The Wine Snobbisms That You Need to Avoid

There’s always been an air of elitism around Italian wine.

Speak to anybody who isn’t already a wine lover and they’ll tell you the same. You may have even run into it yourself. There are always those people who seem to think that drinking Italian wine somehow makes them better than others. They carry an air of snobbery that makes them almost impossible to talk to. And if anybody who doesn’t know as much about wine talks to them, you can bet that they’ll dissuade that person from ever asking about wine again.

Snobbery is a dangerous thing.

It stops people from exploring wine when they have an interest. And frankly, it leads to a few unhealthy personal habits that make snobs intolerable!

Now, let us just clarify something here.

Being knowledgeable about wine does not make you a snob.

What makes somebody a snob is the desire to use their knowledge as a way to demean or belittle others. The true wine lover wants to get as many people involved as possible. They want to educate when they’re needed and encourage the exploration of the wines that they love so dearly.

Hopefully, that’s the sort of wine lover you want to be.

And to make sure that it’s the wine lover that you become, we have a list of snobbisms that suggest you’re taking wine so seriously that you risk alienating others.

Snobbism #1 – Making a Show Out of Smelling Your Wine

Yes, we all know that wines have a bouquet of aromas that can only be appreciated when you take a nice, long sniff. But at the same time, you don’t have to make a big show about it!

There’s no need for you to pompously waft your hand around the rim of the glass or to close your eyes and make exaggerated movements just to show people that you’re smelling the wine. And it’s a double strike against you if you’re doing it in an attempt to show up somebody who didn’t smell the wine.

By all means give yourself a chance to enjoy the wine’s aroma. Just don’t make yourself look silly by acting like it’s the single most important part of the Italian wine experience.

Snobbism #2 – You Won’t Touch Screw Tops?

Why?

Yes, there’s a certain elegance and romanticism to corked wine. It’s traditional and the bottles are just that little bit more attractive.

But that doesn’t mean that any wine that comes with a screw top needs to go out of the window. In fact, some of the best wines on our website forego the cork in favour of the screw top.

Ultimately, it doesn’t make much of a difference how the wine gets sealed. What really matters is the quality imbibed into the wine by the people who made it.

Snobbism #3 – Mocking Somebody Else When They Taste Certain Notes

You’re standing with a few people and you’ve all decided to see what notes you can detect in the wine.

Everybody takes a sip and somebody mentions that they can sense a slight taste of strawberry. Strange, you think. You’re not getting that at all.

So, you pipe up…

“I’m not getting that at all. In fact, these are the notes that I can taste…”

You then proceed to go on a long ramble about what you taste as though the other person hasn’t tasted strawberry. And double points if you actively tell them that their wrong!

For one, the sense of taste is one of the more mysterious in the human world. We still don’t know exactly how it works and it appears that the brain has more of an influence than you may realise. It’s entirely possible that one person may taste a certain note where somebody else can’t. Perhaps their tastebuds are just more attuned to the particular flavour!

And of course, there’s also the possibility that you may have missed the note while drinking. You’ll look pretty foolish if you go off on a snobby rant only to have others tell you that they got the note too!

Snobbism #4 – You Hate Ice in Wine

Yes, we get it! Adding ice to Italian wine is not the traditional way to do it.

But who cares?

Perhaps the person doing it is brand new to the world of wine. Perhaps the flavour profile was a little sharp for their taste so they want to water it done a little.

Or maybe they just like to keep their wine chilled with ice.

It’s really none of your business and it’s certainly not something that make anybody feel bad about. Just live and let live. You can still go ice-less, even if somebody else prefers to add a couple of cubes.

Snobbism #5 – You Argue With a Sommelier

For us, a Master Sommelier is the exact opposite of a wine snob. They love wine so much that they’ve learned as much as they can about it. And now, they’re using that knowledge to help others understand wines and find those that suit their preferences.

You’re not a sommelier.

So don’t argue with one! Yes, you may disagree with what they say sometimes. But you’re not going to win in a debate with a master and you’ll only look like more of a snob if you try!

Snobbism #6 – Being the One Who Always Picks the Wine

You’re out with a group of friends and somebody picks up the wine list. You immediately grab it out of their hands and say you’ll order for the table. After all, you “know better”.

Just…don’t do this. You don’t know everything about every single wine and it’s likely that a few people at the table won’t appreciate your choice. Everybody has the right to select their own wine, whether you agree with the choice or not.

The Final Word

This has all been a little bit of fun and we’re sure that you don’t exhibit any of these signs of snobbism…

But what if you do?

Well, it’s time to check yourself and maybe not take Italian wine so seriously. It’s something to be enjoyed by as many people as possible and any snobbism will just dissuade others from giving it a try!