Terroir Today, A Modern Interpretation
Friday, November 12, 2010 at 3:46PM Terroir is a term familiar to the many, many people who have enjoyed wine. And though tradition has created a myth that it is an ancient concept, history tells a different story.
The term was actually created as a marketing term for the Paris Exhibition of 1878. It simply meant "buy French and only French" and why not? France at that time was the leading, and often the only, source for those ingredients linked to gourmet dining.
Today there are many other choices from around the world not available then. Tropical fruits from South America are now served on winter buffets in the leading restaurants on Paris (as well as New York City and Tokyo). Wines once only grown in France are now also grown in California and the Pacific Northwest. And they are often chosen in competitions as superior to the same variety of wines from France.
As a result, it seems time for the concept of terroir to expand and embrace a meaning beyond mere territorial soil. Terroir, within a more contemporary interpretation, encompasses a collective summary of the creativity that is possible where ever the fellowship of passion and talent is present.
Champagne and Beef Wellington are more than just good grapes or fine beef. The talent of the chef is present as well as a knowledgeable diner. The quality and sustainability of the harvest source as well as the dinning environment is involved.
No singly element defines terroir but rather it can now be viewed as the mutual merger of each element into a community that results in a deeper and wider experience for all.
This is the culinary world that Ana Kinkaid and Peter Schlagel hope to share with you. They hope it will become your culinary world as well.