Vinosophy – Cracking the Myths about Wine
30th January 2025
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Venturing into the world of Vinosophy with Corné van Nijhuis in his book, Vinosophy – Cracking the Myths about Wine, will give you insight into a deeper understanding of how we all enjoy wine, including whether wine gets better with age, is wine an expression of art, and do we all experience the same taste when drinking wine?
Wine and philosophy have been together since its creation, but it’s not the normal conversation to have when speaking about wine, the discussion will normally lead you to speaking about the aromas and flavours, the method, grapes and terroir, it is quite unheard of to think about wine from an esoteric perspective. A perspective which shines insights into the world of wine, but also much wider. Insights which make us appreciate wine even more, but also our understanding of the world around us.
The First True Vinosopher, Corné van Nijhuis, was born in 1962, he is a passionate Dutch-based wine professional, esotericist, writer and book author.
It’s Great To Speak With You, Corné, Can You Tell Us A Little About Yourself & Your Journey To Becoming The First True Vinosopher?
“For some years I’ve been gripped by the sometimes mystical world of wine. To give shape to this calling I pursued an education at the Dutch Wine Academy, to become a vinologist. As another of my enjoyments is metaphysics and philosophy, the combination of these two guilty pleasures was swiftly born: vino-sophy. This blend of interests expresses itself not only in the pleasure I have in drinking fine wine, but foremost in the joy to contemplate on its unique underlying nature and its representation of the world we live in and what we as humans are. From this unique position I have declared myself “World’s first true Vinosopher”.” – Corné van Nijhuis
‘Vinosophy – Cracking the Myths about Wine’ explores various aspects of wine in a keen analytical, but at the same time recognizable and intriguing way. It inquires about the fundamental essences of what we initially see as a normal intrinsic or attributed quality of wine. In his book, Corné guides the readers chapter by chapter in the art of viewing wine from a completely new perspective. An approach which on the one hand deepens one’s understanding about wine. But on the other hand, does it describe wine and wine-related elements using profound ancient wisdom? As such this perspective uses wine as an allegory for everything we experience.
What Inspired You To Write Your Book – ‘Vinosophy – Cracking the Myths about Wine’?
“This question is a special one, given the person asking. As all actions start with a thought, it isn’t different in this case. The seeds for this book were planted when I was sipping a glass of fine wine thinking about the metaphysical nature of existence. At that moment I realized that all wine could be seen as an allegory for existence and as such a gateway to a deeper understanding of life itself. I also realized that to deepen my thoughts and ideas, I needed to write them down. This resulted in some small stand alone essays. The idea to share my ideas with others then became an easy step, so why not publish them? And as all things in life happen for a reason I came into contact with Oliver Walkey from ‘Glass of Bubbly’. He was interested in my unconventional perspective and proposed to look at one of my articles to assess the relevance for the audience of ‘Glass of Bubbly’. And so it happened that my first article was published and we agreed to publish more vinosophical articles on a regular basis as each article gave a new and thought provoking perspective on wine. The next step then was easy: combine these essays into the first ‘vinosophical book’. So for this opportunity, I would like to express my gratitude to him.” – Corné van Nijhuis
With his approach, Corné challenges readers to reconsider what they experience in wine at face value as their real truth. Arguing that what one sees is not what it fundamentally is. With his way of thinking he aims to provide readers with valuable insights which can guide them in their quest for understanding the universe and life as a miraculous phenomenon. It can be seen as a call for action for everyone to become more conscious of what life is and what meaning it might have. By empowering readers with this kind of knowledge and understanding Corné hopes of course to foster a greater appreciation for fine wine. But foremost he aims to inspire the readers to strengthen their quest for the ancient wisdom of reality. He is convinced that these insights are valuable to understand the reason for our existence.
Do You Remember Your First Experience With Sparkling Wine? When It Was And What Kind Of Label It Was?
“My earliest experience with sparkling wine probably wasn’t a great one, as it must have been in my teens as my father was an amateur winemaker who was always in for an experiment. So probably it was a ‘white label’ or at its best ‘homemade’. But what I do remember vividly about sparkling wine is the tradition my wife and I started when we got into a relationship and later married. For us June 15th was for both events the start, resulting in a monthly ‘bubble moment’. So each 15th of the Month we celebrate our mutual love by popping a bottle of fine sparkling wine and toasting until it’s empty. I don’t know if there is a causal relationship between the wine and our love, but it is certainly reason enough for us to keep this tradition alive. And the label …. it develops with the intensity of our love, but always sparkling.” – Corné van Nijhuis
Can You Share With Us One Of The Most Memorable Experiences You’ve Enjoyed With A Glass of Bubbly?
“Besides the memorable experience I had when Oliver proposed to publish my first vinosophical article ever on ‘Glass of Bubbly’, I specifically remember my participation in 2023 as one of the wine judges for the Glass of Bubbly Awards. As I coincidentally had been working in London years ago, participating in the judging gave me the opportunity to walk the memory lane. So being in London, meeting Oliver and the rest of the Glass of Bubbly team as well as my colleague wine judges felt like a warm bath which I certainly won’t forget. And having the opportunity to taste so many fine sparkling wines in only two days was truly enjoyable.” – Corné van Nijhuis
“This book is meant to inspire and excite you.” – Corné van Nijhuis
You can buy Corné van Nijhuis’s book, ‘Vinosophy – Cracking the Myths about Wine’ on Amazon and you can also read some of his insightful and thought provoking written work right here on Glass of Bubbly: Corné van Nijhuis
Oliver Walkey
Champagne and Sparkling Wine Writer, Focused on Bringing the Exciting and Fascinating World of Bubbly to You.