supercheesegirl

I stopped at the wine & spirits shop today. It seemed like they must have just gotten in some new shipments. I browsed around the featured wines--there's a little description and review for each of the featured ones. I think I am learning wine language a little bit. Anything that says "tannic", "oaky", "dry", "semi-dry", or "acidic finish" is probably something I'm not going to like. Wines advertised as "light", "fruity", "smooth finish" are more likely to suit me.

Overall I am feeling a bit more competent in the wine realm. A tiny bit of knowledge goes a long way. I now feel like I can pick out something that I will probably like at least a little bit. I know which wines I generally like and can start extrapolating out from there.

I know I like dessert wines and sweet wines: muscat/moscato (white more than black, but both are good), white zinfandel, and of course ice wine, but that's really expensive. In general I've found I will probably like most anything pink. The white wines are a bit more confusing to me--a viognier is really nice, and I am pretty sure I like a riesling better than a chard, but I still need to do some exploring in this area--where does the pinot grigio fit in? The sauvignon blanc? I think I like gewürztraminer, based on one I tried at the ren faire, but I need to check that out. Reds are more intimidating, though I think I might like reds more than whites in general. I like a nice glass of merlot sometimes, and in general I think a sirah or a shiraz is a bad idea for me, but I need to figure out where to place the cabs, the pinot noir, etc. I am inclined to like fruit wines--the ren faire makes a nice apple wine, and I adore their raspberry honey mead--but those are so specific to the winery that you can't really generalize it. I need to get a better idea of what, in general, I like, so I can order it at a bar. Right now I know I am safe with a glass of white zin, but I also know that holding a glass of white zin makes me look like a total girl. I need to figure out what reds and white are going to appeal to me most. I feel up to the task.

Today I only did the most basic of explorations, though. I picked up a four-pack of the Sutter Home mini moscatos, because I like to grab one sometimes after work (the way normal people have a beer or something). I got a bottle of a moscato I had never seen before, and, knowing I like the Sutter Home white zin, I decided to try the Sutter Home white merlot. We'll see how that goes.

The wine & spirits store has signs up in the windows advertising weekly tastings (Thursday and Friday evenings, Saturday afternoons)--why didn't I notice that before? Will have to go sometime.

I had a really good weekend in Boston. Friday night, Dann cooked me a delicious meal, and we ate Jack Snacks (OMG Jack the pumpkin cheesecake! You're my hero!), and then hung out with Heather and Brendan and Vess and drank entirely too much wine. Saturday morning, slept in! Highly necessary. Had breakfast with Heather, then walked from Central to Porter for my hair appointment. Cold out, but not too bad except that my thighs were shapely blocks of ice by the time I arrived. Laura picked me up from my hair appointment and we walked up to Davis, where I had the extreme pleasure of introducing her to Mr. Crepe. I love it when my friends like each other! I think Laura and Mr. Crepe are about to embark on a beautiful friendship. :) Carlos picked me up from Mr. Crepe and we went shopping for Kris's birthday in Harvard Square. He dropped me back at Columbia House at 6 so I could get ready for the party, which I did! Filled up the car, then I arrived right on time for the party at 8 and was the first one there, which was totally fine because I got to hang out with Kris and she liked her present. It was really good to see everybody. Left there around 11-11:30ish, back to Columbia House, and worked on the Saturday crossword with Brendan and Heather until we were all zombies and passed out at maybe 12:30. This morning, got up at 8 and got out the door by 8:30. Drove like mad through MA and CT to try to make a lot of distance before the storm hit. I was in New York by 11ish when I started seeing the first flakes. New York and Jersey were Not Fun, but I got home by 2:20 or so, which meant that the whole trip took a shorter amount of time than usual even with the storm. Also, I now remember why I only drive to Boston every few months--it takes me that long to forget how much I dislike long trips by myself. Overall, though, an excellent weekend, and I really enjoyed seeing friends.

Now, a question: Friday night I shared an excellent bottle of wine with Dann Brown. I can order said wine online for $10.95 a bottle, and it's $10 shipping for up to six bottles. Total order would be around $80 for six bottles of wine. Part of me is like, $80! But another part is like, really good wine that I like a lot! When you divide it out it's only like $13.50 a bottle. Should I order?