And the HorseStank Goes On and On

So it is about time that someone at the Wine Speculator other than Jimmy Laube talked about the fatal brettanomyces flaw showing up in more and more wine these days, especially wine older than 5 years old. That's right, Jimmy Molesworth, one of their European tasters, complained politely about brett and in fact stated correctly that it is and has always been a flaw in wine. Off course he called George Brett, he of the something like 8 batting titles and maybe 100 career homers, a power hitter, but who expects a Brit to know squat about American baseball.

But the thing is, he managed to both knock the winemakers and apologize for them in the same article. Shameful. Jimmy M. obviously was trying not to piss off the winemakers who give him free bottles of their wine so while he properly raised the issue, he backed off, equating older brett filled wines with memories of old girlfriends or some BS like that. Basically, he said the brett was okay because it has always been there and he remembers the wine with the stanky brett there. Interestingly, he also talks about of couple of wines that were too close to the barnyard for his tastes.

Come on Moley, take a friggin' stand. No wishy washy its okay because it has always been that way, the vintners are trying to avoid it these days, blah, blah, blah crap. For me, brett is a fatal flaw nearly 100% of the time. I don't know if I am particularly sensitive to it, but with even small amounts I begin to gag. I have often abandoned brett-filled wines at my own loss. This, my friends, is unacceptable. Brett is a flaw and it smells like wet horse hide, or horseshite or wet cardboard or crappy dirt or some other indescribable thing, but it is anything but pleasant, unless of course your nose is hopelessly plugged and you have no sense of smell or taste. You will know it when you smell it or taste it, although you may not identify it as Brettanomyces without someone telling you that is what it is.

It is incumbent on wineries and winemakers, just like the fight against TCA, to remove it from their wine and admit it is completely unacceptable. None of this claptrap about it being part of the terrior of the wine, or improving taste (a lie the French are particulary vested in advancing). Consumers, just like you have voted against TCA with your pocketbook, you must vote against Brett with your pocketbooks. I have recently written off Mouton Rothschild wines because a whole case of '99 d'Armailhac I own is full of the shite. I am very close to doing so with several Aussie wineries. It seems the worst offenders these days are vintners in the south of France, Australia and Bordeaux. I have also had a few American vintners do me wrong. It is clear that aside from poorly maintained barrels and wood, the rush by oenologists and vintners to harvest ever-ripening grapes makes them dramatically more susceptible to Brett spoilage. Why? Riper grapes contain less acid, a natural preservative. Further, these wines often contain low levels of residual sugar, a fermentable for Brett. And these days, minimalist intervention means less SO2 and other preservatives are used, increasing the risk of a rogue organism like Brett taking hold as the wine ages.

But do not accept a flaw just because wineries have a vested interest in telling you you should. Use you palate, your nose and your mind and vehemently reject wines with Brett in them. Only by losing business will these guys really do the right think and rejoin the bottle to eliminate from their cellars and wines.