15/09/2026
Nobody needs a degree to enjoy a glass of w**e. 🍷
And yet somewhere along the way, our industry decided that wasn’t the point. We started talking about w**e like it was a test you could fail. Tasting notes that read like a chemistry report. W**e lists that require a map. Staff training that teaches people to recite rather than connect.
I get it. W**e is complex. There’s a lot to know, and knowing it feels good. But there’s a difference between depth and gatekeeping, and I think we’ve been confusing the two for a while now.
Here’s what I’ve noticed. When w**e is presented simply - here’s what it tastes like, here’s why we love it, here’s what to eat with it - people lean in. They ask questions. They come back. When it’s presented as something aspirational, something you have to earn your way into, people order a b**r.
We don’t need to dumb w**e down. That’s not the answer either. The producers we work with make genuinely interesting, complex stuff, and that story is worth telling. But there’s a version of telling it that invites people in, and a version that keeps them at arm’s length.
The best w**e conversations I’ve had in restaurants weren’t with sommeliers who knew the most. They were with floor staff who just loved what they were pouring and said so plainly.
That’s the version of w**e I want to see more of. Attainable, not aspirational. Enjoyed, not analysed.
- Sam Wags
📸 Alexander
