When we discuss great wines, there is often discussion of terroir, skilled wine making and expert viticulture. Yet how often do you hear that Christianity is responsible for great wines? Have you ever heard that?
In the latest issue of Decanter (June 2008), there is a brief article with statements by famed Spanish winemaker Alvaro Palacios. His best wine is L’Ermita from the Priorat region, a wine that has international renown. Alvaro has stepped forward to make a bold statement, to give much credit to Christianity for good wine.
Alvaro stated: "Good wine comes from godly places. I am not crazy--I really want people to know how important this is. I don't understand why no-one else appreciates that the monks were the ones who chose the best places for vineyards. I'm not claiming that non-Christian countries can't produce good wine. But in Alsace, Burgundy, Bordeaux and Spain--in Priorat for example-- it's the same. These vineyard sites were gradually selected over hundreds of years; these places are mystical. Other wines are good but I truly believe the greatest wines come from religious regions."
Do his statements have any validity? If so, how much validity do they possess?
Coincidentally, I have been reading a new book, Bordeaux/Burgundy: A Vintage Rivalry, that touched upon exactly this topic.
"In Burgundy, as everywhere in Europe, it was the Church that maintained the tradition of viticulture during the early Middles Ages." (p.23)
Historically, it probably cannot be denied that the Church played a significant role in promoting vineyards and wine making. Even in California, the Church played a large role in such, including even during Prohibition. But, how much impact did the Church have in determining the locations of vineyards? What were the factors involved in their decisions as to where to plant grapes? Are these sites truly mystical? Or is some of it merely chance?
What is needed is a deeper examination and analysis of the history of Christianity and wine making. We need to determine why did the Church planted vineyards in certain areas. We need to determine whether the Church simply protected vineyards that had been planted previously, by secular individuals or organizations. It is an intriguing topic that hopefully will receive more attention in the near future.
What do you think about this topic?
Heck here in Spain it was the Church that planted the first vineyards. The monks who knew agriculture would come in find the good spots and start producing wine. No mystery here I think. Not sure why there would be. If a farmer chooses a piece of land to plant grapes on, based on what works, is that a mystery or just smarts. Monks were farmers. Good ones too, not matter if god guided their hand or not. Farmers tend to know the land best!
ReplyDeleteI don't know if viticulture can be directly attributed to the Church in the institutional sense but certainly it is no stretch to link religion and wine via the monastic tradition. While religion and spirituality can be mutually exclusive, there is a long history of spiritual men with strong "personal faith" ranging from gaiaism to mysticism within the Catholic monestaries of Europe. With that in mind, one might look upon the tradition of viticulture as a natural extension of a general 'reverence for life' which brings about a different focus on the land and it's produce than a purely profit-based mindset might...My $.02 :)
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