The story makes a region unique
French were first to grasp the idea. They came with the word terroir to bewilder the world. After they understood the value of their country, they decided to put it on the pedestal and praise it with the most lavish terms in order to gain the position of the winemaking power. Up to these days the word terroir keeps on to be used without translation in most of the European languages. If one aims to describe it, he should pour himself a large glass. It is very likely that the French wine wouldn’t even exist without this specific expression.
Originally the word derives from “terre” that could be translated as “soil”. This would, however, lead us to think that we are only talking about the substance on the surface of the earth. It is not proven yet that vines would have the ability to absorb any substance from rocks; anyway we still tend to point to these characteristics. Mosel Rieslings are told to have a taste of slate or Chardonnay from Chablis is typically flinty. Even though we would not find any specific “rocky” substance in the wine, the soil type of the vineyard has a significant impact on the final product. But that is just only a part of the story.
The word soil is here for the whole country. It is the geographical location, the altitude of a hill, the variety of rivers and mountains, windiness, lightness, the whole of the microclimate. Vine is a sensitive herb that reacts to any impulse. The work of a human has to be added to that. Be it a family wine business, a large enterprise or a small group of enthusiasts. Every one of them approaches the art of winemaking with a different motivation. Either you take vineyard as a financial source or a source of joy from sharing the fruits of nature.
It is remarkable how apt were French to distinguish their terroir. They never ceased to modify it, they do not forget to reinterpret it to fit to modern days and it seems they manage to keep track. When an advert for Burgundy is claiming that their terroir is irreproducible because there are no similar conditions anywhere else, it is difficult to doubt about it.
Certainly, every place has specific conditions and a typical approach. So the question is why we all don’t tell more about our stories. The narrative of a country needs to be expressed, defined and, for example, in case of Slovakia newly invented. In a globalized world, when we are bombarded by the same, chemically clean wines, a character rises in value. The meaning of a place gifted by natural potential is underlined at the moment when it is discovered and continuously cultivated by the winemaker.
An inclination to terroir might be a demonstration of the interest for local typicité as a contrast to the unified world. There are loads of examples, let’s take just one from central Europe. Above the Balaton Lake in Hungary, there are hills with red soils rich in iron that give rise to a vineyard that is looking down south on the lake that provides humidity in dry summers. The village is called Csopak and the winemakers have already realized long time ago that their Welsh Riesling is so different that they named it Csopaki Riesling. This is a way how to create a narrative about the typicité of a place, time and human endeavour.
The personal story of Slovakia begins to plant its roots too. Newly created Slovak varieties such as Hron, Vah, Dunaj, Rudava were just now honoured with the Great Gold Medal from Concours Mondial 2014. Hopefully this is just the first swallow that will have its followers. The wind is fair to hoist the sail for the potential of Blau Frankish, Gruner Veltliner or Welsh Riesling that have always had deep roots in central Europe.