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why we do not drink merlot. |
Wine
Reviews
Reviews of wine of all types, except merlot. |
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Red
Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Shiraz, etc |
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White
Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, etc. |
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'Sideways' Strikes Again - No Merlot
The movie 'Sideways' strikes again by inspiring a new web site called
NoMerlot.com, a not so pretentious guide to wine, except merlot.
The movie 'Sideways' strikes again by inspiring a new wine review
web site called: NoMerlot.com - a not so pretentious guide to wine,
except merlot. NoMerlot.com launched a mere two months ago as
a joint effort of Serr.biz LLC and Hoboken Vine Inc. Both are located
in Hoboken New Jersey. In this short time, NoMerlot.com already enjoys
over 6,000 unique visits a month. Additionally, Michael Zittel and
Clark Huang, the co-owners of NoMerlot.com, hand pick writers with
a genuine voice and irreverent tone. To boot, NoMerlot.com actually
pays their writers.“Traditional wine reviews tend to be staid
and pretentious. We prefer writers with a bit of tongue-in-cheek style,
humor and irreverence for the norm.
"Prior to NoMerlot.com, I was a bit of beer recluse, just drinking
wine occasionally. Clark is the expert. I'm the geek. But, reading
all the reviews, some of which are hysterical, especially Deborah
Hanousek and Jay Franz, I've begun to drink wine much more, and wonder
what took me so long.”
Besides paying writers, part of the NoMerlot.com appeal is their commitment
to clearly define "real reviews” from “marketing
plugs." Many of the established wine review sites claim non-biased
reviews, but curiously, some top rated wines often taste far below
their ratings. To make everyone happy, they included a section of
their site just for marketers called, "Shameless Plugs."
There, wine marketers may post their marketing copy, free.
On the note of ratings, NoMerlot.com ditched the numeric standards
set by Wine Spectator and Wine Advocate. Really, unless one has the
sensitivity of a dog's nose, can a human really distinguish the difference
between a 99 and a 98? Their ratings take a trip back to high school
with a grading structure of A, B, C and D. The ultimate purpose of
their new rating is to “shift the focus back to the wine you
are drinking rather than its score,” says Clark Huang, who has
been acquiring and enjoying good wine since law school.
As for the purpose of NoMerlot.com, the site is really a good-humored
plea for the return of artistry to wine making. Unfortunately, as
"Sideways" brought to light, Merlot fell from its state
of grace into a mass-produced commodity. Hopefully, this will not
be the fate of Merlot in America, but in the mean time, No Merlot!
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