I’ve had a couple of wines lately that I considered undrinkable. They were viscous, sugary, and in one case (Meiomi PN) collapsed with astonishing speed (less than four hours) into cherry cough syrup.
I don’t get it. I know these wines are selling at a billion bottles a second. I have no problem with people making, bottling and selling such stuff. What leaves me a little shaken is the speed with which winemakers and drinkers append the term ‘elegant.’ As near as I can tell the marketers have learned that if they attach the adjective the drinkers will henceforth apply it in their direction.
Elegant, for the record is defined as “refined grace” and “dignified propriety”. These wines are opposite of elegance: they are cherry-cloaked cudgels applied to the palate. That most people like them isn’t surprising given the gigantic market share spiced rum/whisky/booze has acquired in the last five years. But dignified and refined they are not.