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When in 1990 Prof. Orley Ashendfelder, a Princeton economist, published what is known as the “Bordeux Equation”, it caused quite the stirr.
Robert Parker called it ludicrous.
William Sokolin (of Sokolin LLC) thought it was hysterical.
The New York Times published an op-ed titled “Keep Those Economists Out of the Vineyards.”
Why such an outrage?
The equation promised to tell a great vintage and a bad one apart, with three simple inputs: winter rainfall (ideally, 200-300 mm to prepare the soil), growing season temperature (19-20°C for ideal ripening) and harvest rainfall (less than 30 mm to avoid dilution and rot). A great vintage is simply one where nature aligns perfectly with these parameters. In such years, wines are not only of outstanding quality but also offer immense potential…
