Old World, New World, our world
For many years, Old World and New World wine styles felt as polarized as politics. Love one, shun the other. But lately I wonder if that’s changing.
Your support matters: Paid subscriptions on Substack finance the wines I review. If you already subscribe, thanks: Your support means a lot! If not, won’t you consider subscribing today?
Old World, in this dichotomy, represented the traditional wines of France and Italy in particular, along with the rest of Europe from Spain and Portugal to the similar-only-different wines of Germany, Austria, and Eastern Europe. These wines tended to be lean, dry, complex, speaking of minerals and the soil, created under firm rules based on centuries of tradition and thus typical of the place where the grapes were grown.
New World wines, in contrast – created in the Americas and Down Under – although rooted in their European ancestry, were made in new places, freed from confining tradition, and free to break the old rules.
The German cartographer and scholar Martin Waldseemüller created this map of the world in 1507 as Europeans then understood it. (From The Waldseemüller Map: Charting the New World, Smithsonian Magazine, December 2009.)
Over time, and in the later years of the last century under the influence of powerful critics like Robert M. Parker Jr.’s Wine Advocate and the tasting team at Wine Spectator, New World producers learned to follow the money by making wines in a style intended to win critical points on a newly invented 100-point scale.
Unbound by tradition or binding regulations, winemakers were free to experiment, and, while using familiar grapes of European ancestry, mostly, they created new wine styles focused on big, full-bodied fruit, prominent oak, and relatively high alcohol, admired more for power than subtlety.
If European wines at their best evoked thoughts of classic black-and-white cinema – Citizen Kane or Casablanca – the bold New World entries represented Technicolor blockbusters like The Greatest Story Ever Told.
Commercial success inspired imitation, and before long, winemakers all over the world who sought points and the dollars that followed were imitating this style. For those of us who really prefer the Old World traditions, wine shopping became a matter of sorting through an army of frogs in search of an occasional prince.
But the times, I think, are changing. Parker has retired, although his Wine Advocate still publishes under ownership by the Michelin Group; and in the age of social media when everyone can be a critic, the influence of Wine Spectator and other remaining print publications has waned too.
We might think of Washington State as a distinctly New World region. Geographically, that’s beyond debate. But I was delighted to open an affordable Washington State Bordeaux blend this week, a wine that could probably have been dropped into a flight of Médoc Bordeaux without raising an eyebrow.
No, I’m not saying that Two Mountain Hidden Horse Red Blend could pass for a Château Margaux or even a Cos d’Estournel. But it could definitely pass muster among good, well-crafted unclassified Médocs that command significantly higher prices.
This Washington wine is American by birth, but as a blend of traditional Bordeaux grapes made with oak as a spice, not a sauce, it’s bilingual, in a good way. And at a retail price under $20, it’s hard to beat for value.
Old World or New World? Which wine style do you prefer? Do you think this dichotomy is fading in the 2020s?
Today’s Tasting Report
Two Mountain Hidden Horse Washington State Red Blend ($15.99)
Two Mountain Hidden Horse Red Blend No. 21 is a Bordeaux-style red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, and Cabernet Franc aged in a combination of old and new French and American oak. Very dark blackish-purple in color with a clear garnet edge, it offers typical Bordeaux-blend aromas of blackberries and currants, with back notes of dark chocolate, tobacco leaf, and a distinct but restrained touch of oaky vanilla. Good black fruit flavors come together on the palate with a framework of mouth-watering acidity, soft but perceptible tannins, and just a hint of warmth from 13.8% alcohol. (Sept. 13, 2025)
FOOD MATCH: It’s a red wine for red meats: grilled steak, burgers, or smoky barbecue. Or choose hearty stews with beans or lentils for a plant-based option.
WHEN TO DRINK: The winery suggests drinking this wine by 2030, and that five-year window sounds right.
VALUE:
This quality Bordeaux-style red is a fine value at Wine-Searcher.com’s $18 average U.S. retail price.
WEB LINK:
Here’s the winery’s info page for the following year’s No. 22 blend, which, however, adds Syrah, Tempranillo, and Zinfandel to the Bordeaux blend.
FIND THIS WINE ONLINE:
Check prices and find vendors for Two Mountain Hidden Horse Red Blend on Wine-Searcher.com.
Read about the Washington State Rattlesnake Hills, a small sub-region of Yakima Valley in the large Columbia Valley region, and find other wines of the region with vendors at this Wine-Searcher link.
Use this Wine-Searcher link to browse wines and vendors for Two Mountain Winery’s portfolio.
Find the wines you want
Explore Wine-Searcher
Wine-Searcher.com is the place to go online if you want to find where to buy a particular wine that interests you. What’s more, Wine-Searcher.com offers so much more. It’s well worth a visit just to discover its many features, including its popular list of the world’s Top 10 Best Value Wines.
Good wines we’ve tried under $10.99!
Want tips to find more good, inexpensive wines? Here are Wine-Searcher links to vendors and prices for a bunch more wines for $10.99 or less that I’ve told you about in recent years. In some cases, the prices may have risen over the $10.99 mark since I reviewed them, but they should still be excellent bargains. Please tell us about your favorites!
Sponsor the Wine Advisor.
Support The 30 Second Wine Advisor and help us pay the rent while reaching 25,000 dedicated readers with your sponsorship message in this space, at the top of this e-letter, and on our social media. If you’re an established business in wine, food, and similar ventures, there’s no better way to focus your message toward an audience that comes here for just those topics. See our Sponsorship Page, or email Robin Garr for more information.
Wine Forum and Social Media
You’re always welcome to drop by our WineLovers Discussion Group, the Internet’s first and most civil online community. Discussions are open for public viewing, but you must register to post. To request registration, please contact me at wine@wineloverspage.com, tell me your name, mention the Wine Advisor, and briefly say why you’d like to participate in the forum. Sorry about the minor red tape, but this is our simple, low-tech way to deter spammers and bots.
I’d also be delighted to have you visit and “like” our WineLovers Facebook Page.
Read more articles from The 30 Second Wine Advisor
Previous Issue: « Mmm, what’s that smell?