I had a fantastic time chatting with a young wine blogger in
the tasting room the other day. Megan
Bauer, wineallday.tumblr.com, has recently started a wine blog and was out to
review the wineries on the Pacific Coast Wine Trail. I believe Stolo Family Winery was her 3rd(ish)
stop along the trail. Megan is a shade
of my younger self; loves wine, food, and was ready to tell me just what she
thought about it all. She loved to talk
foodie and we spoke at length about wine styles and food pairing. She was unabashedly upfront with her opinions…I
loved it.
I was ultimately envious of her new adventure in wine reviewing
and tried to squeeze every bit of information out of her about what it was like
to wander from tasting room to tasting room critiquing wine as she went. This is something that I have always secretly
wanted to do (in my spare time of course).
But, I have no spare time. And, I
am not as gutsy as she is…anymore. I think my wine review blog would ultimately turn into a lukewarm dissertation
of why I “kind-off” liked the wine. I
can usually find the good in a glass, even if it’s not my style. I always try to appreciate what the winemaker is aiming for and based on price, production size, etc. I tend to judge
accordingly. I am the type of person
though, that if I don’t like a glass, I don’t say anything. My response, now, mirrors the age old saying,
“If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all”.
Who am I to deem whether the Chardonnay has too much
oak? It may for me, but for someone
else, it may be right on the mark. You
will hear me say time and time again in the tasting room, “It’s o.k. to not like
a particular wine. Tasting all wines is
part of the journey to discovering what it is you do like”. I do believe strongly in that. But, naturally we are all inclined to have
opinions and would like others to agree with us.
I have to hand it to those out there laying down their personal
opinions like a new law. It appeals to
the “scrappy” part of me that has softened over the years when it comes to
giving my private opinion in a public setting.
Really, only my husband is privy to my actually opinion when it comes to
wine, and I think he’s had an earful!
At the time of this post, Megan had not yet published her
review of Stolo Family Winery and Vineyards.
I look forward to reading exactly what she thinks about us!
