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Polls

Current Poll

There’s a move toward more elegant Shiraz in Australia, but our panel tasting experts still gave top marks to some big, full-bodied wines. Is this the style of Shiraz we want from Down Under?

  • Yes. That’s what the best Aussie reds are all about (257 vote, 25%)
  • No. The cooler-climate regions in Victoria or high-altitude ones like the Adelaide Hills are making superbly elegant Shiraz (481 vote, 46%)
  • I’ll stick with the Rhône. I’ve never had an elegant Aussie Shiraz (308 vote, 29%)

Previous Polls

A Chinese Cabernet blend has just won an International Trophy at the Decanter World Wine Awards. If it were available in the UK, would you buy it?

  • Of course. I'm open-minded, and if it beat wines from Bordeaux, Argentina and Australia in a blind tasting, it must be good (207 vote, 43%)
  • It depends on the price. I'm curious, but a little wary (162 vote, 33%)
  • No thanks. It sounds too much like a freak one-off. I think I'll stick to tea when it comes to drinks from China (115 vote, 24%)

Two names have been put forward as a generic term for English sparkling wine: Britagne and Merret. Which do you prefer?

  • I don’t like either. What’s wrong with ‘English Sparkling Wine’? (963 vote, 63%)
  • Britagne. Its Anglo-Gallic ring encapsulates the entente cordiale (347 vote, 23%)
  • Merret. It has a degree of distinction. (220 vote, 14%)

Sangiovese has been planted in the south of France. Should growers stick only to indigenous varieties?

  • Of course not. There's no such thing as a true native grape (374 vote, 38%)
  • Yes. Sangiovese anywhere but Tuscany is an abomination (139 vote, 14%)
  • To a degree. A small percentage of international grapes as seasoning is fine, as long as it doesn't affect the terroir character (474 vote, 48%)

The Mosel Bridge has been given the green light. So is direct action now the only way of stopping it?

  • Yes, I will be lying in front of the bulldozers (131 vote, 29%)
  • No, we must respect the decision of a democratically elected government (90 vote, 20%)
  • No, but I will continue to prortest by lawful means (230 vote, 51%)

Of Decanter's Power List top 50, who would you place at number 1?

  • Pierre Pringuet (25 vote, 1%)
  • Eric de Rothschild (52 vote, 2%)
  • Robert Parker (384 vote, 15%)
  • Mel Dick (34 vote, 1%)
  • Robert Sands (17 vote, 1%)
  • Annette Alvarez-Peters (16 vote, 1%)
  • Don St Pierre Jr (27 vote, 1%)
  • Wu Fei (14 vote, 1%)
  • Eduardo Guilisasti (18 vote, 1%)
  • Jancis Robinson MW OBE (197 vote, 7%)
  • Bernard Arnault (18 vote, 1%)
  • Nobutada Saji (0 vote, 0%)
  • Steven Spurrier (26 vote, 1%)
  • Dan Jago (16 vote, 1%)
  • Gina Gallo (19 vote, 1%)
  • The amateur wine blogger (173 vote, 7%)
  • Robert Shum (2 vote, 0%)
  • Michel Rolland (44 vote, 2%)
  • Pierre Castel (9 vote, 0%)
  • Tony Laithwaite (26 vote, 1%)
  • Marvin Shanken (20 vote, 1%)
  • Miguel Torres (43 vote, 2%)
  • Sylvie Cazes (15 vote, 1%)
  • Gary Vaynerchuk (156 vote, 6%)
  • Jean-Charles Boisset (15 vote, 1%)
  • Jeannie Cho Lee MW (32 vote, 1%)
  • Simon Berry (36 vote, 1%)
  • Hugh Johnson OBE (57 vote, 2%)
  • Peter Gago (11 vote, 0%)
  • Aubert de Villaine (43 vote, 2%)
  • John Kapon (32 vote, 1%)
  • Ch’ng Poh Tiong (12 vote, 0%)
  • Stéphane Derenoncourt (24 vote, 1%)
  • Piero Anotinori (27 vote, 1%)
  • Ghislain de Montgolfier (8 vote, 0%)
  • Denis Dubourdieu (21 vote, 1%)
  • Eric Levine (118 vote, 4%)
  • Gary Boom (33 vote, 1%)
  • Allen Meadows (26 vote, 1%)
  • Mathieu Chadronnier (51 vote, 2%)
  • Michael Hill Smith MW (9 vote, 0%)
  • Serena Sutcliffe MW (8 vote, 0%)
  • Pierre-Marie Guillaume (6 vote, 0%)
  • Nicolas Joly (30 vote, 1%)
  • Frédéric Rouzaud (8 vote, 0%)
  • Nicolás Catena (30 vote, 1%)
  • Yasuhisa Hirose (4 vote, 0%)
  • Pedro Parra (79 vote, 3%)
  • Lorenzo Bencistà-Falorni (568 vote, 22%)

Have you considered making your own wine?

  • Yes. It's been a dream of mine for years (244 vote, 42%)
  • No. You might as well set fire to a case of £50 notes (245 vote, 42%)
  • Maybe, but only in my back garden (97 vote, 17%)

Robert Parker's new California critic has only visited Napa and Sonoma twice. So do you need an intimate knowledge of a region to criticise its wines?

  • Yes, I'd expect nothing less from any so-called 'expert' (330 vote, 71%)
  • No, it's about the quality of the wines, not the soil (136 vote, 29%)

How much Bordeaux will you buy en primeur this year?

  • More than last year (61 vote, 13%)
  • Less than last year (112 vote, 23%)
  • None at all, it depends on the price (261 vote, 54%)
  • I'm waiting until the scores come out (50 vote, 10%)

As California's 2007 Cabernets win praise for balance and freshness in the April issue of Decanter magazine, are the state's wines becoming more elegant?

  • Yes - so no more overoaked, overripe wines for me (86 vote, 16%)
  • Perhaps - but the 'flabby Cabs' image is a cliche anyway (131 vote, 24%)
  • Not really - 2007 is just one vintage (96 vote, 18%)
  • Not at all - there are still too many overpriced fruit bombs (233 vote, 43%)

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