Wine

So in the summer of 2007, I had to go to Sacramento, CA for training for the National Guard. While I was there, I was able make a day trip to Napa Valley. Now, I never really liked wine before that trip. There were a couple of sweet wines that I liked, but otherwise, I was really down on wine. However, I wanted to go on the trip to learn more. I mean, they have been drinking wine for thousands of years, so there must be something to it. Granted, wine back in ancient times was better for you than water, since most water was not filtered and was full of waste from humans and animals.

So I took the trip to Napa and was able to visit a few wineries. OK, I visited six wineries and wound up buying a bottle from each winery. But it was the visit to Freemark Abbey that really helped educate me about wine. The tannins within wines and how with older wines the tannins dissipate and the wine gets smoother. It was basic knowledge, but it was more than I had. So I left Napa with a little bit of knowledge, and my six bottles of wine.

I got home and after a few months, I decided to research more. Trying different wines to see what I liked and what I didn't. I wasn't scoring, or taking notes, although someone recommended that I should. I found some I liked, and some that I really didn't like. I didn't have many people to really share my experiences with, but that was OK. I was just wandering through wine shops and checking out different things.

Now I wasn't just trying anything. I was sort of focused on Cabernet Savignon, Merlot, and some blends. Red wines that are pretty complex in structure. I tried some Chardonnay and found one that I really liked. I was unable to really learn my palette though because I was deployed to Iraq, just as my knowledge base was expanding. A little disappointing, but I am eager to learn more about what I like in wine. I am also going to start taking notes and really 'experiencing' my wine. This is due to being inspired after seeing a video podcast and going to the website for it.

The video podcast is from winelibrarytv.com. The host is Gary Vaynerchuck, and I like how he talks about wine. He takes his 'sniffy sniff' and has a very broad range of descriptions for his tastings. Even in the nerdy shows, I don't feel like I am being talked down to. As he likes to say 'You, with a little bit of me, we are changing the wine world.' I can believe that, because after seeing him taste wines and hearing the descriptions, it makes me eager to try more wines. I also want to start recording my notes, because while I have tried some wines, I couldn't tell you now what they tasted like exactly.

So, I am going to start drinking more wines for taste. I am going to take the notes and try to get better at describing what it is I am tasting. I want to broaden my horizons with different wines. Looking more at whites and blush wines. Trying to see what types of reds I begin to enjoy. I think another thing I will like is as I start to take notes, I will be able to see how my palette changes as I become more educated and older.

I will be checking out one wine region for tastings while in Australia. At least I hope to do the one trip to a wine region. Wine is a global product, and different tastes come from different parts of the world. This will be a good way to continue my learning process.

Thanks for reading, and comments are welcome.