Thoughts on wine and whatever strikes me at the moment. But it's mostly about wine.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
The Budometer
Someone sent me this e-mail linking to this interesting article about the whole super taster thing which has been covered by the wine press the past couple years. Honestly it is a story that does not interest me too much but what piqued my interest was this simple little test that tells you what wine styles you like by asking you a few simple questions about salt preferences, beer, mixed drinks and coffee. They were around 60% accurate for me but I was mildly surprised about the general style preferences they thought I should like. They were off on the oak thing as I detest it and they say I like moderate oak. I do like it if it is well integrated but then I clicked on the wine matching thing and the list was to put it politely a list of wines I would not be caught dead drinking. But it got me thinking of incorporating that test onto maybe the Chambers Street Wines website as we don't sell crappy wine and it really would be cool in putting together a case for an amateur. Interesting and worth thinking about.
It was really off for me as well. It said I like dry wines of moderate intensity, medium low froot (those two might be the only ones they got), medium high oak, moderately high tannins and balanced acidity.
ReplyDeleteGiven that my cellar is 24% Loire, 22% German (one whole bottle of which is trocken) and 18% red Burgundy, I'd say either the Budometer or my purchasing are waaaaay off. I certainly see some basic utility for a new wine drinker who doesn't have a decent retailer, but it could certainly use some refinement.
Very cool, I'm off to take the test...
ReplyDeleteI got pretty much the same as Dave, except that I like high acidity (they got that one right(. Where it all goes to hell is when they say I like "medium-high oak". Eeeek! And yes, the reccos at the end are pretty disgusting. They don't even fit the profile assigned to me.
ReplyDeleteI'm very much enjoying the last glass of an amusing 2000 Sylvie Esmonin Côte de Nuits Villages right now. Spicy, smoky, strangely animal-fatty stuff, but very lively and bright.
M.
I got the moderate oak thing as well. Wrong!
ReplyDeleteI'm headed right out to buy the Stag's Leap Winery Melot & Zaca Mesa Chardonnay that was recommended!
ReplyDeleteThey sent me to Turning Leaf! On the bright side, on the basis of my snack preferences, they consider me a super taster. Hmmmm. And what's up with the oak? I got that too.
ReplyDeleteMay I offer an opinion? Nonsense.
ReplyDeleteBut then, I've been known to be a contrarian when it comes to gimmicks.
Not accurate, I'm not the big is better kind of drinker :)
ReplyDeleteThe selection was a concentrate of Wine Spectator best buys included Simi. If a human being would have propose me that I would probably slap him/her...
Buona Bevuta a Tutti
Maybe the oak thing has to do with one's stated coffee preference? I put down "espresso" because that's what I normally drink and got "moderately high oak" in my taste profile.
ReplyDeleteAlso, was anyone else surprised that the California crap being suggested once you get to the "Recommended Wines" is from 1888-1999. I don't know whether the current vintages of Zaxa Mesa Chardonnay or Sterling Merlot is oe of those or if this is just some sort of werd default.
M.
it said that i'm a hyper-sensitive taster. the recommendations were stupid, but that's probably because they don't have roumier, krug and/or haut-brion in their database.
ReplyDeletebut I can't argue with the TYPES of wine that they say i should try:
WHITE
Dry and slightly sweet Rieslings, German and Alsatian wines. Austrian wines. Chardonnays from France, Chile, and unoaked or more delicate Chardonnays from Australia, New Zealand and the USA.
REDS
Traditionally styled Pinot Noir from New Zealand, the USA, and France. Lower alcohol red Zinfandel. Lighter intensity French, Italian and Spanish reds.
that all seems correct for me. cool trick as it seems to based on coffee additives and salty snacks.
Gee, maybe I'm really Robert Parker. No, this test was way off for me. The wine types it recommended make me gag. Why the emphasis on salt, I wonder?
ReplyDeleteWhat kinda freaked me out was the "Diet Soda" thing. Well, and the fixation on "Starbucks" as a coffee category.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if they would differentiate between Sweet'n'Low, Equal and Splenda, in terms of the particular tastes they have when added to diverse foods and drinks.
M.
Ok, so I went and took the test. As I figured, a useless gimmick. It's not even close to my preferences in wine, but how could it be? Most of the questions are too pedestrian to even come close to analysis with substance.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how much they get paid per click on the specific wines listed.
hmm. Well the test thinks I like high tannins because I like espresso. Bitter in coffee and bitter in wine, however, are very different things for me.
ReplyDeleteLyle, which wines would you "not be caught dead" drinking, I am curious to know?
Drink, Memory,
ReplyDeleteYa know the Simi Chardonnay they reccomended or Ruthie Hill Merlot or the Estancia Pinnacles Chardonnay and the such. I would love to plug that into our website and assign each combination an algorithm and each wine and algorithm and see what fun develops . .
Budometer didn't work for me, either. In fact, I wrote about it: http://drinksareonme.net/?p=237
ReplyDelete