Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Drinkin' Wine, Spo-dee-oh-dee.......

When he was in his cups, a friend of mine was fond of saying, "As a rule, I don't drink. But, as a habit................."

I like wine a lot better nowadays than I used to. I rarely drink, for several reasons. One, I'm a diabetic, and shouldn't. Two, I can't buy alcohol locally (dry county, you know) so I would have to drive to some other county for it, and then, I'd be out of the mood. Three, I'm too stingy to buy it very often. And, last, but not least, when I drink wine, I get, well, giggly.

But, tonight, I have wine. A tasty Fetzer Merlot. And, I've even had two glasses, so I'll be going to sleep pretty soon. Heheh.

When Kell and Al lived in Sacramento, Jay and I went to California to visit, and came back wine snobs. We went to Napa Valley and toured wineries and learned how to get the most enjoyment out of it. The next year, we went back, and saw the wineries in Sonoma. At one of the wineries, we purchased a bottle and picnicked under the redwoods on sausage, bread and cheese that we had bought from little shops on the very picturesque square. It was glorious and made me wonder what the peasants were doing that day.

After both winery visits, Kell and I sat in the back seat and giggled all the way back to Sacramento. And, coming back to Harrison was a real downer those two years.

When I travel, I don't set out to learn anything, necessarily. But, on those two trips I learned how to drink wine:

I now know not to grab the cork and sniff at it like a basset. It will only smell like wine soaked cork, and that's not a very fragrant combination, frankly.

I now know not to grab the wine glass by the bowl, but to hold it, daintily, by the stem, so the heat from my hand won't cook the grape.

I now know not to fill the glass to the top, because it will slop out when I swirl it. And I have to swirl it, before I put my nose in the glass.

I now know how to stick my whole nose into the glass and breathe deep, the better to appreciate the bouquet. This is another reason not to fill the glass.

I now know how to take a small sip, hold it in my mouth, and part my lips slightly, and inhale through my mouth, without choking and gagging. I look like an asthmatic, trying desperately to take a deep breath, but never mind.

One thing I didn't learn, though, was the language of wine snobs. You know, where they say things like, "Oh, it's an amusing little wine." Or, "What a robust bouquet!" But, strangely, the wine tastes good without the descriptions.

Oh, tonight, I am a happy, happy camper. Sweet dreams, all!

24 comments:

patsy said...

i may take up wine to go with the morphine and valumn.
the poor old mexican didn't do anything except what georgie told him too.
so he goes home in disgrace and georgie and dickie stay. how fair is that?
also the old boy in idaho is not gay even if he was sticking his wingie in the slot. he thought it was a wingie washer.

Anonymous said...

Wow! You know much more about wine than I do. But then I am not typically French in that respect. I don't know anything about wine. Just know that I prefer red to white and that it wouldn't occur to me to open a bottle on my own. I have and it went sour! ;)

DirkStar said...

In his cups...

Wow, haven't heard that phrase in a long time.

Nice piece as always.

Anonymous said...

'Dry county' ! Blimey ! I'd move. :-)

I once heard a wine described by a couple of pompous prats as "only fit for slurping in the kitchen".

Kell said...

I'm finding that as I get older, wine hits me faster than it used to. Maybe I'm drinking it faster? I miss Sonoma.

Chancy said...

Sounds like you had a perfect wine night.:)

jusdealem said...

Sounds like a wonderful trip! I also live in a dry county. (MS) It doesn't bother me, but my husband is always making the drive to the county line. LOL

CarmenSinCity said...

So, you and Jay must have taken a little field trip together since you both blogged about wine - NICE!

I don't know how to drink wine. Hell, I can't drink anything, but if I did, it would be tequila.

Anonymous said...

Betty,

You sure stirred up a lot of memories in this old girl when you mentioned "Drinkin wine spo dee o dee".

When I was young we used to go to Wildwood, New Jersey to hear the Trenier Brothers,Cliff and Claude, sing that song.We used to ask them to sing that about 5 times a night.
We couldn't get enough of it...

Anyone else remember the Treniers? Or Wildwood?

Joan said...

I know absolutely nothing about wine except that almost all varieties give me a headache so I just don't bother with the stuff. It's made our trips to Napa Valley a little boring (and definitely cheaper than if we drank) since we pass on all the wine tasting opportunities. Oh well...we still managed to have fun!

Annie said...

I'll swirl a glass to you tomorrow evening, Betty. I do love a glass a wine now and again but until tonight I didn't know how to drink it. Tomorrow I'll follow your lesson.

Cazzie!!! said...

I am glad you are a happy camper, that is wonderful :)

katy said...

i love wine, red, white even rose, must learn to drink it without it making me very giddy!

Anonymous said...

Enjoyed reaqding about how to enjoy wine. Good hints!!

Joan - I found out I can not drink red wine - it gives me a headache - I enjoy white wine - no headache and I can also drink beer - love it with pizza.

Anonymous said...

Red wine gives me a headache,too, but I like a glass of white or blush wine once in a while. I'm not much of a drinker unless it's water or diet Coke! I'm impressed with your wine knowledge though!

Betty said...

All: Thanks for the comments. I really don't know all that much about wine. And, I wouldn't be caught dead doing all that swirling, sniffing and slurping in public. I just thought the whole thing was silly. But, I did enjoy the tasting part. lol I remember that song, but not who recorded it. Thanks for the reminder Nancy.

Anonymous said...

All I have to say is that you are just so cute when you are tipsy!

Anonymous said...

Juat stopped by to say HI.....and happy wine drinking! :-) hugsssssssss

Peggy said...

I was tickled by the title of the entry!

The Man of the Place and I have visited three chateau IN FRANCE so now we are insufferable wine experts.

Betty said...

Susan: I'm cute all the time. lol

Lorna: Have you given up your blog altogether? I miss reading it.

Peggy: The title dates me, I know. It's really easy to become a wine snob, isn't it?

Anonymous said...

Betty,

Do you mind if I say Hello to Lorna on your space?

Hello, Lorna, I miss you.

Betty said...

nancy: I don't mind at all.

Galla Creek said...

I wish I had just one bottle of your wine Betty, I think it would help me make it through this year of teaching...

Anonymous said...

Hi there! Someone in my Myspace group shared this website with
us so I came to take a look. I'm definitely loving the information. I'm bookmarking and will
be tweeting this to my followers! Exceptional blog and wonderful design.
Here is my weblog ... Weight management programs