> But those who have to put down others are actually insecure about what
> they know.

You mean, like a certain poster who put down the girl who wanted to have
some fun with wine and cheese and the girls?

> I'll try something if the seller has sampled it and gives
> it high marks

You trust the seller's "tasting" over yours? I suppose you might if you
know the seller's tastes and agree with them, but if you don't know the
wine merchant, and he reccomends a wine because he himself has tried it,
how do you know he knows what he's tasting? I'd just as soon try it
myself if he has a bottle open.

Yeah, it's not going to be the same as when I'm at home with a big juicy
beefsteak, but I can identify some of the elemnts and make a judgement
as to whether I think it will work. And yanno, most of the time I've
been right, even though I'm far from a wine pro.

> Gambero Rosso's "Italian Wines" book is always a good
> guide. They are based in Italy and know Italian wine types. American
> magazines are worthless for Italian wines. They don't understand them
> at all.

That's not disdain of reviewers, or of the review process. That's just
selection of an appropriate reviewer.

> Not sure I find the [movie] analogy valid, Jose.

It's hardly airtight, but it's just an illustration, not a proof.
Samples of =anything= outside of context don't reflect the "true nature"
of the thing. But with some experience, one can extrapolate and make
valuable judgements for oneself. With more experience and some
vocabulary, one can make evaluations that will make sense to others, and
be useful to them.

Now, for somebody like me to go to a wine tasting, make a few comments
on what I might notice in a wine, write them down so I can remebmer
them, and predict how well it might do with some foods with which I am
familiar, would not be pretention. For me to go further than my ability
(for example, to the extent of DaleW's reviews) would be pretense on my
part, because I am not really able to isolate and identify the flavors
(though when told to me, I can sometimes discern them separately). It
would seem to be a useful trick, since (I would presume) a wine that has
melon notes would go well with meals which would go well with melon.
This is helpful pairing an unfamiliar wine.

> That's why I stick with Italian wines.

.... and it's why I have favored California wines. I am familiar with
them. However, I am expanding my horizons, and learning about other
wines too. It's a slow process, since I can't be drunk all the time.

Jose

--
"Never trust anything that can think for itself, if you can't see where
it keeps its brain." (chapter 10 of book 3 - Harry Potter).
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