Mathesko (\məˈthēsko\) is a portmanteau of the ancient greek words mathesis
and methusko. Mathesis means the serious acquisition of knowledge.
Methusko means to become intoxicated. The compound mathesko is intended
to connote drunk with knowledge. One implication in the domain of wine is
obvious, as is perhaps the allusion in the realm of academics. I most like,
though, the double entrende arising from the translation to English: wine that
is drunk with knowledge. The purpose of this application is to help us all
learn about the incredibly complex topic of wine so that we may drink it with
shared knowledge, which is always preferable to drinking alone in the dark.
There are many good web sites and print publications that provide voluminous information about wine, so what does mathesko add? Mathesko is not a database to search, nor is it a blog about a wine producing region, nor an academic history or scientific explanation of wine-making. While Mathesko can support these use cases, there are other sites better suited for these purposes (see references).
Mathesko is designed to solve the following use case. You're a well-educated sophisticate and you've enjoyed your share of wine. And you really like wine. You find it interesting. You've read many articles on it. Maybe you subscribe to Wine Advocate or Wine Spectator. Maybe you have a Cellar Tracker account or regularly use Wine Searcher to find deals on your go-to wines. When you drink a new bottle of wine, while you know whether you like it or not, you have difficulty articulating why. You've read many tasting notes from pros like Robert Parker, Jancis Robinson, Stephen Tanzer, and John Gilman. You appreciate their detail and even sometimes imagine that you recognize the garrigue or the kirsch or the burnt pencil lead too. But now you need to buy a bottle of wine for a special party. You have some bottles in your cupboard, some that you quite like, but you want something different for this party. So you go to the wine shop. You peruse for a while and then one of the salespersons asks if you need help. You tell them about the party. Then they ask what kind of wine you like. And you have no words. Or, perhaps even worse, you have a jumble of words that remind you just how uncertain your wine knowledge is.