The Wine/Life Mirror

What a whirlwind of a weekend back home, graced by some truly delectable wines that warmed my heart, and traveled alongside me at home.

Frigid weather in the good old (612) was assuaged by some warm hearty reds. And thank god, given the debacle I ran into on in -14 temperatures! A flat tire on the freeway (more like burned to the rim if you ask me) on Interstate 35-W North in that inhumane temperature would have been much harder to manage had I not just ingested the following:

1) A delightfully balanced Vacqueyras, appropriately named Les Trois Couronnes since it was fit for no less than a king - or queen, which I may or may not be admitting to flying back from NYC for since we did not have time to consume it over the 2010 holiday wine lineup. This floral yet substantial red wine from the southern Rhone Valley of my beloved France is almost 100% Grenache, which lends the body needed to stand up to those Watts-style appetizers that are indigenous to the homestead of 721 West Minnehaha Parkway (yes, laugh as you'd like at the street I grew up on ;)

2) A versatile Barbera enjoyed with our delightful dinner at In Season. Though it was our alternative choice to the Cotes du Rhone they had no stock of (enter harried distribution woes...) it was worthy of every drop in the bottle.

Looking back on the bitingly cold weekend now (with a glass of plain 'ol Trader Joes Chardonnay/Viognier blend beside me; good, but no Vacqueyras) I am struck by how much can happen within the span of three days of a quick weekend trip home to be present for a dear friend's CD release show. I am even more struck by the how much these jam-packed days mirror all that goes on in the senses and through the mind upon that first sip of Vacqueyras - or Barbera - or even this $4 bottle of TJ's white blend that has been sitting in the fridge for a little over a week now (yes, that was a confession...)

The nuances that present themselves through the wine remind me of the varied emotional levels that can happen in so short a time:

One sip of that Vacqueyras and my palette was dancing with a blend of dark and light fruits with tinges of soft tannins around the edges; One moment of realization that I was stuck, alone, on a freeway in -14 temperatures, and my mind danced first with panic, then settled on methods of problem-solving and an eventual 'rescue effort' from my dear father.

Much in the same realm, sipping and savoring to the very last drop that delectable Barbera at In Season mirrors every moment that I took in and cherished at my friend Natalie's show that Saturday night - taking in the energy, the crowd, the music, and yes, even those horribly over-priced glasses of wine at the Fine Line in downtown Minneapolis.

Wine, heart, home and mind...sometimes that's all it boils down to.

Another week, another wine (or three - or four.)

So another week begins, and another glass of wine sits before me...this time Xavier Cotes du Rhone at my beloved Fig & Olive, a perfect blend of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre.
Notes of blueberries round out this smooth and mellow red from my dear France. Hints of spice make this the perfect choice for reflection time on the last week which has offered more than its fair share of spicy drama. As long as you've had a little (or in this case a lot) you might as well round it out, right? Right.
These spicy characteristics are softened by silky hues of dark cherries, much like the heat that has put my life in kahootz has been softened on the edges by the little things that make these tumultuous times more manageable (enter those four wines mentioned in the subject line...) and that eventually lead to life lessons you become grateful for after enough time has passed. Perhaps a little like the time required for a heady, rich, and aged wine to breathe...
Breathing and letting things go - and learning from mistakes/bad choices is after all what embodies the development of our palette and fosters the expansion of (my) wine knowledge; what a perfect note to end on and also to begin the pursuit of my dream of a wine career in NYC...