Terroir
Terroir is a French term in wine appreciation used to denote the special characteristics of geography that give a wine its individuality. It can be loosely translated as "a sense of place" which is embodied in the qualities of a wine, the sum of the effects that the environment has on the vines which produce a particular wine.
Terroir is distinct from the characteristics imparted by the grape variety, by the vintage and by production methods (vinification), and is the product of a range of local influences that are transmitted into the character of the wine.
The components of terroir may include:
- mesoclimate
- soil type - Is it rich in nutrients or barren, is it primarily chalk or clay?
- geology - Good drainage or poor, is the bedrock shallow or deep?
- aspect - Do the grapes get lots of sun due to being on a south-facing, steeply sloped site?
- altitude - higher altitude means the same amount of sun but lower temperatures
- patterns of cultivation
However, the meaning of terroir goes beyond the geography — terroir is pre-eminently a concept of quality in wine-making. Oenophiles use the concept of terroir to refer to wines that are distinctive and unique to their place of origin. However, the mere existence of terroir, the role that terroir plays in making a wine "good" are both questions that are controversial.
Does Terroir Exist
And if so, does it matter? The concept of terroir means that wines from that terroir are unique, incapable of being reproduced outside that area, even if the variety and winemaking techniques are painstakingly duplicated. For the French, who claim to be home to many of the finest terroirs in the world, this is simultaneously self-evident and also extremely convenient. Producers in Burgundy are emphatically not producing pinot noir that happens to be grown in Burgundy, they are producing the unique wines of Burgundy, that happen to be made from pinot noir. In fact, until the early 2000s, it was illegal to put "pinot noir" or "chardonnay" on the front of a Burgundian label. Judging by its prominence on French wine labels, the place of production is important, much more so than the grape variety or even in the producer.
The opposite argument comes from those who do not believe in the concept of terroir. They agree that many aspects of terroir are important to wine quality, such as drainage, aspect, etc., but dispute that the combination creates something truly unique and better.
In the middle are those who agree that terroir causes wines to be different, but believe it has no impact on the overall quality of the wine. In their thinking, a Volnay can be a great wine even if it doesn't taste much like other Volnays.
Top-Level Terroir
The Burgundy region is the high temple of "top-level terroir"; i.e. that "somewhere-ness" that bestows certain characteristics on the wines of certain places. Examples include earthy notes found in Savigny and perfumed red fruit in Volnay and Chambolle – though both are different. Pertinent to this discussion is the fact that the parcelling of the land into smaller lots (crus, lieu-dits or whatever you prefer to call them) has nothing to do with the wine market or any type of marketing for that matter, this was done by scholarly monks who controlled the vineyards for 500 years or longer and believed they could characterise the differences. This characterisation led directly to the segmentation that we see today with some sites classed as Grand Cru, others Premier Cru and Villages.
Anyone tasting in a number of producers' cellars will be struck by the consistency with which the Premiers Crus are more concentrated and interesting than the Villages wines, and will experience the similar jump from Premier Cru to Grand Cru. It is the occasional exceptions standing out which reinforce the established hierarchy of the crus, the hierarchy that forms the basis of what you pay.
Usage
Terroir is a term adopted from the French usage, an extended meaning of the word for "land". Terroir is often italicized in English writing to show that it is borrowed from a foreign language, though many now regard it as a word naturalized into English.