Sorry guys, I've got to talk shop for this one. Bear with me.
Okay, so, I don't know everything about wine, but I know a damn good bit more than most people on the street. Most "wine people" and I disagree on a few things, but, hear me out.
In order to impress me, a wine doesn't necessarily need to embody every single one of its token varietal characteristics. I want my subtle and silky Pinot Noirs as much as I want my bold and spicy Shirazes, but there is something to be said of wine with personality. There's something to be said of PEOPLE who actually have personality, likewise. If a wine doesn't have any glaring defects or faults, sometimes a bit of personality is a good thing. So, it may not be exactly what a wine judge wants to see, whether it be "too light" or "not true to variety"...if it can support it's own voice, it has a possibility for success with the open minded and flexible.
This is exactly why I LOVE the wine from the Finger Lakes. Never mind that I was born in the Finger Lakes, although I'm sure that that has something to do with it. :-P Finger Lakes wines are cool climate, and, for the most part, are unlike any wines I've seen here (obviously). They may not be, for example, true to form big, ridiculous tannic Cabernet Sauvignons, but they generally have flavor and form, and they have PERSONALITY, a certain uniqueness. They are regional and they tell the tale of the winery and those people who worked to prepare its outward characteristics. Many can call this personality "terrior", which is, essentially, a signature of where the wine comes from. But, it's actually a lot more. It's a story. And, due to the size of the region, most, if not all, Finger Lakes wines have a STORY. An interesting story, too! We're certainly not making a whole lot of wine relatively speaking, so livelihoods, blood, sweat, and tears go into making our wines. That special attention, combined with the cool climate characteristics and the varietal, give our wines our signature, their personality.
If straight, predictable varietal characters do it for you, then fair enough. But, if it doesn't; don't get hung up on what a Riesling or a cab is supposed to taste and smell like. It's a nice guide, but, firstly it varies from area to area, so try to look at the wine as a part of a whole, the end to a story. How does it show to you? And most importantly: do YOU like the story it has to tell you? Robert Parker (who is a bloody bullshitter, if you ask me) is doubtfully going to be drinking wine with you anytime soon, so be sure that you select a wine with a story that you want to be part of!
