Not to get philosophical for a few minutes, but wine is just wine. The only thing that matters is what you like. Wine can seem like an incredibly snooty thing, and I know the next sentence will sound snooty, so just bear with us for a few more sentences. Not long ago, we were in a very small winery in St. Julien on the Left Bank of Bordeaux called Domaine du Jaugaret (it’s true, we lead a rough life). It was a tiny production – three acres, only two old fermentation tanks, with a total production of 1,500 to 3,000 bottles a year. After tasting the last two vintages in the barrel, the owner / wine maker, Jean-François Fillastre, told us with some embarrassment that he can only sell us one bottle of wine, but we can pick the vintage. As we’re looking through his cellar, we begin to ogle a 1976 (my birth year), and Jean-François starts laughing at us oohing and aahing the wine. He looked at us and said: “c’est juste du vin.” English translation – it’s just wine. How true.

Sure, so many of us put wine on such a pedestal – heck, this entire blog is about wine. But, we should never forget that it’s just wine. In the end, the only thing that matters about wine is what you like. Really, why should you care about the reputation of the winery, how many points some wine critic gave last year’s vintage, or how difficult it is to obtain a bottle? Rather, the only important questions about any bottle is whether you like it and, if you’re sharing it with others, whether they like it too.

Jordan’s father (my father-in-law) lived, many decades ago, in Florence, Italy. Today, he basically only drinks Gabbiano Chianti as it reminds him of all the Chianti he drank back when he lived in Florence. Neither Jordan nor I will touch Gabbiano Chianti – but that doesn’t make Jordan’s father’s choice in wine wrong, nor does it make our love of a bold Napa Cab, a delicate Santa Ynez Pinot, or a powerful Left Bank Bordeaux wrong. We just have different palettes and different tastes in wine. There’s no right or wrong answer with wine. One should just drink what they love and the main goal of exploring new wines is to find new wines you will love.

The wine we drink makes us happy. And the wine Jordan’s father drinks makes him happy. And, Jean-François, the winemaker of Domaine du Jaugaret, mostly drinks his own wines, and we’re sure that they make him happy. Jean-François Fillastre has apparently never been to St. Emilion to try its wines – even though St. Emilion is less than a 90 minute drive from his house. He simply likes his wines, and he likes how he makes them. Drinking wine you like is all that matters. After all, c’est juste du vin – it’s just wine.

Photo Credit:

• Featured Photo: Madrose.com
• Domaine Du Jaugaret entry: Madrose.com
• Domaine Du Jaugaret cellar: Madrose.com
• Jean-François Fillastre: Madrose.com