The First Baby Step: A Challenge!

Finding out about wine scares the hell out of me. I seek the internet’s advice and I’m overwhelmed. Too much information!

Pivot to Plan B: I seek expert advice. Enter Olivier and Marie, proprietors of Pierre's Wine Cellar http://www.pierreswinecellar.com/ in Lake Mary, Florida. This is the closest little wine shop to my home, and fortunately it’s a great place to learn about wine.

Pierre’s Wine Cellar (named after Olivier and Marie’s son) is on a beautiful sunny street in the very cool downtown Lake Mary area. The store’s beautiful, a visual treat, and Marie greeted me warmly. How to make acquaintance with this wine shop when I know nothing about wine?

Well, fortunately I had a challenge.

Favorite Son spent the weekend with me last weekend because this weekend—Mother’s Day—he will be with his beloved and her parents. How to impress a potential possible future mother-in-law? Wine, of course. He knew she likes something “Dry and white.” I put the challenge to Marie, told her what he’d like to spend, and she immediately identified four excellent choices. Two of these, however, she had reservations about recommending for this particular occasion. Not because they were not wonderful wines, she hastened to explain, but because they have screw tops. “The wine is wonderful, the screw top is safe and keeps it all fresh, but the mother-in-law-to-be…she may not approve of the screw top.” I understood and agreed. I purchased the wine—The Crusher Chardonnay, 2012. (I got a bottle for myself, too. Finder’s fee, I figured.)

So my take-away: I’m not in this alone. I can ask dumb questions. I can be myself—a charming know-nothing who wants to learn about wine. Marie told me that they have a free wine-tasting session every Thursday night and invited me. I’m not able to go this week, but it’s on my radar for next week. The chance to meet other people who know and love wine? I figure that’s an excellent opportunity in itself! 

All About Blithe Ignorance

I usually drink sh#tty wines.

You know the kind I mean, big jugs filled with vague-sounding wine like "chardonnay" or even more vague-sounding wine like "red wine." I usually swill down my wine with great gusto and not much discernment. I live in blithe ignorance of terms like "varietal," "white burgundy," and "tannic acid."

But I want to change. 

A friend gave me a life-changing bottle of wine, you see. It's not that this was an expensive bottle of high-faluting French wine, either. It was a very nice Napa Valley Merlot and when I drank it, I was amazed at how smooth and subtle it tasted. It wasn't the kind of wine I'd ordinarily chug down without thinking. As I sipped it, I wondered how it would taste with good food. 

I'm no expert on gourmet food, but I know what I like, and what I like is fresh. I'm not afraid of fat. I'm willing to spend a little extra for the good stuff. I like spices. I love to try new stuff. I'm writing this blog for people like me--people who love food and want to know more about wine. I'm writing for people who want to know what a "smooth wine with plum and lemon accents" means in terms of pairing it with a gyro or a juicy prime rib. Yeah, yeah, yeah, red wine with red meat, white wine with fish and fowl--I'm blithely ignorant. Learn with me.

What I Usually Drink