weakestlink11 asked:
My liking for wine seem to be inversely proportional to the price. On the rare occasion I have wine, I go for the pop wines like Arbor Mist or Wild Vines – light, fruity and sparkling. Once at a social function at my bosses house (he is a vinophile and connoisseur ). I expressed my preference and he said that he wouldn’t have that type of wine in his house. He proceeded to produce a bottle of what he indicated was “fine” chianti. I took a sip and, to me, it tasted like cough medicine mixed with vinegar.
Adrien
My liking for wine seem to be inversely proportional to the price. On the rare occasion I have wine, I go for the pop wines like Arbor Mist or Wild Vines – light, fruity and sparkling. Once at a social function at my bosses house (he is a vinophile and connoisseur ). I expressed my preference and he said that he wouldn’t have that type of wine in his house. He proceeded to produce a bottle of what he indicated was “fine” chianti. I took a sip and, to me, it tasted like cough medicine mixed with vinegar.
Adrien
You should take some classes on wines, that include tastings. That will expand your tastes ……. But, everyone likes different things. Personally, I think coke & pepsi & Dr. Pepper taste like curdled cough syrup; and Bailey’s is even worse!
Comment by TX2step — March 9, 2008 @ 2:49 pm
Some people don’t like beer, some don’t like hard liquor. It’s fine – don’t feel like you have to like what others do. Of course, you now know what to expect at your boss’s house, but don’t let it get you down.
Comment by tangerinebean — March 12, 2008 @ 3:10 pm
Because of the taste .
Comment by elmjunburke — March 15, 2008 @ 5:50 pm
Appreciating fine wine is a skill that someone acquires, due to an interest they have in wine, grapes and the whole process. Sure, they may seem hard to drink to someone who has little knowledge or experience but trust me, there is much to be learned from a bottle of wine.
You said it yourself, you enjoy the pop wines, and that’s okay, just don’t judge anothers opinion of what makes a wine fine…
Comment by chef.jnstwrt — March 17, 2008 @ 11:19 am
basically, you don’t like wine. the stuff you drink is sold in the wine section, but it is not wine. appreciation of fine wine is truly an art. however, it’s not for everyone. don’t feel bad, just drink what you enjoy.
Comment by tawny g — March 17, 2008 @ 12:42 pm
you have an uneducated palate?
You are young and gravitate toward sweet sugary things?
You have not yet turned into a wine snob?
Comment by barry c — March 20, 2008 @ 11:33 am
It just sounds like you don’t like real wine.
Comment by bigbluegreenbuddha — March 22, 2008 @ 5:03 pm
Don’t worry about it – it’s simply what your tastebuds prefer. Some people do not like “fine” wine and I put that in quotations because the word “fine” is very subjective. There are people who would consider your bosses “fine chianti” to be mediocre compared to the expensive bottles of Champagne they like to drink. The fact that your boss said that he wouldn’t have that type of wine in his house, although it does sound a bit snobbish, really does translate down to the fact that his palate does not include wines like Arbor Mist or Wild Vines. Personally, it probably would never be in my collection either but I have a couple of friends who enjoy these wine products and I would never dream of putting them down for it. That is their preference and it’s as simple as that. Think of it in another aspect – what types of food do you enjoy versus other members of your family or friends or coworkers. They’re not all the same and why would they be the same in what you like to drink? Nobody is right and nobody is wrong.
As for what it tasted like to you – the fact that you mentioned vinegar would make me wonder if the wine had oxidized and no one had realized it. There are plenty of people out there who are unable to detect when a wine has gone bad – it takes years of training and years of experience. I have been learning about wine for over 20 years and there are days where I could not identify a wine that is “corked” which would give a musty, swampy smell. As for Chianti – well, it would never be my first choice if I was going to try to introduce a friend to a new wine who drinks Arbor Mist or Wild Vines. Basically, your boss took you from drinking a light, fruity wine straight over to a heavy duty, smoky tasting red wine. Do you feel like jumping the Grand Canyon – that’s basically what you did when you tried that. If you want to expand outside of Arbor Mist or Wild Vines, try a fruity white wine to start. Take a look in your local wine shop for a Riesling or a Gewurztraminer. Chances are you have tried a version of it with Arbor Mist or Wild Vines but it has had fruit based additives added to the wine to make it more appealing. This will simply be something you are familiar with but on a slightly diminished scale. You should still find it very enjoyable without it being a huge jump like that Chianti.
Comment by Patricia D — March 24, 2008 @ 9:13 pm
He gave you the opposite of what you wanted — a dry, earthy red wine, with lots of tannins (which make it bitter). There are amazing sweet wines out there too, ranging from $6 to $500 — don’t worry though, I won’t suggest anything over maybe $15. Find a wine shop or grocery store with a wine clerk, and ask about an inexpensive dessert wine — maybe a moscato or an ice wine. If you like Arbor Mist you’ll go nuts over these. A favorite of mine is Ceretto Moscato d’Asti — italian, light, sweet, just slightly sparkling — and there are few serious wine conoisseurs that would turn down a glass of it! If you want to see if there are other wines you like, try going to a wine tasting here and there. Most people start out where you are, then find a few styles of wine that they like, and go from there. Don’t miss out. There are probably a great many wines you would love.
Comment by Johnnyk — March 26, 2008 @ 12:51 am