My cousin's wet newspaper Merlot comment killed the mood
We were at a family dinner and opened a bottle of Merlot. My cousin took a sip and said it tasted like wet newspaper and regret. Everyone stopped talking and looked at him. It was so awkward that no one touched the wine after that. I think those over the top tasting notes are just pretentious nonsense.
Ugh, those comments are the worst (they just suck all the fun out of the room). My friend's partner did something similar with a Pinot Grigio, calling it "stale creek water." I just laughed and said it tasted like regular old white wine to me, and then asked if anyone wanted more cheese. Moving the focus to the food usually helps.