Our Top 10 Quotes from I4C

The International Cool Climate Chardonnay Celebration in Niagara has wrapped up for another year.

If you follow us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, you know we had a great time, as we’re prone to do. Among the outdoor parties, winemaker lunches and chardonnay sipping, our favourite activity is The School of Cool – a reasonably academic day discussing the ins and outs of cool climate chardonnay.

With panel discussions focused on the virtues of chardonnay from cooler climates like Ontario, Burgundy and New Zealand, things sometimes get a bit lively – and as fiery discussions have a tendency to, great quips are ours for the taking.

Here, our Top 10 Quotes to have come out of I4C, most by keynote speaker and Wine Spectator columnist, Matt Kramer.

“There are chardonnays of cosmetics and chardonnays of consequence…. You [cool climate growing regions] have the capacity to produce wines of consequence.” ~ Matt Kramer, on making quality chardonnay.

“And we all know, there are a lot of shit chardonnays out there.” ~ Matt Kramer, on making terrible chardonnay.

“More things get done to chardonnay than any other wine.” ~ Matt Kramer, on the innumerable decisions winemakers have when making chardonnay.

“The privilege of cool climate is that it allows a luminosity of flavour.” ~ Matt Kramer, on why he loves cool climate chardonnay.

“Great, great chardonnays come from cool climates with great soils.” ~ Rajat Parr, winemaker at Sandhi & Evening Land Vineyards, on where to find world class chardonnay.

“It’s useful in terms of comparisons, but it’s not useful for vines…. Whatever minerality is, it is not the taste of what’s inside the vineyard rocks and soils.” ~ Alex Maltman, Professor of Earth Sciences at Aberystwyth University in Wales, on the minerality characteristic of wine and how scientifically it does not exist.

“What world would you rather live in: a world where people are talking about minerality, or a world where people are talking about toasty oak?” ~ Matt Kramer, rejecting the notion that minerality can not scientifically exist in wine.

“In this day and age when so much can be explained by science, I think it’s nice to have a few mysteries.” ~ Paul Pender, winemaker at Tawse Winery, on how he doesn’t know the mineral component gets into wines, but isn’t really worried about it.

“The wine translates the soil for us. Minerality is real. Trust your senses.” ~ Matt Kramer, on dismissing the scientific proof there’s no minerality in wine.

“I am not a scientist. I married a scientist – who makes love quite well.” ~ Sandrine Audegond, Head of Fine Wines for Domaine Laroche, joking at a winemaker’s lunch the day after after Matt Kramer suggested to the crowd scientists can’t make love during the minerality debate.