Old world or new world?

Wine as a subject of discussion can evoke tremendous passion, even pretension and snobbery, and this is particularly apparent in the case of a wine’s origin – distinctly whether it is ‘old world’ or ‘new world’. Some circles believe that the former is far superior to the latter.

Old world wines are those produced in Europe’s classic winemaking regions of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Austria. New world wines hail from New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, Latin America and America.

Put simply, old world winemakers – often members of a long line of wine-producing families – possess a 2000-year history and the almost innate knowledge of which grapes perform best, the attributes of different soil types and the most prolific growing areas. Whereas new world vintners – who have been growing wine for local consumption for several centuries but only importing it since the late 19^th century – must introduce modern ways and means of ensuring that they obtain the best possible performance from their grapes. These include employing more sophisticated irrigation techniques or adding natural composites to the wine in order to achieve the desired result.

The new and old world locations and processes have their own advantages and disadvantages, both to the winemakers and the consumers: new world vineyards enjoy a more constant climate, and are able to produce a better value product, though some would say that as a result it is a less interesting product. Many old world vintners, however, appear somewhat guilty of having rested on their laurels and so are beginning to take their cue from the competition by employing more modern techniques to create more appealing products to those simply searching for a good value bottle of plonk.

The great polemic continues…