Introduction

As a novice wine drinker, there is not much to say about what I know about wines.  To date I have had wine about four times in my life with the occasional champagne toast thrown in on special occasions. While growing up my family were not big drinkers so I was not exposed to it as a daily routine as some people are. However my father recently informed me after hearing about joining a wine class that he used to make his own wine in the years after he got out of college so maybe wine is in my blood.

From the occasions in which I have tried wine, I can tell that I have struggled to enjoy them.  The only wines that seem like they could be enjoyed for an extended period of time are the sweeter, less bitter wines as they taste similar to flat soda.  Today before writing this first post I went to a wine tasting for some background and nearly all of them tasted similar.  Excluding the pear wine that tasted distinctly like pears and a Riesling they were all bitter.

As part of this class I hope to learn more about how to actually describe wines while tasting them. While tasting today, I was at a loss for words when trying to decide what they tasted like.  I suppose this will come with experience.  I would also like to learn more about how the different grapes actually determine the different flavors.  For example why does one grape give a more nutty or caramel taste than a different grape?  I would also like to learn more about the wine fermentation process and how to actually make wine.  What time of the year and what locations are the optimal conditions for growing and harvesting?  How long does each type of wine need to ferment?  Lastly I would enjoy learning about how to properly pair wine and cheese.  How does one know what type of cheese best compliments a wine?  Overall I expect this class to be enjoyable and one of the more entertaining classes of my college career.