Why is it that every time I taste a bottle of wine, whoever’s tasting me on it, be it a wine  rep, a wine maker, an importer, you name it, they always reference THE DIRT and how great it is?

Now I’ve tasted dirt, a lot of it, I’ve licked stones and have put rocks in my mouth on more than one occasion, and to me, it all tastes like DIRT.

I know the dirt in Beverly Hills is very expensive, especially if compared to the dirt in the San Fernando Valley. However, we’re not drinking or eating the houses that are built on that dirt, so it’s really not the same thing.

Dirt from the very prestigious Howell Mountain and Spring Mountain districts in the Napa Valley is more expensive than the dirt in Yountville or Rutherford (also in Napa) and compared to the dirt in Temecula, forget about it.

Obviously it’s NOT just the dirt, but many, many attributes that contribute to the quality of a wine. I propose we stop this banter of ‘my dirt is better than your dirt’ and start discussing all the elements that comprise a great wine region and the wines that come from “that dirt”. Dirt is Dirt.

David Milligan