know more about wine

I took a wine class which was very helpful and informative. Although I wouldn’t call myself a wine expert yet, I can now make educated wine selections, which was mostly what I wanted to accomplish.

I am, however, making progress! I’ve been reading “How to Taste” and it’s been quite informative and has already enhanced my ability to discern and describe flavors and other qualities in wine and therefore enjoy it more thoroughly. I had no idea what an ignoramous I was! For example, I always thought the term “dry” referred to astringency, only to find that the quality I thought was dryness is actually tannin and the term “dry” is just the opposite of “sweet.” That seems like something I should I have known.

I also was very proud of myself for actually going into a nice restaurant and making an educated selection from the wine list based on region and vintage…FOR THE FIRST TIME! I’ve always just asked the servers for recommendations or chose randomly.

I’m reading up on grape varietals now and have signed up for a 4 day “intro to wine and cheese” class so I can taste more wines with more guidance.

I have recently got into the biz of trying to persuade our customers to try wines that they are unfamiliar with, and I love it! I am able to go tastings about three times a week. Fuuuuunnn! I have really broadened my taste for varietals that before was only on the restaurant lists.
First off, I have never really liked sweet wines and stayed clear from ones that are known for the dramatically sweet. I dared a Riesling tasting, and was quite surprised. A couple had great crisp fruit without the over pungent sweetness that so many women seem to crave from wine. I have been able to deliver better descriptions on trying a large variety. Bravo to liberal wine reps!!!

I used to be a tee-totaler in my first relationship, but I was always embarrassed that a wine list was a foreign language to me. Once I left that relationship, one of the first changes I made was that I started drinking red wine.

I don’t know a huge amount about wine, but I know enough to find what I like, and how to judge a good red on first taste, and that’s enough for me.

So, my first entry about wine. First off, I like it more than I like water, and if it didn’t make me so red in the face, I might drink it as much as I drink water! (only kidding, kind of! hee hee) So when I was younger I used to pilfer my parents wine collection for some less than worthy activities for their kind and quality…. I’ve been a big fan of mostly reds for the longest time… My favorite restaurant here in Boston has one of the best lists on the east coast… If only my pay check could meet the needs of this goal, I might be more accomplished at this point… I have however, already tasted HUNDREDS of different reds… Anytime there’s a tasting here in bean-town, I’m there… Tonight, however, I am confined to a really slim budget. For anyone who is wondering how to drink a tasty red on small amounts of moo-la has to find Yellowtail.. I know you’ve seen the ads. Well, they aren’t lying… It’s an inexpensive red that you won’t regret the next day. My favorite variety of Yellowtail is the Shiraz-Cabernet. A cute little purple label will lead you in the right direction. Boston was just voted the number one most expensive place to live in the US, so I know the value of the dollar all too well…. I know it might be less expensive than most people usually spend on a bottle, but it’s really yummy…
anyway.. off to the rest of my glass!
MM