Why do I like wine?

So I thought I would start this blog off with why I like wine in the first place. There are many ways, but I thought I would narrow it down to my top three.

1. I like to learn

I’m a scientist. That means many things to many people, but to me it means a couple things: I like to do research and gain as much knowledge as I can about a subject and I like to experiment and try things that have never been attempted. Wine has fulfilled both of those points for me. One person can never learn everything about wine, but I definitely enjoy learning as much as I can bout the different regions and varietals that encompass the world of wine. Also the making of wine is basically botany as the vine grows and afterwards the fermentation process is a combination of microbiology and organic chemistry, which is right up my alley as a scientist.

Also every time I pour a glass of wine I learn something new. It could be a wine from a new varietal, region, vintage or winery that I’ve never had before. It may be something I’ve had but for some reason it tastes differently than I remember due to increased aging or a new food combination.

I’ll never forget one day I was in a wine shop in Sevilla, Spain and the lady recommended a wine and she only described it as “The wine will make you think.” By that she meant the wine had new and interesting combinations of aromas and flavors that were very unusual and man was she right!! The wines that I remember most are the ones that I feel like I’ve learned something new from and made me think.

2. Wines are usually grown in beautiful places.

I like to travel so that I can experience a new region and all that it has to offer. It may just be me but wines are grown in some pretty awesome places. I have visited wine regions in California, Michigan, Spain, and Italy. These places not only had great wine, but they also had unique food cultures, beautiful scenery and friendly people (probably because they were all drinking wine like we were). I’ve found over the past few years that when I am looking for a vacation I try and find a local winery to see what they are growing (did you know that wine is produced in all 50 states?). So the next time you are on vacations try and see what wineries are open for tastings!

3. I like to explore

This is similar to number 1 in that I think it comes from my personality as a curious scientist. I not only enjoy learning new things, but I enjoy the pursuit of the knowledge. As a kid I liked the pursuit of a rare baseball card or comic book that nobody else knew about, and now that has transferred into my love of wine. I am always looking for new and interesting varietals, regions, techniques, and winemakers that expand my knowledge of wine.

I am creating this blog to bring some of knowledge and love of wine to the public, and I hope the reader enjoys it as much as I will writing for it.

I hope you enjoy the journey.

Cheers,

BC