I was recently reminded of a movie about a group of scientists peering into a microscope. They are in heated argument. Their assignment is to identify and describe the object they are looking at. They are not agreeing on what they are seeing. Each scientist looks into the microscope, and then argues his position passionately. Each is confident not only of the quality of his opinion, but of its value as well. Then, the camera pans back, revealing that the scientists are clustered around a microscope focused only on the tip of an elephant’s ear. The elephant seems quite bored with their pronouncements. We can assume he knows that he is an elephant.

This sums up my opinion of scientists and critics. It does not matter whether they are talking about. It can be a discussion about climate models, our planet, terroir, bio-dynamics, or a particular wine. What they miss in their passionate opinions is that the more they focus, the more they become blinded to the fact that they are looking at living systems that are connected to everything around them. There never is only one answer or outcome.

Your glass of wine is alive. It will not taste the same in an hour. It is connected to everything around it. Smells, sounds, colors, room temperature, glass style, all affect you and your wine, as does what cleaner was used on the glass, how long the bottle has been open, the freshness of your palate, your expectations, your mood, the smile of your companion, maybe the smell of your companion, what you do or don’t taste along with it, the amount of time the bottle sat on the shelf, the gentleness of the UPS carrier, the climate around the truck or warehouse, the length of time it sat after bottling, the winemaker’s palate at the time of blending, the aging process in barrels, the type and age of barrels, the fermentation, the winemaker, the day of picking, the distance to the winery, the weather that day, let alone the growing season, the pruning, the amount of water the vine received, the grower, the clone, the soil, the age of the vine…….. Don’t miss the elephant because you were given a numbering system, a vocabulary of smells and taste, and a microscope.