RECOVERY THROUGH THE WINE, our senses and our connection with NATURE Even though most of us Westerners do not realize it yet, we live in a time of great change, from which depend probably the very survival of mankind. These changes are already underway, affecting all aspects of our existential sphere. We live in a historical period marked by a high technological progress, though often controlled and manipulated by multimedia, from information and communication faster now at the level of pure consciousness (think social networking). Today we can send e-mail across the world in real time, and we can talk via video-conference with people who are at 20,000 km away from us, without moving an inch. But beyond all this, which has undoubtedly simplified revolutionized I would say, greatly our lives and that has certainly allowed to have a more informed, but what we do not realize is that we lost contact, any similarities, any direct link with nature, with Mother Earth. That, in many cases with our progress and our normal business operations, we often ignore, forced and, in many cases, even mortified.
When we shop, we buy a product without worrying often to see who produces it (if a local producer or a large multinational company), where it is produced (if at 20 km or 2000 km!) And above, without reflecting on the fact if we really need it, or if we are putting in cart just because we were struck by the relative spot the night before. How
sommelier, and then as a communicator of quality, of course, prefer to speak of that segment of products that are important to me more and that belong to my professional sphere: the drinks. Although my reflections are related to all products of a territory. And it is disappointing to note that systematic drinks that our trucks are more crowded after the mineral water, primarily those sugary sodas-, advertised everywhere, obsessively, generally produced and bottled in Italy under license of U.S. multinationals. The following table, referring to the national per-capita consumption, fully bears that what can be seen on a local basis, is almost always a perfect match even on a national basis. Consumption per capita annual
Italy - 2008 Litres
Mineral water and carbonated soft drinks
194 66 44
Wine Beer 29
After all, this should not surprise us that much. The great wine Emile Peynaud said that "the taste is consistent with the roughness of the intellect." The way we eat and drink, is an expression of our cultural depth. In our case, obviously, right depth, it is not. The fact that a people like the Italian, traditional producer of wine for thousands of years, prefers (After water) to accompany their meals with any concoction of industrial water, sugar and additives, rather than the more natural and healthy drink in history, and of which, I repeat, is one of the largest producers world, shows no ground for denial, which is a people full cultural decadence. We have sacrificed our tradition, our culture and our health on the altar of consumerism-conformism.
reflecting on, I thought that technological progress, which has made it (too) easy, has, however, weakened and atrophied sometimes all forms of natural sensory approach to the world around us. Only very young children remain yet this curiosity, which unfortunately will soon lose because of the "civilian life" (so to speak) that overwhelm them, depriving them of wealth and taste redolent of nature. The laziness has led to the approval of the senses, and standardization to the neutrality of the organoleptic attributes of what we consume. Just look at how children above 5 years old are attracted to the food bland and neutral, or, paradoxically, by artificial and unbalanced industrial products sweetened flavors (cola, juice industry, Nutella). But more importantly is that they have lost interest in the exploration of the sensory world around them, first to the food.
In this sense, to return the wine to our tables would be a great gesture of existential freedom. A choice of health and culture for our families. Health to date because the wine is and remains the only real food-drink that exists in this universe. Culture because of the necessary approach "tasting" the wine of course implies, would be a good school to combat the decline of the senses, still in progress and that would threaten our cultural progress. This is especially true for young people, who often suffer severely from a wrong approach towards alcohol in general, in the absence of an adequate education in this regard. But it was found that in families where drinking wine with meals, young mature, of course, a relationship with alcohol in the name of common sense and moderation. To all this we must add that neoprobizionismo fanatic who, moved by many contemporary governments, seems to hover ominously on contemporary society.
And happily retract the wine on our tables do not need some kind of cultural level. Their cultural level, in itself, is in some ways a given virtual. It 's our intelligence, or our ability to discern, the only parameter that makes the difference. And that can allow us to distinguish. Also we should not necessarily be an expert to to choose between a bottle and another. It's fine also a good local wine in bulk, cheap and ideal for everyday use, only with meals and in moderation. Accompany everyday meals with the wine of its territory, and it means also, and it should be remembered, to support an economically important sector of the primary sector, the agricultural sector as a whole already on his knees for a variety of causes. It means to work a company that is maybe 20 km from your home, and maybe working is your friend or relative. Definitely better than support from their own consumption, the economy of the vicious and destructive foreign multinationals, producing sweet and carbonated beverages are harmful to health, and who are at 20,000 miles! At least we try to think a bit 'above. Remember that the wine is one of the greatest expressions of our heritage of biodiversity, we must know it, develop it, protect it. In Italy
now consume almost 70 liters per capita per year of soda and just over 40 liters of wine. The paradoxical situation, and we export our wine (which we do not drink) to the Americans (the consumption of wine in the U.S. is under increasing). Then we import from the U.S. (or produce on their license)-sweetened soft drinks as they are now the protagonists on our tables. Look at 'what we are smart! Wine, unlike many other products, can be a natural ambassador for the modern trend of neo-rural and that new reconnect with nature in everyone, even if unconsciously, we feel the need. Moreover, it has the power to keep even the collective imagination, a bond of identification with the land, a connection, this, now lost to most of the food, often of purely industrial origin, of which consumers generally ignore the source. The wine, which for centuries continues to unite peoples and civilization could thus become one of the possible interpretations of a new way of understanding the "comfort" on the basis of the proposed from the idea of \u200b\u200b"solidarity economy", which aims to finalize all human activity to the welfare of the people and not to return on capital. This attempt to replace the myth (in some ways) hypocritical of sustainable development (which many now you rinse your mouth) with the ideal of a society "decrease friendly" (to use an expression of the Austrian philosopher Ivan Illich), however, , this should not be construed as a solicitation for an overview sobriety, rather as the recovery of a dimension which, not coincidentally, the other major contemporary French philosopher Serge Latouche (also a singer of "decrease happy") considers even "Dionysian "Therefore, full hedonistic! This should help us understand how to change down, pointing to healthy simplicity and frugality does not necessarily mean giving up the pleasures of life. Indeed. It can, in many cases, mean find or discover tastes and smells to us missing or never existed, but still belonging to a dimension where Mother Earth is the host.
Keep in mind that the only real and powerful weapon of democracy we have left is our shopping cart. Privilege, when we go shopping (especially food), products of our territory. We always are at stake and our health and welfare of our children.
said the great French gastronome Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, "a meal without wine is like a day without sunshine." How do you not agree? Crown Caramel
Sommelier AIS
