Out With the Old Ways!

The times are definitely changing.  When my parents were first getting into wine, there were probably only a dozen or so wines to choose from.  Today, it’s an altogether different situation.  Unfortunately, a whole lot of people are living in the past.  I wish I had a bottle of wine for every time I heard someone say, “I just don’t like wine!  I’ve tried it more than once and it tastes terrible!”  Well the fact is, it probably did.  And, it was probably cheap, mass produced and was served in a plastic party cup.

Here’s a thought to swirl around in your head or glass a bit.  There are a zillion types of mustard, but I pretty much only like Dijon and the plain yellow kind.  I am so not into dark chocolate but love milk chocolate.  Gin makes me Gag but I love good Vodka.  The make martinis out of both of them.

Today there are tens of thousands of wines to choose from.  Not so very long ago, there were as few as a dozen or so that were commercially accessible.  There is something out there you will like and probably love… but it’s not going to find you.

Do this, go to a big wine store, find someone really knowledgeable, tell them foods and drinks that you love and I’ll bet they can guide you to a wine that rocks your world… or just call me.  I’ve never failed to prove the point that you can’t hate what you haven’t had!

Are You Label Conscious?

There was a time when wine labels celebrated nobility, landmarks and the names of their vineyards. Today’s wine labels seek to entertain and even make political statements. How times have changed!

A young Spanish winemaker went to his bank in hopes of obtaining a loan. One might conclude that the banker was not a wine drinker–based upon his rather emphatic response.  No loan for you, the banker declared–winemaking is risky business… and this bank is not about to take on a loan that’s likely to go sour!

Refusing to give up, the winemaker was able to persuade his friends to loan him the money and he was in business. This brand-new wine was called Gran Cerdo, which, translated means big fat pig. A reference to the fat, sweaty suit that tried to deny him his dream. The back label tells his story to the world… and the novelty fueled the success of his enterprise.

French winemaker Jean-Marc Speziale got so tired of his wines getting bad press, he renamed them Le Vin de Merde, which essentially means wine of feces.

Today’s labels frequently test the limits of social acceptability and celebrate everything from bodily functions anti-social behavior.

Winemakers now routinely go to great lengths to get our attention… hoping that we’ll be intrigued enough to sample creations.  Basically, we’re talking Shock and Ahhhh!

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