kingandi I was beat. Harvest is upon us and I can’t exactly remember the last day off I’ve had. While few things are more exhilarating than harvest, few things are more tiring. The thought of cooking tonight was just too much so I grabbed some pizza on the way home. With it I popped open a bottle of 2005 Rosso Piceno Brunori, Torquis. Now I’m a big Marche fan and love the montepulciano/sangiovese blend of Rosso Piceno, but this wine did not thrill me and I considered opening something else. I guess I was just too tired to get up, but that appears have been a good thing. Indeed it was a good idea I waited for, as I took a sip of my second glass, the wine suddenly changed. What had seemed flabby and uninteresting suddenly transformed itself into a firm, enjoyable wine with good character and backbone. What had changed? It was me. The wine was the same, but a bit of food and wine made me relax after a hectic day and my palate finally woke up enough to appreciate this very nice wine.

So the fault was not with the wine, but with me. You have to take time to get to know a wine and take into account that you may not be at your best. Mario and Giorgio Brunori worked hard to make this wine and I was wrong to judge their work so quickly and at a time I was not at my best. Once again, this reality must make anyone question the validity of the 100 point scale where wines are rated based on rapid fire tastings. Not even a tasting machine like Robert Parker can work at the same level of effectiveness every day and under every condition. This is where the king and I have divergent views on how wines should be evaluated.

Every time you taste a wine you should remember that the faults you find may be more yours than the wine’s.