We Don’t Need Articles Like This

Vinepair recently ran an article entitled “Wines that should disappear from wine lists this year, according to wine pros.”

During a time when the industry is having trouble selling wine, why would we want to “disappear” wines that people like. Presumably these wine categories are on restaurant lists because customers buy them. The article wasn’t about wines that aren’t selling; it was about wines that sommeliers think are not worth the attention they get. But this just seems like the wrong attitude to have under the circumstances. We should be grateful customers like these wines.

Here is the list of wine’s deemed unworthy:

• ‘Natural wine’ sections
• Expensive wines from popular regions
• Unstable ‘natty’ wines
• Sancerre
• Wines labeled as ‘natural’
• Orange wines
• Young rosé
• Over-oaked Cabernet Sauvignons
• Faulty wines
• Stagnant Champagne lists
• Safe, overly polished wines
• Corporate-run wine lists
• Pricey by-the-glass pours
• Pét-nats
• Impersonal lists
• Mass-produced commodity wines
• Young wine
• Careless ‘sommelier selections’ menu sections
• Improperly served bottles

Granted, if bottles are improperly served, carelessly chosen, or unstable then fine. These are not wine categories; they’re mistakes. But most of the wines on this list have dedicated customers. Why remove them? Young wines? Most people drink them. Sancerre? Are you going to remove oysters from the menu too? Natural wines? One of the few categories that is selling reasonably well. Orange wines? One of few genuine innovations to come along in decades (although it has a long history in certain regions.) Over-oaked Cabernets remain one of the most popular styles despite being grossly overpriced,. And why would any restaurant remove pricey by-the-glass pours if the wines are interesting and even a few people buy them? Just a few sales will earn your salary for the night.

To be fair, some of the somms interviewed for this article declined to answer directly and responded by listing wines they would like to see added to more lists. That’s the way to answer this question. Give people something new to try.

But for the most part, this is just a list of pet peeves from which we learn nothing except how out of touch some people in the business are. It’s a list of wines some sommeliers wish people didn’t like. But wishes won’t earn a profit.