Most wine columns resemble recipes from Larousse Gastronomique or Mastering the Art of French Cooking in this way: they have happy endings. This column, alas, proceeds with a melancholy burden. The world of wine, it pains me to report, is in the doldrums. Is it because of a new infestation of phylloxera, the blight that devastated French vineyards in the 19th century, or some other pest? Is it some novel tyranny of teetotalers, outlawing the production and consumption of wine? No. It is something closer to original sin or what Immanuel Kant on a dreary afternoon called “the crooked timber of humanity” out of which nothing straight can be fashioned. In short, it is the news that the wine industry itself is dying. Why? Because its chief support and prop of its prosperity, drinkers in that demographic known to budding statisticians as boomers, are themselves popping off to reap their rewards.
A recent story in the New York Post broadcast the upsetting news. “A lot of people have a misconception that the boomers are drinking less,” said one Sonoma County vineyard owner. “This cannot be emphasized enough: it’s not because the boomers are drinking less, it’s because there are less boomers.” Grammarians will bristle at the phrase “less boomers” when the chap clearly meant “fewer boomers,” but for once we can let the solecism pass. Emergencies not infrequently intrude upon linguistic decorum. Cecily Cardew, in The Importance of Being Earnest, acknowledged as much when she noted that Algernon’s letters to her after she broke off their engagement were “so beautiful, and so badly spelled.” High emotion can intrude upon orthography that way, perhaps especially when one is, as was Cecily, the author of the letters in question.
But I digress. The first point to take on board is that there are fewer Gen Xers than there are (were?) boomers. Let me pause to avail myself of that bottle of 2015 Bollinger Champagne I had put aside for just such an occasion. We have mentioned Bollinger before in these chronicles. At some point, I went on about Bollinger R.D. (“R.D.” for “récemment dégorgé” – recently disgorged.”). I won’t repeat what I said then, only noting that first, that is one of my favorite Champagnes; and second, those bubbles are expensive. The ordinary vintage stuff is, too. And 2015, though not the star that 2012 was, still glitters brightly in the firmament of wine.
It was a hot, dry year, but the fruit prospered. The cépage of this noble potation is 60 percent pinot noir and 40 percent chardonnay. It takes only a sip to make you realize why this particular Champagne appears in no fewer than 15 James Bond films. It primed Bond, James Bond, for derring-do. It will do the same for you. I return to my previous narrative by mentioning that this Champagne will set you back about $180. Perhaps I should also note that, being a gift, this particular bottle set me back nothing. What, your friends do not bestow expensive bottles of Champagne on you? Have you considered upgrading your friends?
The relevant fact, however, is that, according to a story in London’s Sunday Times, cost is another factor in the declination of the wine industry and, indeed, in the consumption of alcohol generally. Apparently, many young’uns are turning to marijuana. Some say it is cheaper. And, being plant-based, it might be mistaken for kale. “They have,” that story continues, “been told this drug comes from a plant which means it snuggles nicely in the warm underbelly of the socialist, woke, anti-meat agenda. It’s kale in a Rizla,” i.e., rolling paper. In conclusion, says the paper, weed is
Cheap. Fun. And healthier than booze. But is it? When I was at school no one had mental health issues. There were kids that had what we called ants in their pants and others who were a bit miserable occasionally, but these things could be cured with a bit of light bullying over a nice pint.
Today, you’re weird if you don’t have a mental health issue of some kind.
But here I go again, digressing. Fortunately, I have finished with that bottle of Bollinger and am now prepared to move to a recent discovery that it pleases me to share with you. It is a delightful chardonnay from the southern Mâconnais from the house of Domaine Romanin. Its AOC (no, not that AOC) is Mâcon Solutré-Pouilly, which is nestled in and around Pouilly-Fuissé. The commune of Solutré-Pouilly lies at the foot of “the Roche,” a famous limestone spur and Grand Site de France. The 2023 from Domaine Romanin, which you can find for about $25, is a rich, beguiling yellow color and features a light, floral, aromatic nose. It is surprisingly complex and lingers nicely in the mouth.
Were I of an evangelical disposition, I might consider distributing cases to the smoking dens of the young. I feel certain I could count on a few converts. They would need to work quickly, though. The wine’s freshness begins to deliquesce after just a few years.
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