Is Drinking Wine Ethical?

Posted by Tom Wark on Mar 30, 2007

Nearly any topic, once explored, can lead an inquisitive mind into the realm of philosophy as topic eventually leads to issues of truth. Wine in particular strikes me as quite ripe a topic for philosophical exploration. It strikes State Professor Emeritus of Philosophy Kent Bach this way too.

Dr. Kent is the philosopher behind the 2nd "Philosophy of Wine" conference at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco on April 4.

Among the varied topics that will be covered by speakers from the wine industry and the world of philosophy are:

"Wine: Consistency of Perception, Variation in Interpretation”

“Do We Taste the Wine?”

“Real Value in Wine”
Wine, Aesthetics, and Critical Communication”

Clearly wine here is being used to explore larger issues that occupy the philosopher’s thoughts: How we perceive, ethics, the nature of what is good, logic. It’s all there.

It would be interesting, for example, to do a survey of the various philosophical approaches to the question: "Is drinking wine moral or good?" I’d be fascinated to know, for example how Kant’s Categorical Imperative could be applied to this question? What would be the consequences of willing the drinking of wine universally?

It’s in the area of perception and Empiricism where I think wine is most useful for the philosopher. How do we experience wine and what kind of knowledge is gained by doing so and in what way?

If you are inclined to think about wine in ways that go beyond it’s cost and if you are in SF on April 4, you should attend the conference on the Philosophy of Wine. You can find more information on the even HERE  while the program for the day’s events are HERE.