Why Wine & Me?

For a long time I never had an interest in tackling the intricacies of wine. The hundreds of impossible pronunciations (Geverztraminer? or Beaujolais?), the appropriate food pairings, knowing the best 'year' to drink, and the ridiculous price seemed out of the question. I figured it was a hobby for the rich who didn't know what to do with their money.

I've changed...a little. The names are still difficult to pronounce, I still don't know the right pairings unless I have a chart in front of me, and the year of the wine makes little difference. I DO, however, know that cheap bottles ($7 - $13 range) taste just as good...to me...as the $25+ bottles. I know some of the more general differences between grape types and I have slowly been learning some of the colorful descriptor words like "Robust," "Semi-Dry," "Bitter," etc. I don't know which is which -- so knowing them isn't really doing me any good yet. In the coming life-time I plan on sitting down with several types of wine in front of me and making an effort to differentiate the adjectives.

So you may be wondering why did I go from not caring to having any interest at all? My first positive experience with wine came from a memorable wine-bar located in Galway, Ireland. I was studying literature at the University of Galway for a semester. The bar was a quaint piano bar that didn't serve food - only wine from a comprehensive list pulling from thousands of bottles on display and hidden in the back. I was with two friends from the Rhone Valley in France, my Irish roomate, his friend, and a couple other americans. We all split a few cheap bottles selected by the French 'experts.'

We had an amazing time. The music filled the room with a lively spirit fueling everyone's conversations. I never would not have thought that wine could be paired up so well with talking. I think that was the real turn-on for me. The ability to sit around a rustic old wooden table with eight other people discussing everything from politics in our respective countries to how school was going -- all the while, at the next table over, an elderly couple was celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary by opening a bottle they stored there when they got married. The whole bar toasted with them by screaming out "Slanche!" It still gives me goosebumps remembering the expression of pure joy on their face.

We had arrived at the bar at about seven that night and sat and drank and socialized until about three in the morning. The buzz we got on the wine was only intensified by the magic of conversation. It was a taste of culture that was comfortable and appealing. It has left a lingering taste for more.

So here I am now, extremely interested in trying to replicate that experience. I figure a great place to start would be with the wine.

I received my wine kit this past Christmas season (2007) from KT and have already begun my first project. I will be making a Black Cherry Pinot Noir by Orchard Breezin'. Once I get some pictures, I will post the process and progress. My hopes is that I can keep a history of my learning experience and, if all goes well, get a few other people interested in taking the same journey.

It's relatively cheap. The whole start-up process should be somewhere in the $100 to $150 range. That looks like a high price, but that includes the first grape concentrate. In the end, your first batch will make somewhere between 30 and 35 bottles calculating out to be $4 to $5 per bottle in the end. As you go on, it'll be cheaper if you save bottles. You'll end up making wine at $2 to $3 per bottle and most likely have a drink equivalent to what's on a store shelf, if not better.

The set I received was ordered from "The Winemaker's Toy Store" at www.finevinewines.com. Everything was sent in one piece and with a good set of instructions. I'm sure there are stores in your local area if you didn't want to get something offline. I am very satisfied with the materials received from them, but the shipping & handling was a bit pricy. It is to be expected when sending a 6-gallon glass jar though...so I expected it.

You'll also have gifts for any party, holiday, birthday, or special occasion. It means so much more if you make it.

So -- here we go - round 1. I'll keep you posted...