Robert Parker has feet of clay?
Helen Turley is scaring off potential employers?
Could this be the beginning of the end?
Well, let’s not all run out and break into “Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead” just yet. Parker, for whatever unfathomable reason, still wields a lot of clout in the world of wine. Many people with more money than sense apparently need to be told what they like. These same people think the sun shines out of Parker’s ass. Consequently, when he says “Shit!”, wine makers the world over say “What color?” Not all of them, thankfully, but enough so that regional styles are beginning to fall by the wayside.
As long as high Parker ratings mean huge markup, winery owners will still be willing to sell their souls (or complete control over their vineyards and wineries AND 20% of gross) to get Turley to make their wine. She makes wine that Parker likes. A lot.
I did a little research on Turley today and came across this little gem, from two years ago. She doesn’t come off as someone I’d want to deal with, frankly; she’s a little full of herself, for one thing, and I find it ridiculous that a hired gun can come in and basically tell the owner to fuck off out of the way, thank you very much, this is what your wine is going to be like. It’s the height of arrogance.
The issue of wine and class is raised in that article, too. From the article:
Though Turley hates the term cult—"it reminds me of Jim Jones"—she does seem to think that her wines should be reserved for a few committed believers. "Fine wine is not a mass-market activity," she insists. If she had her way, her wines would be kept off restaurant wine lists altogether and offered only to those customers deemed worthy of appreciating them, though at a lower price than restaurants usually charge.
There are always going to be expensive bottlings that the average person with an interest in wine will never be able to afford. I understand that. At the same time, I think the pricing on a lot of wine is somewhat out of touch with reality. Less so than in the 90’s, of course, but it’s still a problem. But what really gets me worked up is the elitism which Turley and Parker and their ilk so often display, the idea that only a select few are capable of comprehending the complexity of a good wine. I would dearly love to smash that mentality, burn it down to the ground and piss on the ashes. It’s just flat-out bullshit that keeps so many otherwise intelligent people intimidated, almost fearful, around something that should only bring pleasure.
Parker and Turley may not be on the way out yet. But a boy can dream, can’t he?