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The Emporer of Wine
August 2008
Today we discuss the history and development of wine, its
role in the fine dining experience and the impact of critics on
our tastes.
The history and development of wine is unclear - even in
Greek Mythology the history of the God of wine, Dionysus, is
open to numerous interpretations. Their Roman
counterparts called the equivalent God Bacchus or Liber.
Contrary to some of the depictions of Bacchus, few of the
stories associated with any of these Gods are positive or
flattering to wine – intoxication was seen as a bad thing.
Period. Ref
It may well hold that several hundred years BC a Roman
Emperor was the first to bring wine to Britain, although as a
beverage common across the population, Britain remained
well behind European counterparts until the latter part of the
twentieth century.
Today supermarket shelves are stacked with a great
diversity of wines, couple this with access to all manner of
specialist outlets (either directly or via the internet) then our
choice is immense.
So it is too in fine dining restaurants, where the Sommelier
can be considered the Emperor of wine. The etymology of
the word Sommelier, according to Wikipedia, is derived
from the Middle French for a court official in charge of
transportation of supplies. An insulting understatement of
the tasks carried out by the modern day counterpart.
The sommelier of a fine dining restaurant has a multi-
faceted role. Having an easy manner with customers
coupled with a sound knowledge of wine is just the
beginning.
There is the cellar to run; meaning sourcing, procuring,
budgeting and pricing as well as food and wine matching
and typically contributing a solid 50% of annual Gross Profit
to the restaurant.
One of the wonderful things about the world’s largest
reference library – the internet – is that a few moments of
typing uncovers knowledge that would have been
painstaking to discover just a few years ago.
“Wonderful” with the proviso that the knowledge is both
accurate and worthy. We can now, for example, find the
retail price of wines instantaneously. This has removed, to
some extent, the mask and cloak of mark-ups from even the
most complex of wine lists.
This can only be a good thing. Today, the standard mark-
ups made by Sommeliers in fine dining restaurants range
between 300% and 400% of retail.
Armed with greater knowledge as consumers, with better
and better information, the market forces of economics
come into play, and inevitably mark-ups will come down.
The wine list is something to enjoy and not be an
intimidating mine field.
August 2008
Today we discuss the history and development of wine, its
role in the fine dining experience and the impact of critics on
our tastes.
The history and development of wine is unclear - even in
Greek Mythology the history of the God of wine, Dionysus, is
open to numerous interpretations. Their Roman
counterparts called the equivalent God Bacchus or Liber.
Contrary to some of the depictions of Bacchus, few of the
stories associated with any of these Gods are positive or
flattering to wine – intoxication was seen as a bad thing.
Period. Ref
It may well hold that several hundred years BC a Roman
Emperor was the first to bring wine to Britain, although as a
beverage common across the population, Britain remained
well behind European counterparts until the latter part of the
twentieth century.
Today supermarket shelves are stacked with a great
diversity of wines, couple this with access to all manner of
specialist outlets (either directly or via the internet) then our
choice is immense.
So it is too in fine dining restaurants, where the Sommelier
can be considered the Emperor of wine. The etymology of
the word Sommelier, according to Wikipedia, is derived
from the Middle French for a court official in charge of
transportation of supplies. An insulting understatement of
the tasks carried out by the modern day counterpart.
The sommelier of a fine dining restaurant has a multi-
faceted role. Having an easy manner with customers
coupled with a sound knowledge of wine is just the
beginning.
There is the cellar to run; meaning sourcing, procuring,
budgeting and pricing as well as food and wine matching
and typically contributing a solid 50% of annual Gross Profit
to the restaurant.
One of the wonderful things about the world’s largest
reference library – the internet – is that a few moments of
typing uncovers knowledge that would have been
painstaking to discover just a few years ago.
“Wonderful” with the proviso that the knowledge is both
accurate and worthy. We can now, for example, find the
retail price of wines instantaneously. This has removed, to
some extent, the mask and cloak of mark-ups from even the
most complex of wine lists.
This can only be a good thing. Today, the standard mark-
ups made by Sommeliers in fine dining restaurants range
between 300% and 400% of retail.
