1 Wine Dude

A Serious Wine Blog For the Not-So-Serious Drinker

Menu
  • Home
  • About
    • New? Start Here!
    • PR & Samples
    • Press & What-Have-You
  • Wine
    • by badge
      • crowd pleaser
      • elegant
      • kick-ass
      • overachiever
      • sexy
    • Full Reviews
    • Mini-Reviews
  • Stalk
    • facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram
    • News Break
    • pinterest
    • twitter
    • YouTube
  • Sign Up
  • Books
  • Services
  • Contact
Menu
1 Wine Dude

The Wine Snob: A Short Field Guide3 min read

Posted on January 2, 2014January 5, 2014 by 1WineDude

in commentary

Instances and identification of the Wine Snob in the wild

The wine snob is easily encountered but often difficult to successfully identify in the wild. This is because the wine snob in almost all salient ways physically resembles the human homo sapiens. Often, the only way to successfully identify the wine snob is via verbal cues.

The wine snob, isolated, is rarely dangerous and poses almost no immediate threat apart from annoyance. There are cases in which it has been reported that the wine snob will “leech” onto an unsuspecting person and follow them incessantly, carping verbal nonsense – the phrase terroir (tear-WARW) is often repeated – and requiring the person to physically remove themselves from the area to abbey the threat. However instances of bodily harm in these cases is statistically quite rare, and most “threats” from the wine snob have been completely overblown in the modern, scandal- and –shock-hungry press.

Identification of the wine snob cannot be successfully confirmed based on the presence of wine alone. This is an important enough point that it bears repeating and additional emphasis: not all specimens possessing a wine glass in the wild are wine snobs. The instances of wine snobs within any given wine-drinking population are still quite rare. Again, verbal confirmation must be obtained, as the presence of the wine snob also cannot be confirmed via nesting ground, habitat clues, tracks, diet or scat.

Wine-stained urine is not a reliable identification measure.…


Further identification clues and diet

The only way to confirm a wine snob sighting is through verbal clues. They will almost exclusively utter one or more of the following phrases (with the remainder of their speech patterns manifesting as unintelligible to any but the most experienced field guides):

  • terroir (tear-WARW)
  • ninety-five points (95 points)
  • score  (skôr)
  • Laube (LAOW-bee)
  • Parker (PäRK-or)
  • Magnum (MAG-nuhm)

The wine snob feeds primarily on wine and other human foodstuffs, and has highly developed and fragile psychological needs for wine information. It appears to derive great pleasure from hearing its own verbal cues, even if alone. It should be noted that the wine snob drinks very little water, taking most of its moisture needs from wine, augmented with the blood of its infrequent prey, which it laps readily after a kill.

 

Wine Snob habitat

Wine snob sightings are most likely to occur in large metropolitan areas, though they certainly are by no means isolated to those areas, and rural sightings have become more common as the proliferation of the wine media on which they feed has reached new heights and high volume in recent years (2013 at the time of this writing).

Their habitats include:

  • Large coastal cities in the U.S., as well as major cities in the midwest
  • Cultural centers in Italy
  • Mainland Japan
  • Most of the city of London
  • Mumbai, Sydney, Hong Kong and Beijing in Asia
  • The entirety of the nation of France

Social gatherings for humans are a common and excellent vantage point for sightings, particularly wherever their psychological crutch (wine) is served: bars and restaurants in urban areas, holiday parties and functions in outlying suburban and rural areas.

 

Are wine snobs dangerous?

Generally, the wine snob is much more nuisance than threat, and even then the nuisance is primarily verbal. In larger numbers, however, the wine snob can become dangerous, particularly when a group of them detects an outsider or begins to feel threatened.

If you are tracking a wine snob and happen to inadvertently stumble upon a larger group, you may feel an almost irresistible urge to flee. Do not, under any circumstances, run, for it will almost surely mark the end of your field days as it will signal easy prey to the wine snob group. Instead, feign nonchalance and act as if their lair is simply a point along your way to some other destination, avoiding direct eye contact and at all costs avoiding verbal contact with the wine snobs. Slow, careful, deliberate movements are best, avoiding running and quick jolts, both of which may trigger predator responses.

Happy fielding!

