Fresh off the Novice Grapevine: Discover the wine you love

While wine should be the drink of pure pleasure, it has unfortunately been used as the beverage of apprehension, confusion, snobbery, and head-scratching.

These quotes elaborate on this head-scratching confusion…

Wine is bottled poetry.
-Clifton Fadiman

“Wine is the most civilized thing in the world.”
-Ernest Hemingway.

“Wine is the drink of the gods, milk the drink of babes, tea the drink of women, and water the drink of beasts.”
- John Stuart Blackie

…leaving us beasts humans bewildered. Obviously John Stuart Blackie didn’t have a very clear understanding of women.

Quite often, wine can be much ado about…something, but perhaps you aren’t quite sure what.

What is considered good wine? What’s all this talk about labels, vintages, bouquet, and those grapes nobody dares to pronounce? How do you know what wine to like?

Fresh off the Novice Grapevine is here to take the snobbery and confusion out of wine!

GOLDEN RULE OF WINE- NEVER LET ANYONE TELL YOU WHAT YOU SHOULD LIKE

You like what you like, no excuse necessary. Buy and drink to your taste and completely ignore any horrible wine sommelier (aka the restaurant wine expert) that tries to talk you into buying a type of wine you know dislike (i.e. you’re so not a red wine drinker and s/he won’t listen).

This being said, however, don’t be afraid to push the envelope a little bit by tasting new types of wine. You just never know…

DISCOVER WHAT YOU LIKE

Red, white, rosé? Sweet or dry? You don’t know until you try! Tasting a wide variety of wines both alone and with food is a great way to discover the wines you like and build your wine palate.

Taste, take notes, and start your own wine journal.

A SOCIAL OCCASION

Blind tasting parties, in which each participant brings a bottle, are an excellent way for you to taste a large variety of wines at once. Invite your friends or co-workers over for an evening of indulgence.

Wine tasting in the privacy of your own home with unpretentious friends will help ease you into the world and yes…art of wine.

Stay tuned for more wine talk Fresh off the Novice Grapevine.