This posting is a question rather than a wine buying tip. I’m asking the question and I’m offering my response, but what’s more important is your thoughts. I look forward to your comments.
In my glass is a red wine that tastes of blackcurrants coated with chocolate. It’s rich, a little sweet, very smooth and very yummy. If I were to take it to a party I’m sure it would be more than popular. “This is delicious” comments would fly.
The Aussie Shiraz in my glass is delicious and appealing to our taste buds in the same way as chocolate, ice cream or a vanilla latte. It’s the kind of wine that most people like ““ because for most people wine should taste exactly like all their other favourite foods and drinks.
But I’m not so sure.
Why do we want everything to be the same? Comfortable, smooth and familiar. Why do we avoid the unfamiliar, the novel? Why are we so uncomfortable with all forms of “˜otherness’? Why do we want to make everything one?
The wine in my glass reminds me of today’s “˜ideal home’. Full of comfort so there is no need to go out. Wine to replace going out. And what would the point be anyway, Our local chain restaurants are just larger editions of our living room. With the same furnishings, processed food and wine.
I’ve ditched the Shiraz, and for company I now have something with a hit of acid, a twang of tannin and flavours of that are uniquely “˜winey’. I’m being taken “˜somewhere’ and something is being added to my situation. I’m having an experience ““ the wine invites me to indulge my feelings, desires and dreams. Which is why I drink wine. And why I listen to music. Emotion and tension are key in wine just as they are in music.
What do you want from your wine?
I’m not always sure what I want in a wine.
But what I do like about wine is that it is varied — and it’s not like everything else. On most days I prefer reds with earthy tones and flavours. I might be a little eccentric but I like the feeling of being connected with what feels like history. And I couldn’t enjoy the flavours more!
But I’m, for the most part, a mood drinker. I might drink a sparkling white when I’m excited, or a dry white after work when I just want to relax. When I’m reading I’ll pair the wine to the book. Sometimes I pick a wine because of what I’m going to watch, who I’m with or what kind of light I’ll be in.
I can’t say I know what I want in a wine. I’d say smooth – but sometimes I like the harsher bites. Mostly, I just want a good bottle. I usually follow a few wine blogs and books. I don’t mind drinking a bottle I’m not fond of, as long as when I drink it, I can realize that someone else likes it. There’s some bottles I’ve had, and the first thing you think is: when did you bottle this?
What do I want from my wine?
Intrigue.
Adventure!
Interaction.
Comfort.
In short, I enjoy wine’s ability to seduce, soothe, or exhilerate me. With the right glass in hand, I can have a meaningful conversation without anyone else in the room.
…and sometimes I just want a beer.
I know what I don’t want – that is the same wine over and over. That’s why I have never purchased a case of wine.
Sometimes I like quaffable (my favorite wine word) sour cherry Beaujolais, sometimes a dry, hot summer of Spain or Australia. Often I like Cava on a weeknight because it feels like we are celebrating nothing in particular. Sometimes I drink white wine because I have the coolest antique wine bucket in the world with lions on the handle.
Mostly I drink wine because it’s delicious and there is an endless variety of tastes to explore.