These people thought Champagne is made from only one grape varietal-whereas it s usually a blend of 3 grape varieties-2 of which are red- although it can be made from a single variety – Chardonnay (blanc de blanc), Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier.
Two-thirds of people could not tell the difference between Sauvignon Blanc and Sancerre- the former is the grape varietal which is used in the white wine based on the name of the village (like our Dindori). Only one out of three knew that Sancerre wine was made from Sauvignon Blanc grape. Same percentage said they bluffed their way while ordering wine in a restaurant and acted as if they were following the advice of the sommelier which in fact they did not.
Another study reported in delWine last year had indicated the Second Cheapest Wine Syndrome, where most people preferred to order not the cheapest wine, lest they are considered cheap but the second lowest priced wine, to sound wine-intelligent. In the current survey, one in four admitted they simply selected the cheapest bottle on the list when eating out.
About 60% said that all wines get better with age when around 95% of world wine production is meant to be drunk young and wine does not get any better with age.
The lack of knowledge may explain why 84 per cent of those surveyed said they had been ripped off buying wine. Interestingly, 62 per cent of those surveyed, thought they know about wine
Cortexica, a technology firm that has come out with an app for I-phones, called WINEFindr that sells for £2.99, conducted the survey. Jilly Goolden, a wine expert and spokesman for the company, reportedly said: 'We are a nation who thinks we know a lot about wine but the research reveals that we actually just bluff our way through restaurant lists. Lots of enthusiastic wine drinkers in Britain still need a helping hand in certain situations, such as ordering from a restaurant wine list.'
Indian drinkers can heart from the study and order wine in the restaurants or buy in the retail shops, knowing they are almost as smart as the Brits when it comes to wine knowledge. The percentage of people not well-informed about wine may not be much larger than the number disclosed by the UK study which may be flawed due to various factors and not statistically correct but could be a good general indicator. |