This might be a complete Newb question or a stupid question but here goes.

As I try more and more wines from Rhone and Bordeaux I always notice the tasting notes never mention anything about Brett/Barnyard. I specifically ask this question as I do not care for this in wines I drink/purchase. Do most consider this a flaw or just as part of the wine itself?

Why don't reviewers in tasting notes ever hint towards this in their tasting notes. Is it intentionally left out or is it typically something that gets increasing worse with age of a bottle? I know some may prefer this but I don't care for it. As a consumer I would like to know this information prior to making a $100 bottle purchase?

Are there specific wineries in Bordeaux and the Rhone that do not have Brett/Barnyard tendencies in their wines?

I'd love to hear what others have to say on this topic as I love the Syrah & Grenache varietals but have had zero luck with any CdP's recently.

t dub,

a lot of people like barnyard, some don't even notice it !!!
ask JL about it!
for myself i fine it to be a flaw in both cases.
brett -i fine gets worse with age and doe's not blow off!
barnyard-some or most can blow of with air time but not all!
just my 2 cents

If you want to avoid barnyard, you may want to reconsider whether you like wines from the Rhone region of France or not. This is an element of many (if not most) wines from this particular area.

I'm sure most posters here would say if there was any of these elements of a wine they posted on and if it had any profound effect on their notes.

I asked this question once, and the answer from a WS reviewer was that brett cannot always be positively identified. Unlike TCA, there is not just one distinctive aroma associated with brett.

There are different strains of Brettanomyces, and at least three separate chemical compounds involved

Follow this link for a detailed exposition. learn wine brett

The reviewers will use words like leather, wet fur, barnyard, animal, meat, bacon, etc. Some are notable unpleasant, some add characteristic complexity. You can take the hint and figure out what your level of tolerance is.

This is a very good question and I don't have the answer. A good taster should be trained to be able to identify 4-ethyl phenol in a wine. This molecule is only produced by bretts. So if you detect it in a wine, it is a positive indicator of brett presence. The training is easy to do. You just buy the pure chemical and you spike it in different wines and you train yourself. I did it, so I know what I am talking about. The only excuse is that the sensitivity to 4-EP can vary a lot from taster to taster. But as a pro taster, you should at least know how sensitive you are to it. This thing is a very divisive thing to have in a wine. So it is important for those like me who dislike it to know if a wine has it or not.

There are a few threads regarding this topic. Do a search.

Brett is all around. One of the biggest differences, if not the biggest difference between "modern" and "traditional" winemaking in France, Italy and Spain, is that the "modern" wines tend to be clean. They're made in clean wineries and the wines themselves are clean. Doesn't mean they don't have brett at all, but they keep it under control.

Some people like a little bit. They confuse it with terroir. Other people don't like it. The effects vary so as others have said, there are different manifestations.