Love is wine

I fell in love with a new wine tonight. It’s a little Cabernet Sauvignon called Five Rivers, a 2002 made and bottled in Hopland, CA. It’s sweet, with a little oak. Only in the past year have I taken an effort to enjoy wine. I still prefer the glass of scotch, but I hate waking up and trying to remember how I got the cuts on my hand, who I drunk dialed, and where did the lipstick on my neck come from.

Wine slows things down. It’s like slow love. It’s the pleasure you feel when someone goes out of their way to get to know you. Like a woman, every new wine should be approached with regard, gentility and care. Take a look at the bottle. I like bottles that catch my eye and show a creative spirit. I’m drawn to pick up a bottle with nice curves and an attractive labeling. These things matter. I have to admit I’ve been on a trend of chardonnays and sauvignon blanc, but I am always willing to branch out and try more reds. Take your time and read the labels. I find wines with good stories more intriguing. It’s like the winemaker put a soul into it, gave it a history and family. I like to know these things.

You should open it with care as well. Like undressing a lady, be smooth in cutting the foil. Take care of the cork. You don’t want to ruin it and get it in the wine. I find that bottles with twist tops a little too artificial. They give the impression of a quickie with little regard to the sensual pleasures derived from a foil and cork. Reds should be poured with gusto right down in the middle of that glass so the air it catches releases the smells and the flavors.

If you are eating, make sure that wine goes well with your food. You can’t have a wine that is out to ruin your other sensual pleasures, no matter how good the wine is. One can make only so many exceptions. This cabernet complemented my veal, pasta and kalamata olives very well.

Smell it before you taste it. Your sense of smell is what gives you the pleasure of flavor. Those curves of the wine glass are specially made for you to swirl and smell. Take a look at it. Does it look thick and sweet? Smooth and refreshing? It’s all foreplay: the swirls, the looks and sniff.

Once you are really excited, take that first taste, a little sip. Let it roll on your tongue. Let it touch the tip, sides and back of your tongue. The tip will pick up its sweetness, the sides will pick up its tanis and sourness, and the back of your tongue will pick up its bitterness. Suck a bit of air in to help release the flavor. Notice its textures. Like you would use your hands and mouth to explore a new love, roll that little bit of nectar around your tongue. Do you like it?

Learn her inside out, outside in.