As I was writing my last post, I went deep off on a tangent. Foolishly, I hit back space and erased my entire tirade about “rules”. I was recently informed that my postings were too long and I’m trying to tone it down in blogsville. I’ll try to keep this short and sweet, but I feel strongly on this topic, therefore I have quite a bit to say.
As a professionally trained chef, I do appreciate making the most of a wine by pairing it with the right food, to bring out its “flavor profile”. There is something to be said, about that an indescribable moment of harmony on your “palate” when a perfect combination comes about. Out of curiosity I goggled how to pair food and wine. 497,000 results come up. There are sites where you can ask an expert, guidelines, books, blogs; you name it. Everyone has something to say on this matter.
My opinion is contrary to popular belief. I am girl who’s not fond of rules. The Los Angeles Times, recently quoted, David Ready Jr, saying Murphy-Goode was trying to “demystify” wine through this social media experiment and make it more approachable to “people who might feel it’s out of their league”. I admire this endevour. Wine became approachable to me years ago, while working at a Wine Shop in London. My father was a wine enthusiast and I knew the basics. But, not nearly enough to be left alone in the shop. We had tastings every Saturday. Mostly, I think they kept me around because I had nice printing. My role on Saturday’s was to write the wines for the tasting, on the board outside and washing the wine glasses as needed. Since, I was not legal to work in the U.K. I was paid in pounds under the table; or in trade with wine. At the ripe young age of 21, I took trade. Often frantic about my choices and what was appropriate for dinner or a specific occasion; I drove the owners to tears. “Drink what you like” is what I was told. Okay? Really? Are you sure?
So, I did just that. For the rest of the summer I took home the wines I liked. I drank them when I wanted with whatever I wanted (most frequently with nothing at all). Slowly but surely, I mastered the varietals and regions that I liked. This in turn gave me the confidence to branch out with other varietals and regions. To this day, I often don’t follow the wine rules. I like white wine when it is hot or sunny. I prefer red when it’s cold or dark. I am curious and adventuresome by nature. I can’t control myself when I see a wine from Croatia, Lebanon or a place totally unlikely to grown grapes. I must try, no matter the food or situation at hand.
As a professionally trained chef, I do appreciate making the most of a wine by pairing it with the right food, to bring out its “flavor profile”. There is something to be said, about that an indescribable moment of harmony on your “palate” when a perfect combination comes about. Out of curiosity I goggled how to pair food and wine. 497,000 results come up. There are sites where you can ask an expert, guidelines, books, blogs; you name it. Everyone has something to say on this matter.
My opinion is contrary to popular belief. I am girl who’s not fond of rules. The Los Angeles Times, recently quoted, David Ready Jr, saying Murphy-Goode was trying to “demystify” wine through this social media experiment and make it more approachable to “people who might feel it’s out of their league”. I admire this endevour. Wine became approachable to me years ago, while working at a Wine Shop in London. My father was a wine enthusiast and I knew the basics. But, not nearly enough to be left alone in the shop. We had tastings every Saturday. Mostly, I think they kept me around because I had nice printing. My role on Saturday’s was to write the wines for the tasting, on the board outside and washing the wine glasses as needed. Since, I was not legal to work in the U.K. I was paid in pounds under the table; or in trade with wine. At the ripe young age of 21, I took trade. Often frantic about my choices and what was appropriate for dinner or a specific occasion; I drove the owners to tears. “Drink what you like” is what I was told. Okay? Really? Are you sure?
So, I did just that. For the rest of the summer I took home the wines I liked. I drank them when I wanted with whatever I wanted (most frequently with nothing at all). Slowly but surely, I mastered the varietals and regions that I liked. This in turn gave me the confidence to branch out with other varietals and regions. To this day, I often don’t follow the wine rules. I like white wine when it is hot or sunny. I prefer red when it’s cold or dark. I am curious and adventuresome by nature. I can’t control myself when I see a wine from Croatia, Lebanon or a place totally unlikely to grown grapes. I must try, no matter the food or situation at hand.
I bend my own weird, wine rules, when I find myself at a four star meal. But, for the most part, I believe you should drink what you like. It’s a good starting point. Follow the divine palate within you and the esoteric world of wine, will soon enough shine it’s divine light in you.
