Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Wine Moments

Have you had a wine moment? You know, a memory of wine shared at a time; or, a point when you understood something about wine; an experience that changed your views, even slightly.

At one of our AGN Lite events a woman had a wine moment. She knew that her palate liked certain characteristics and she had certain wines she really liked; but, she didn’t know how to identify it or discuss it. By the end of the evening through discussion and the results of a blind tasting, she could pin it down – she liked a strong oak influence in her red wine. Now, when shopping, she can ask and seek out new wines but still find appeal.

For me, I’ve had a couple wine moments I remember well. One, when our fellow AGN’ers Sartan and the Ms. returned from France with a prized bottle from the Châteauneuf-du-Pape region. We had a yummy French-cuisine dinner; but the wine… oh boy, the finish just kept going and going. It literally made me sit back in my chair, demanding to be honored and appreciated. It was restrained power unleashed (how’s that for adjectives?).

The second was after a visit to the Yakima, WA wine area. We went and visited Two Mountain Winery and enjoyed some nice, somewhat elegant (yet at the same time rugged) wines from this young winery. Later, after being home for a while, we opened a bottle of their Syrah. As I drank it took me right back to Washington, to the site of their winery. I fully understood the idea of wine having a “sense of place” and I loved experiencing the authenticity of the wine.

Who knows when my next moving wine moment will be… I anxiously await it, though, as I continue exploring the wine world and the wine life. Care to share your latest wine moment??? Email me at agn@truenorthcellars.com or leave a comment.

Until next time… Drink and Discover.

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