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

10 thoughts on “The Wine Snob: A Short Field Guide3 min read”

  1. Todd - VT Wine Media says:
    January 2, 2014 at 10:28 am

    Great observations, but are you saving the stuff about mating behaviors for a Playboy.com article? ;)
    Cheers, and happy new year.

    1. 1WineDude says:
      January 2, 2014 at 10:34 am

      Thanks, Todd. Sadly, most wine snobs do not mate…

      1. Todd - VT Wine Media says:
        January 2, 2014 at 10:45 am

        clonal reproduction then?

        1. 1WineDude says:
          January 2, 2014 at 11:33 am

          Exactly!

  2. charmion says:
    January 3, 2014 at 1:02 am

    so here is my question. many people in the usa downplay or totally dismiss the concept of terroir. so why are there 16 or more AVAs in napa, same in sonoma, a buncha new ones coming in the columbia valley, new ones coming in paso robles, etc. etc. isn't that like standing on one leg but denying that yoga can be good?

    1. 1WineDude says:
      January 3, 2014 at 7:56 am

      Charmion – I've got an entire article on that topic planned soon…

  3. Corr Chilled says:
    January 3, 2014 at 8:38 am

    I love this line “Generally, the wine snob is much more nuisance than threat” It sums the whole article up well. Great read

    1. 1WineDude says:
      January 3, 2014 at 9:34 am

      Corr – that line probably wasn’t actual parody…

  4. Solomon Mengeu says:
    January 17, 2014 at 9:58 am

    An interesting article as I think that somehow by not being careful I have become a wine geek snob at times with trying too hard to 'educate' people rather than sharing the joy, amazement and wonder of the glorious wine world.

    I think you have to take people where they are at generally & also at what stage they are in their wine development/journey; of course if someone swears by Yellow Tail or Gallo they may need some help.

    But beyond that I think we have to respect people's personal preferences and seek to find common likes & interests while getting people to get out of their comfort zones & be more adventuresome.

    Cheers!

    Solomon Mengeu

    1. 1WineDude says:
      January 17, 2014 at 1:43 pm

      Solomon – agreed (except about you becoming a snob! :). The only way we really become snobs is the same way we become bores, which is to insist on voicing our thoughts and opinions in conversations where others don’t want them at that time, I suppose.

Comments are closed.

Dude’s New Books

Wine Taster's Guide Now Available!

“Bravo! Wine Taster's Guide is a perfect primer for both wine novices and learning enthusiasts." ―Evan Goldstein, Master Sommelier

Wine Taster's Journal Now Available!

"Wine Taster's Journal belongs in everyone's cellar… preferably wine-stained, dog-eared, and well-used.” ―Brian Freedman, wine/spirits/travel columnist

Get Some Wine


Vivino 15% Off Code: 2021NEW15 (1st Time Buyer)

Popular Stuff

  • Wine Reviews: Weekly Mini Round-Up for February 22, 2021
    Wine Reviews: Weekly Mini Round-Up for February 22, 2021
  • Wine Product Review Round-up: Special Edition
    Wine Product Review Round-up: Special Edition
  • Murphy-Goode’s “Dream Job” Winner – and What It Means for Wine
    Murphy-Goode’s “Dream Job” Winner – and What It Means for Wine
  • We Interrupt Our Programming for This Interruption (Book Hiatus)
    We Interrupt Our Programming for This Interruption (Book Hiatus)
  • The First – And Last – 160 Days: What Does Gary Vaynerchuk’s Exit Mean For The Wine World?
    The First – And Last – 160 Days: What Does Gary Vaynerchuk’s Exit Mean For The Wine World?

About + Contact

Joe Roberts

Joe Roberts

Certified Specialist of Wine & WSET Advanced
Author, speaker, consultant, wine judge, & critic.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS Feed

Find Stuff

Sign up, lushes!

Join 36,559 other subscribers

Fine Print

This site is licensed under Creative Commons.

Code of Ethics and Privacy Policies.

Play nice!

Get The Guide

Wine Tasters Guide Footer
#1 New Release in Amazon's Wine Tasting category
This site uses cookies. Duh. Cookie Policy
©2021 1 Wine Dude
Yo yo YO!

Wine Tasters Guide InstagramWell, hello there!

If you like what you’re reading (and want to like more of what you’re drinking), consider subscribing.

If you’re up for a more immersive wine learning experience, check out my books and other services.

Cheers!

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.