The ineffable mystery of taste
The American novelist, and contributor to Kermit Lynch’s Wine Newsletter, Jim Harrison (no relation) reflects on his ‘own limitations as a writer and the rather obvious limitations of language itself’ when trying to describe what we taste. Having long ‘poked fun at the pathetic attempts professional tasters make to characterize wine in terms of fruit other than grapes’ he then had to find terms and ideas that make sense ... at least to him!
What might we do? Compare a wine to Jane Austen’s Emma (wilful and self righteous) or Fielding’s Tom Jones (rakish and wild)? Or perhaps we have a cricketer in mind.... slow off the mark, straight bat, finishes with a flourish?! Is this more preposterous than our meanderings in farmyards, petrol stations or the garrigue? Perhaps we need to recognise that what works for me doesn’t always for you, but a shared allusion (illusion?) or common metaphor brings out a real sense of a shared moment. And our own shorthand for tastes and smells at least gives us hope that one day we will actually taste what it says on the label on the back of the bottle!
The American novelist, and contributor to Kermit Lynch’s Wine Newsletter, Jim Harrison (no relation) reflects on his ‘own limitations as a writer and the rather obvious limitations of language itself’ when trying to describe what we taste. Having long ‘poked fun at the pathetic attempts professional tasters make to characterize wine in terms of fruit other than grapes’ he then had to find terms and ideas that make sense ... at least to him!
What might we do? Compare a wine to Jane Austen’s Emma (wilful and self righteous) or Fielding’s Tom Jones (rakish and wild)? Or perhaps we have a cricketer in mind.... slow off the mark, straight bat, finishes with a flourish?! Is this more preposterous than our meanderings in farmyards, petrol stations or the garrigue? Perhaps we need to recognise that what works for me doesn’t always for you, but a shared allusion (illusion?) or common metaphor brings out a real sense of a shared moment. And our own shorthand for tastes and smells at least gives us hope that one day we will actually taste what it says on the label on the back of the bottle!