[Avodah] Which wine is better?

[Kenneth Miller]

I'd like to begin this post with a halacha that I think we'll all agree on: Except for poskim such as Rambam who totally disallow mevushal wines, most poskim hold that one should use the non-mevushal UNLESS the mevushal is of higher quality, in which case he should use the mevushal. (We are NOT here defining "wine" or "mevushal", but each can use their own definition.) 

In the course of recent threads, R' Martin Brody has mentioned various things - such as the recent quote from R' Daniel Rogov - that only experienced oenologists would be aware of, and quite possibly only they would care about. But fascinating in any case.

Here's my question: When choosing between this mevushal wine and that non-mevushal wine, is quality determined by my personal preference or by what the experts say? For example: To my untrained palate, a light Concord is delicious and refreshing, no matter how badly it got cooked, while Rebs Brody and Rogov would probably prefer the bitter tannins of a dark Merlot, non-mevushal.

If they would be saying Kiddush, choosing the non-mevushal Merlot would be a no-brainer. But what am **I** to do? (For the record, I *am* trying to learn and appreciate the "finer" wines, but at this point, I'm just barely beginning to not hate the semi-sweets; enjoying the dry wines is but a distant dream.) Should I choose the mevushal wine which is chaviv to *me*, or should I choose the one which is objectively meshubach to the mayvinim?

Akiva Miller

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