Year of the Shiraz

It was once described to me that beyond just history and geography, a key difference in the wines of the Old World and of the New World lay also in the way one describes a wine. A "New World" approach is "clinical;" a wine tastes like this fruit and that herb with an intensity, acidity, or length measured on a scale, all to be given a score at the end. An "Old World" approach would give anthropomorphic adjectives succh as vivacious, voluptuous, cheerful, shy, or brooding; an approach that in the end assesses the wines personality and is subjective to the consumer.

Yesterday marked the beginning of the Year of the Dragon in Chinese astrology. As with our Western zodiac, each sign has its own specific character....such as with grape varietals. According to my research, one born in the Year of the Dragon is "full of energy, self-assured, vibrant, flamboyant, and extroverted."

Sounds like the perfect description of a Shiraz to me. How so? Generally speaking, a Shiraz should show full-body, strength in alcohol, bright fruit and pepper flavours, and especially in the case of Australian Shiraz, a sense that there is no mistaking it for anything else. You might say a Shiraz is therefore full of energy, self-assured, vibrant, flamboyant, and a little extroverted. Sounds like the perfect Dragon to me.

As a Tiger, I am supposed to be "headstrong, independent, and have a spirit of great depth." Just as I always suspected: I'm as finicky and determined as a Pinot Noir. Next step is to find out what an Aquarius should be...