The topic of should restaurants serve local wines is of interest to restauranteurs, diners, and wineries. A long article in the Napa Valley Register focuses on this point and has received numerous comments. The situation is focused on Napa Valley restaurants and makes comparisons with restaurants in France and Italy. Local wines and restaurants are an important aspect.

At a session of the the 2011 Wine Bloggers Conference this topic came up and led to an animated discussion between two bloggers. One wine bloggers wholeheartedly supported the presence of local wines in restaurants which featured local foods while another blogger pointed out that no restaurant should feel pressured to add local wines if they were not quality.

Both were right in their own way. The last thing a restaurant needs is to have a negative reputation because of not serving quality wines. On the other hand, what is the definition of a quality wine. If a diner is looking for a Bordeaux then he might not be happy with a local wine – not because it wasn’t a Bordeaux but because the terroir expressed would be different.

I find the exploration of wine to be fascinating. How can the same variety of wine taste differently based on the terroir but it usually does? Was it the winemaker or was it the terroir? Every wine region and every winery offers different wines. Perhaps it is time to step back and rather than expect a certain style of wine, learn more about wine and enjoy what you are tasting.

When you order wine with dinner what are your expectations?

Cheers, Kathy