Sunday, September 11, 2011

I Drink Wine Therefore I Am

After coming home from a wine tasting event, I sat down with a glass of our Cab Sauv, vegged out a bit, and got off my feet.  I was just blankly inhaling the volatiles that evaporated from the sides of the glass, staring at the dark purple color as the glass swirls, mesmerized by the act thereof.  I took a sip and noticed that there was a citrus streak that I never picked up before.  Maybe it was my mood, my relaxed state, my frame of mind, my deep concentration on enjoying a glass of wine...maybe the wine is just changing.

I pondered a bit more and started to think about the tasting event earlier that evening, as well as other tasting events that I have participated in as a winery and as a consumer.  People cycling through as much wine as possible, sometimes in lame glasses, sometimes in plastic glasses.  Lots of noise, strange aromas, lack of concentration, talking to the pouring the wine, and winemakers. CHAOS!

How can one truly get a sense of the quality and sensory labyrinth that is wine in such a chaotic environment? 

Wine tasting events are fun, entertaining, social, and gives consumers the ability to learn about wineries, wine making, and get a quick hit on what a particular varietal or winery's wine taste like.  But I would like to encourage wine drinkers, who are reading this, to take time out occasionally to really concentrate on a glass of wine and philosophize on its being.