become a wine snob

To borrow a line from Sideways, “wine is a living breathing thing.” It’s very complex, and… I love it. I took a wine class when I was at culinary school, but I’ve never really gotten into it. Now, I think I’m going to. It’s a nice relaxing habit (and no worries, I’m not going to over do it).

and love finding a good, inexpensive wine that is surprising!

yep, love wine, but know nothing about it, and would love to be able to talk snobby about wine!!! :0

...the problem is, i’m relatively new to it and i don’t have the budget for the really good vintage stuff. my favorites are malbec, merlot, and chianti (i’m a red wine guy). i’m big on pinot grigio as well.

in ‘08 i want to do wine tastings and trying to learn as much as possible about the whole process of making it, and just drink a lot more different types, and brands, altogether.

i am, however, a big-time beer snob!

I read an article that said if I like Sauvignon Blanc (my favorite) I will love the French Sancerre, the mother of all Sauv Blancs. A couple of weeks ago I went to my BevMo and found they had one bottle, a 2005 from Eric Louis. I opened it last night. Not so great. Watery, to be specific. It’s lacking any serious flavor. It’s 24 hours later and I’m having my second glass, same result.

I’ll stick with my favorites for now: Spy Valley from New Zealand, Navarro from Mendocino and Husch from Mendocino. Yum.

Additions to my collection from Anderson Valley over the past week:

2002 Husch Cabernet Sauvignon (Brian’s)
2005 Husch Renegade Sauvignon Blanc x2 (mine)
2004 Husch Syrah (Brian’s)
2003 Handley Brut Rose (mine – although I think they gave me the wrong bottle, I didn’t ask for a Rose)
2005 Navarro Sauvignon Blanc x3 (mine)
2004 Navarro Zinfandel x3 (Brian’s)
2002 Goldeneye Pinot Noir (Brian’s)
Scharffenberger Sparkling Extra Dry (mine)
2004 Windsor Three Vines Red (gift)

The Goldeneye Pinot is the most expensive bottle of wine I’ve ever purchased. Not like it was hundreds, but about twice as much as the most I’m generally willing to pay for a wine. I don’t even buy my favorite Champagne (Moet & Chandon White Star) that often because at $30 per bottle, it’s just too much to indulge in that frequently. Before we went out wine tasting I told Brian that we had to buy at least one bottle at every winery we visited, just because it’s the polite thing to do. Then, the first winery we visit is Goldeneye and they have only two wines available, both over $50 each. Ouch! The Pinot is really good though, and I don’t even like red.

Now I have all of these beautiful bottles in my kitchen, and I’m suffering through deliberations of having my wine and drinking it too. I want to enjoy them all, but I don’t want to part with them either.

I am lucky to live near Temecula and enjoy the wineries very much. One or twice a year my husband and I go there for a weekend getaway. I am even luckier to have family in Mendocino and get to travel through the Northern California wineries in the Russian River Valley and Anderson Valley. Those places are absolute paradise for me. The picture is from my favorite winery, Navarro.

My activities this weekend were definitely more wine trash than wine snob. A group of 12 of us booked a wine tour limo package from San Diego to Temecula. Our Hummer limo was HUGE, pimped out and decadent. We drank wine and Champagne all throughout the limo ride and at the three wineries we visited. It was fantastic fun, even up until I got sick in my car on the way home. I sure felt like a responsible parent and role model explaining to three kids this morning why my car has a terrible stench.

My dream career is to own and operate a winery in Northern California. I’m sure it is hard work and tenuous, like farming, in which your entire livelihood is at the mercy of the elements. I know nowhere near enough about the craft, but the idea seems wonderful