Does Wine Have to be So Complicated?

Do a search on wine books on Amazon and you'll find nearly 100,000 results. That's just books. There's videos, software and apps. Really?

Can wine really be that complicated?

Perhaps we're making it more complicated than we need it to be.  Just for fun, I did a search on wine pairings for Chinese chicken with cashews.  I got all kinds of recommendations. Red wine. White wine. Bold wines. Light and fruity wines.

Over the last few years I've done a number wine tastings. Some of those have been really fun experiences and some have been . . . well less than joyful.  In fact, several friends have told me how one of those wine aficionados have almost ruined their enjoyment of wine.

I've talked to others who've been incredibly intimidated by those types of folks and it's made them afraid to step out of their comfort zone. They drink the same wine all the time.  Sometimes it comes out as: "don't serve any good wine, I can't tell the difference."

That is until they taste some really good wine.  It's not the price of the wine that determines whether it's good or not.

At the end of the day, wine is something that should be enjoyed.


I'm grateful to my friends at Seghesio who helped me expand my palate from drinking just their Zinfandels to enjoying their great Grenache, Petit Sirah, Barbera, Anglianico, various field blends and of course their Sangiovese. I've branched out to other Sonoma County wineries like Frick, John Tyler Wines, Arista, Francis Ford Coppola wines.  I've enjoyed wines from Pine Ridge in Napa and Chamisal Vineyards in San Luis Obispo.


When I'm out with folks for dinner I'm often asked to choose the wine. I know I don't have a better palate than any of the people I'm with.  I tend to be a bit adventurous.  I don't always order a wine that I've had before.  I like to try something new.

But that doesn't mean that I don't have a plan. Sometimes I've had a wine that I liked from the same region.  For instance, I've never had a Chardonnay from the Russian River Valley that I didn't like.  Just last night I was out to dinner with clients and was asked to select the wines for dinner.

I had never really had any of the wines before but I do know that the Willamette Valley in Oregon has some really great Pinot Noirs. It was an Italian restaurant so I found a nice reserve Chianti as well.  As it turns out, the choices were pretty good.

This year I want to encourage those who are a little unsure of themselves to step out and try something new. Mostly I want people to enjoy making memories with friends and families over great food and wine.