The End Game of Wine

Where does the passion of wine come from for me?  What is the end game?  I have to ask myself these questions every day.  The answers are what keep me going in this business and makes me a fierce advocate of our local wines.

The passion of wine comes from the whole notion of lifestyle.  Wine requires patience, which I call a virtue.  One must leave behind the rush of our crazy paced work-a-day world to truly derive all the benefits of drinking wine.  In a word, wine brings me to a place and time when the priorities of my life are in true order. 

To me wine is mystical.  Starting with the vine that exhibits natures mysterious hand.  I think of the grapes relaxing in the sun with nothing better to do than manifest the best of all possible tastes in the confines of their skins.  Now that’s the life. 

The winemaker must wait for the perfect moment for those grapes, not too sweet; not too tart, to produce the best wine.  At every step it is time that matters.  And if we have the luxury of time and patience we can let that wine speak of all its complex parts in one glorious expression. 

As for the end game, it is to enjoy that wine in the environment that created it: the winery.  The full circle of drinking the wine from the vines you are setting near, on a sunny day, with a friend or two, and some great food, makes for the perfect day. 

What I'm driving at here is to get you energized to pack a lunch and head to one of dozens of great local wineries to enjoy a relaxing picnic among the vines.  And I hope to see you there!