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Top 10 sommelier winespeak cartoons
A US-based sommelier has struck a blow for clarity by creating a series of witty cartoons to represent abstract wine descriptions.
Publishing her illustrations on Instagram, Maryse Chevriere has tapped into the absurdity of winespeak – exemplified in the now notorious description, used by Ian Cauble in the film documentary Somm, of a Clare Valley Riesling as smelling like “fresh cut garden hose”.
In tribute, Chevriere, who works as a sommelier at Petit Crenn restaurant in San Francisco, uses the Instagram handle @freshcutgardenhose.
Chevriere has kindly given the drinks business permission to publish her drawings and in the pages that follow you will find a selection of our favourites.
I think Ronald Searle had the idea first with his still unrivalled “The Illustrated Wine Speak” – one of the best wine books ever!
This is an excellent description of a wine. It manages to be evocative of the wine, and expressed in a way that means you don’t need to be a trained wine ponce to understand it.
It is a shame to take the piss out any attempt to raise wine description above the strictly ‘factual’
Otherwise we are left with: “Medium plus acidity, medium tannins, low to medium fruit”……
…….which tells us nothing.
….. to clarify – I meant the one about the florist and the charcuterie. Some of the others are a little less praiseworthy…..