Could it be that wines age differently if they are left to mature where they were created?
This notion landed yesterday afternoon while I was retelling a story about three fairly recent incidences (wine enjoyment sessions) where the very mature wine at hand showed remarkably well. So much that I took notice several times while sipping. Is it possible that unlike human life that’s enriched by the virtues of travel experiences, wine prefers to be left close to home? In an earlier post I mentioned that 99’ Cayuse that showed like a champion. Literally textbook maturation without flaw or any sense that anything that should have been was absent. This wine lived at Beresan winery just down the road from the Cayuse bottling line.

The 1998 Beaucastel CDP that Marc Perrin sent directly from the family cellar….WOW !
I had had that vintage before and I know for sure the ones from the nest were unmistakably different. More intact, more of everything, more freshness amid the tertiary elements….more goodness…

This may be some sort of cosmic harmonic convergence. Similar to that story that we wine folk have heard a gazillion times about the guest that insists that the wine at the table is flawed because it tastes nothing like it did two weeks prior while sitting at the winery, in Bordeaux, on the veranda, on a sunny day, with an esteemed companion, overlooking the countryside…. And so on….

You might ask yourself if it’s just the richness of the experience at the place and the environment that makes the wine better…as if its because you are in that moment of splendour and immersion that your palate and all other sensory receptors and emotions are open minded to the glory of the flavors in a way that cannot be replicated…or is that the perception amplification is partly due to something even less tangible like this astral connectivity with the earth and sky? Is it possible that wines and cheeses, meats, truffles, and chocolates or whatever geographically-specific proprietary artisan products have this resonation that only happens on the home turf? Its like an extra layer of goodness that’s just there and can’t even really be described. It’s real enough for folks to mention it and im beginning to think that it’s a reality that’s only remained a mystery because its not really been researched. In any case, perception is everything and where you stand is right where you are.

Blessed are they who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing.” Camille Pissarro