My Wine Experience Up Until Now

Currently, I have a lot of experience with wine. My family is full of winos so drinking wines and tastings are a big part of what my family likes to do. When I first started to drink wine, I was all about the sweet stuff. I loved anything that was high in residual sugars. My parents were not very happy with my wine taste since they had moved to more drier and sophisticated wines. After I came home for the summer last year, my parents took me to several wine festivals and wine tastings. During these festivals and tastings, I tried a lot of different wines. At first, I did not like anything that was not sweet. But the more I began to expand to drier wines, the more inclined I was to move away from the sweet stuff. My parents were a big help in developing my pallet. They have also helped me find wines that are still good but not terribly expensive.

Since the summer, I have gone tasting back home every time I am home. We always go taste at the same place with the same guy named Ray. Ray has a large knowledge of wine and great taste. He also finds good deals on generally more expensive wines since he has been in the business for a long time. When tasting with Ray, he always tells you about the region, the year, the wine maker, the grapes, and the flavors you will find in the wine. He also taught me about the ratings given out by magazines like Wine Spectator. Tasting with Ray and my parents greatly increased my knowledge of wines and willingness to try new wines. It also gave me experience in talking about what I tasted. My parents and Ray would always ask what I tasted. From this, I learned to pick up some of the things that they would talk about. Recently, at the suggestion of my parents, I have made a list of wines that I buy. This list includes the brand, varietal, year, price, whether I tasted it or just bought it off the shelf, and if I liked it or not. I have found this to be very helpful in keeping track of what I buy and what I like. Apart from tasting at home, I drink wine at least once a week.

My favorite type of wine is a Sauvignon Blanc. More specifically, a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. I have found a lot of different brands that I like to drink. Sauvignon Blanc is my go to wine and the wine that I drink the most often. If I am drinking wine, it is almost always a Sauvignon Blanc. I also like some unoaked Chardonnays. Until recently, I have been hesitant to try red wines. However, with Thanksgiving and Christmas, I started to try a lot of red wines at family events. I tried a wide range of red wines, sometimes with food and sometimes without. I began to enjoy drinking red wines, something I did not think was going to happen. The red wines that I like are Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Malbec, Tempranillo, and Chianti. I was surprised at how well I liked red wines once I started to taste them, and how many different types that I liked! However, I'm still a white wine girl at heart but have learned to appreciate the red wines.

From this class, I hope to gain a better general knowledge of wine. I still am not sure on all the regions and grapes and what grows where etc. I would like be able to follow a wine conversation without having to stop someone every few minutes to ask what something is or means. I know that is a way of learning but I'd like to know it before hand. I also want to know what wines I should branch off to. When I buy wine at the grocery store, I tend to stick to the same brand. Since I do not like sweeter wines anymore, I am hesitant to just buy a random label off the shelf and try it. Generally, the only way I branch out is if I go to a tasting and like what I taste. I also would like to learn what foods to pair with what wines. I am very excited to take this class and expand my knowledge of wine!