This most likely seems to be a strange title for an article in our newsletter and you are probably asking yourself what it has to do with wine. Well, it has quite a bit to do with wine and a person's own basic perception on how one describes the taste and aroma of a particular varietal.

My own fascination with this fine beverage started in the late seventies and I was determined to become more knowledgeable in order that I could at least look at a wine list and hope to order the proper wine and have the ability to pronounce the name correctly. The first tasting room that I ever ventured into was at the Sebastiani Winery in the Sonoma Valley and the staff patiently walked me through their list of wines and treated me with great kindness. It was then that I decided that wine should always be enjoyed in a fun and friendly manner and that an attitude had no place in its wonderful world.

Early in 1996 a dream came true for me when I found myself living in the Santa Ynez Valley and working in the tasting room of a well-known winery. I was now determined to make every customer feel at ease during his or her visit and especially those beloved first-timers. So many times people would sheepishly approach the bar and whisper that they would like to do a tasting but they were not a wine "connoisseur" and I would whisper back to them that first of all I cannot even spell the word "connoisseur" and the second point is that we do not allow them in here because they would take all of the fun out of it. After a little laugh and a bigger sigh of relief they would then proceed through the wine list and feel comfortable enough to ask me any questions that they had.

You are probably still wondering what the title has to do with wine. Well, to borrow a phrase from Paul Harvey ... "and now, the rest of the story."

It was mid-week and there were just a few people at the tasting bar. A trio of folks came through the front door and wanted to try our wines. A young lady in this group was very excited about the day because it was her first time ever to go wine tasting and she was fascinated with the whole event. She proceeded to tell everyone at the bar how much fun she was having and then asked me if I had the same wine that she had just tried at the last winery because she had really enjoyed the taste. I politely asked her what type of wine it was because of the many different varieties grown in our region. She did not remember the name so I then asked her if she could describe this mystery wine. By now the rest of the people at the bar were listening to our discussion and she looked at the other guests and then turned back to me and said those classic words that I will never forget,

"It smelled like a wet construction worker," and with that comment the entire tasting bar exploded into laughter. The young lady was embarrassed beyond belief. I could tell that she just wanted to turn and run out the door without ever looking back. I looked at the rest of the still laughing people and reminded them that this was her first time out so that we should give her a chance at this. Turning back to the now red-faced lady I explained that she did nothing wrong and that she was actually on the right track about this wine. The laughing subsided and I now had the other tasters listening to our conversation.

"Was this wine red or white?" I asked her as she slowly regained her composure.

"It was red," she replied.

"Good for you, now, would you say it was sweet or dry?" I proceeded to inquire.

"It was definitely dry," she answered.

There was complete silence as each person listened to every word.
I looked directly at her and asked,

"Was the wine that you tried a Pinot Noir?"

You could not have bought the smile that this young lady was now wearing and not to mention that her confidence and self-esteem were restored to an even higher level.

"Yes, that is the one," she announced as she gazed at the rest of the people who wore some blank and confused looks of their own. It took a few seconds before someone ventured to ask how I knew that.

I explained that the young lady had given me the answer right at the start. She had described the aroma of the wine. A Pinot Noir can have an offensive nose, sometimes compared to as earthy, musty or even a barnyard smell. Perhaps she did not use the best terminology but wines are personalized, meaning that a person's palate is unique to only that person. Everyone will not always taste or smell the same qualities in a particular wine and when you read a description about that wine it is simply a guideline for you. If the nose of a wine is described "like running through a field of spring flowers" and you have never had the opportunity to actually do this then you would not know what you should smell in that wine.

Wine should be enjoyed and shared with good friends who enjoy it the same as you do. Do not complicate an already great gift and always have fun with it. It has been years since that young lady presented me with such an aromatic description but I am quite certain that she thinks about it every time she drinks a glass of that wine that smells like the wet construction worker.

Post To

• Facebook
• Yahoo Buzz
• Digg
• RSS