The Illusion of Objectivity

"Dr. Debs" at Good Wine Under $20 has written an insightful piece on the differences in wine writing between men and women . . .   Wine Writing and the Problem of Objectivity, or Is There Room for a Nigella Lawson of Wine Writing?

Here are some excerpts:

Here's what I think: wine points and the illusion of objectivity are related problems. The leading culprit for giving folks the idea that wine reviews are objective is, alas, the 100-point scale. This is not an entirely novel perspective, but I think it bears repeating.

So I began to wonder, is there room for wine writing that is unabashedly opinionated about wine, for a prose style that is flagrantly personal and marvelously evocative? Is there room for a wine writer who would do for wine writing what Nigella Lawson has done for food writing?

So I wonder, is there some reason why it's ok for a woman to rhapsodize about scrambled eggs but not sauternes? If so, what is it? Does it scream "undisciplined"? Does it smack of amateurism when we are striving for professionalism? Why do we put numbers on wine, but we don't grade other food products? Most important, can you help me figure out why we are ok with impassioned and highly-opinionated accounts of hamburgers but shy away from emphasizing the mysterious, subjective, glorious, and even alchemical properties of this elixir called wine?

To read the full article, click here. 

Are women "undisciplined" in their approach to wine?  Are they too "emotional," too "sensual"?

Comments

[Dr. Debs]

I'm behind on my thank yous. Thanks for the link here and on eGullet! I've got a few more thoughts I'll be posting soon in response to Tim's Winecast about the post, and also about my search for the oldest female wine blogger (in blogging terms--not age terms!) Stay tuned.