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Dutch Journalist Digs into “Minerality”
Julien Camus Wine Education & Careers
Wine Business Monthly summarizes the findings of a Dutch journalist and consultant, Cees Van Casteren, who has investigated use of the term “minerality.” Van Casteren, they state, found the word appearing in ten percent of the tasting notes in Wine Spectator, ahead of “fruity, oaky, acidic or floral.” This pattern also occurred in Decanter. The journalist conducted a survey at the Wine Professional Trade Fair in Amsterdam, querying “connoisseurs” as to their understanding of the term. 92 percent “associated it with the notion of terroir,” he found, and 85 percent linked it to white wines and, specifically, wines from the Loire, Burgundy and Alsace. Van Casteren discovered, however, that none of those participating in the survey “managed to truly define minerality, and none thought it could result from winemaking techniques or the use of sulfites.”
Ed. For perspective, readers may want to review articles referring to “minerality” in earlier editions of the Chronicle.
