MONTAIGNE’S SUPPORT FOR DRINKING MEDIOCRE WINE. I posted here about an aphorism that I have repeated often and been proud of. Nick commented on that post: “Perhaps acquiring a taste for expensive wines is not one worth acquiring.”
Mary Jane has been reading Montaigne’s essays, and she read aloud this excerpt from his essay “Of Drunkenness”:
“…delicacy and the curious choice of wines is therein to be avoided. If you found your pleasure upon drinking of the best, you condemn yourself to the penance of drinking of the worst. Your taste must be more indifferent and free; so delicate a palate is not required to make a good toper. The Germans drink almost indifferently of all wines with delight; their business is to pour down and not to taste…”
So I wasn’t the first to make the point, but I think it is still a useful guide to choosing wines and making other life decisions.