...and (good) wine-makers are artists
GEOFFREY FINCH
OCT 24, 2024
It’s art week in Paris with the big ticket show being Art Basel Paris (formerly Paris + par Art Basel, and before that, FIAC) in the newly re-opened, spectacularly grandiose, and impeccably restored Grand Palais. So the city is awash with art openings, events, exclusive dinners, collector’s circles, private chauffeurs, fancy parties and (big brand) Champagne.
Le Grand Palais
Quite unexpectedly, we had our own artist in residence, a sculptor from London who was invited by the direction of Art Basel, through her ties to digital art, to a very posh dinner at the Plaza Athenée. And another friend sold all three pieces she had in the show, which was a major coup.
It’s all a bit of a whirl and trying to take in as much as one can is exhausting and eventually mind numbing. And in addition to the endless works on display in the Grand Palais, there are countless other events going on throughout the city, too many to mention. So the city is currently one big art fair and that energy is not unlike the buzz and excitement one finds at any international wine salon. Only this art comes in at the eye and cannot be drunk in any practical sense.
Art is identity and the identity of a wine is art
But what has any of this to do with wine, you might ask. Nothing and everything, I would say. ‘Wine is art’ may sound fanciful to some, but far too often I hear people making generalisations like “I don’t like red (white) wine, I don’t like Cabernet Franc, or I don’t like Champagne, or I don’t like Beaujolais, or I don’t like Merlot, or I only drink Bordeaux, or I only like Burgundy.”
Can you be more specific?
Such generalisations are meaningless, although the people making such claims probably don’t think so. In pretty well all such cases, they have a very limited overview of the wines and the regions they’ve identified, somehow unaware that no two wines are alike. One can’t make such sweeping statements after one bad experience, because there is no similarity between any two wines. It’s like saying I don’t like Mondays, or I don’t like Modern Art. Without really getting to know everything about that vast field of art history, one can’t really make such statements and sound credible. And in the same vein, one can’t make blanket statements about wine.
Real wine is the product of raw materials that come from the earth that are subjected to myriad variables, that in the right hands, become something close to divine. Terroir, which is a human construct, defined by soil, geology, mineral content, biomass, and influenced by micro-climate, exposure, slope, drainage, the proximity to forests, rivers, or the sea (or towns, cities…), then planted to specific grape varietals, is but one part of the story.
Real wine-makers are artists, just like artists in the art world, although they are working within a different medium. Their art is a living one wherein they try to remain open and sensitive to what is going on around them, closely watching weather patterns, testing their soil, picking up signals from the biodiversity in their vineyards to monitor diseases, and more and more often, understanding what is happening in the cosmos. This of course providing they don’t poison their soils or their vines with insecticides, herbicides, pesticides and fungicides.
With all these signs, indications and variables in hand, they must then know how and when to intervene when vinifying, sometimes breaking away from traditions and established moulds to experiment and try something new. Each wine-maker is something of an alchemist, transforming base materials into gold.
Within any given appellation, there might be 40, 50 or 100 winemakers, each of them with different terroirs and each doing things a little bit differently with exactly the same grape varietals. The result of which is as many styles and wine personalities as there are wine-makers, all of which are distinctly different the one from the other.
So making generalisations and blanket statements makes no sense whatsoever, so please stop saying such things, and dig a little deeper. Real wines are living expressions of their terroir, true representations of what soil and nature provide. As Colette so eloquently put it:
“Vines and wine are great mysteries. In the plant kingdom, the vine alone gives us an understanding of the true flavour of the earth. What a faithful translation it is! It feels and expresses the secrets of the soil through its grapes. Through it, flint lets us know that it is alive, fusible and nourishing. Ungrateful chalk cries golden tears as wine.”
Beyond this very clear parallel between the art world and the artistry expressed in wine-making, is the infinite range of expression and ideas that stem from human creativity. Both are products requiring skill, passion, and a deep understanding of materials—whether grapes, pigments or other mediums. Both engage the senses, tell stories, celebrate subjectivity, and foster connections, making them timeless elements of culture that enrich our lives. Through their shared characteristics, we find not only enjoyment but also a deeper understanding of the world around us.
As such, there is in wine, just as there is in art, an infinite range of possibility and expression. Making generalisations about either therefore shows a distinct lack of familiarity or understanding of the complexities that are so much a part of both. Additionally, the appreciation of wine and art is inherently subjective. Just as tastes in art can vary widely among individuals, so too can preferences for different wines. What resonates with one person may leave another indifferent, highlighting the personal and emotional connections each medium fosters. This subjectivity is a celebration of diversity in human experience, making both wine tasting and art appreciation intimate journeys tailored to individual perception.
Sharing a bottle of wine or discussing a piece of art can foster relationships and create shared experiences. They bring people together, whether in a gallery, a vineyard, or a dinner table, enhancing social bonds and creating lasting memories. It is the infinite variety, diversity, and scope of both of these fields that inspire and motivate us to carry on exploring, researching, prospecting, and therein discovering new tastes, new sensations and heightened emotions. So don’t allow yourself to be locked in to a limited world wine view. Carry on tasting and you may find your first impressions were wrong.
Meanwhile, as this post is really about wine, I randomly tried to find wine-related pieces of art at Art Basel Paris, of which there wasn’t much, other than these images below…
Mask made of wine bottle glass
A painting with a couple of glasses of wine
This collection of wine glasses by Yuki Kimura on a stand at Art Basel Paris is entitled ‘Perfection’
You can discover first hand the history of Paris and its wines with any of our scheduled wine walks. And if you’re in to the macabre and the spooky, and a chillingly good time, we’re hosting a special wine walk for Hallowe’en... Santé!
Thank you for letting me into your world and for reading the Paris Wine WalksSubstack. Your support is invaluable as are your comments, suggestions, critiques, dreams, thoughts and remembrances. A little encouragement goes a long way, so please consider a paid subscription, which need cost no more than (a cheap) glass of wine per week. Or, book a wine walk!
My book, ‘The Hidden Vineyards of Paris’ (reviewed in Jancis Robinson’s wine blog, the Wine Economist, National Geographic Traveler UK, UK Telegraph) is available for purchase via our website and at anglophone bookshops and wine shops in Paris. You can also find it at the Musée de Montmartre and the Librairie Gourmande.
Wine Walks!
For more information, click on the underlined links:
Stroll, swirl, and shiver (in fright) on our harrowing Hallowe'en wine witching night! One time only spooky Marais wine walk - 31 October
Share a sparkling, convivial moment with colleagues, friends or clients to celebrate the moment or to simply gather for fun.
Paris' most famous wine producing vineyard
An insider's journey to the oldest wine neighbourhood in the city
A winebar crawl that features some of the best winebars in the city
The Marais seen through a wineglass
Discover the vinous spirit of medieval Paris
A comprehensive overview of medieval Paris
Short on time? This one’s for you.
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