Armed with greater knowledge as consumers, with better
and better information, the market forces of economics
come into play, and inevitably mark-ups will come down.
The wine list is something to enjoy and not be an
intimidating mine field.
The adept Sommelier will expertly advise and guide to
wines that match and enhance food while adding value to
the overall dining experience.
A consumer’s prerogative is to optimise this interaction by
assisting with taste and budget, this is easily achieved by
pointing to a bottle and saying “I was thinking of this.”
In any event, the fine dining experience is about the
intangible pleasure we enjoy. Should a recommended
wine tick all the right boxes (and is proportionate to cost)
then everyone is happy.
Apart from the Sommelier, who else is there to advise about
choices in wine? There are the critics. In the UK these are
notably Jancis Robinson, Oz Clarke, Jilly Goolden and Hugh
Johnson – The latter’s World Atlas of Wine adorns over 15
million bookshelves worldwide.
Over a period of decades, all four have been prominent in
highlighting the joys of wine and guiding consumers in their
appreciation.
However there has been one man who has stood out in his
sphere of influence – and that is Robert M Parker Jnr. The
unauthorised biography, The Emperor of Wine was
published in 2005.
The world famous Parker Points scoring system marks
wines out of a 100. The ratings actually start at 50.
The impact of this system on the US market has been
immense, with those wines scoring 96, 97, 98, 99 and 100
having their price per case rise exponentially.
Yes, a material difference to both demand and price, but
what of supply? It has been argued that the production of
wine in Bordeaux has been adjusted to meet the nose of
one Robert M Parker Jnr. Extraordinary stuff!
With such power comes responsibility: Moreover, a critic
with such unwieldy power can themselves attract the most
fearsome of critics. Robert Parker has been sued and
separately experienced death threats. At the same time
leading lights in Bordeaux have lauded his contribution to
their global development.
You just need to type “Emperor of wine” or “Robert M Parker”
into Google to get an insight into the polarizing impact of his
name.
After nearly thirty years, his regular wine advocate newsletter
is still published. In the late 1970’s this was to a local
community in Maryland, today it is to the world via
erobertparker.com.
You may be a supporter or detractor or indeed, this may be
your introduction to Robert Parker. The more you read the
more fascinating this man becomes.
wines that match and enhance food while adding value to
the overall dining experience.
A consumer’s prerogative is to optimise this interaction by
assisting with taste and budget, this is easily achieved by
pointing to a bottle and saying “I was thinking of this.”
In any event, the fine dining experience is about the
intangible pleasure we enjoy. Should a recommended
wine tick all the right boxes (and is proportionate to cost)
then everyone is happy.
Apart from the Sommelier, who else is there to advise about
choices in wine? There are the critics. In the UK these are
notably Jancis Robinson, Oz Clarke, Jilly Goolden and Hugh
Johnson – The latter’s World Atlas of Wine adorns over 15
million bookshelves worldwide.
Over a period of decades, all four have been prominent in
highlighting the joys of wine and guiding consumers in their
appreciation.
However there has been one man who has stood out in his
sphere of influence – and that is Robert M Parker Jnr. The
unauthorised biography, The Emperor of Wine was
published in 2005.
The world famous Parker Points scoring system marks
wines out of a 100. The ratings actually start at 50.
The impact of this system on the US market has been
immense, with those wines scoring 96, 97, 98, 99 and 100
having their price per case rise exponentially.
Yes, a material difference to both demand and price, but
what of supply? It has been argued that the production of
wine in Bordeaux has been adjusted to meet the nose of
one Robert M Parker Jnr. Extraordinary stuff!
With such power comes responsibility: Moreover, a critic
with such unwieldy power can themselves attract the most
fearsome of critics. Robert Parker has been sued and
separately experienced death threats. At the same time
leading lights in Bordeaux have lauded his contribution to
their global development.
You just need to type “Emperor of wine” or “Robert M Parker”
into Google to get an insight into the polarizing impact of his
name.
After nearly thirty years, his regular wine advocate newsletter
is still published. In the late 1970’s this was to a local
community in Maryland, today it is to the world via
erobertparker.com.
You may be a supporter or detractor or indeed, this may be
your introduction to Robert Parker. The more you read the
more fascinating this man becomes.