Wine tasting may lead to porcelain worship
Joel Paramo
Issue date: 12/5/07 Section: Reviews
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It was Thanksgiving and the biggest shopping day of the year, something retail workers call Black Friday, and I was turning 21. Indeed, my birthday landed yet again on Thanksgiving.
Most people who turn 21 look forward to going bar hopping and eventually meeting that white porcelain god, which they will kneel before with open arms. Or even worse, you could get stuck in a gutter on 19th street in front of the adult Wilton Cinema.
Some friends have called me a "wino," but since I was "younger," I enjoyed drinking wine rather than other alcoholic beverages. It is for this reason, among many others, that on my 20th birthday my parents began to plan for my 21st. They call it the Wine Country, and for my birthday I got to visit Napa Valley, and went on my first wine tour.
My uncle, who lives in Morgan Hill, planned the tour, and it began Nov. 23 at the inconvenient hour of 9 a.m. After the drive from Bakersfield to Morgan Hill on Thursday, the wine I consumed that evening made it hard to wake up.
But the next morning, I looked outside the window, and there before me was the white Hummer Limo that I'd be spending the rest of my day in. I was pretty happy that I got to keep it classy. My parents willingly spoiled me with this because of the family outing and the fact that one of my best friends came along.
We began the day by stopping for a breakfast of champions: McDonalds breakfast sandwiches, along with a breakfast delight, mimosas. We took plenty of champagne and my favorite vodka, Grey Goose. After about an hour drive from Morgan Hill, I was already under the influence when we arrived at our first planned stop, Roche Winery.
Like most wineries I saw that day, Roche's architecture and landscaping resembled a European farm style. When I walked through the doors of the winery, the guy greeting handed me a glass of wine and said hello. You could tell this was a pretty nice place.
I like wine, but I'm no connoisseur, not even after the trip, so after tasting my first wine all I had to say about the flavor was that it tasted like a chardonnay.
Most people who turn 21 look forward to going bar hopping and eventually meeting that white porcelain god, which they will kneel before with open arms. Or even worse, you could get stuck in a gutter on 19th street in front of the adult Wilton Cinema.
Some friends have called me a "wino," but since I was "younger," I enjoyed drinking wine rather than other alcoholic beverages. It is for this reason, among many others, that on my 20th birthday my parents began to plan for my 21st. They call it the Wine Country, and for my birthday I got to visit Napa Valley, and went on my first wine tour.
My uncle, who lives in Morgan Hill, planned the tour, and it began Nov. 23 at the inconvenient hour of 9 a.m. After the drive from Bakersfield to Morgan Hill on Thursday, the wine I consumed that evening made it hard to wake up.
But the next morning, I looked outside the window, and there before me was the white Hummer Limo that I'd be spending the rest of my day in. I was pretty happy that I got to keep it classy. My parents willingly spoiled me with this because of the family outing and the fact that one of my best friends came along.
We began the day by stopping for a breakfast of champions: McDonalds breakfast sandwiches, along with a breakfast delight, mimosas. We took plenty of champagne and my favorite vodka, Grey Goose. After about an hour drive from Morgan Hill, I was already under the influence when we arrived at our first planned stop, Roche Winery.
Like most wineries I saw that day, Roche's architecture and landscaping resembled a European farm style. When I walked through the doors of the winery, the guy greeting handed me a glass of wine and said hello. You could tell this was a pretty nice place.
I like wine, but I'm no connoisseur, not even after the trip, so after tasting my first wine all I had to say about the flavor was that it tasted like a chardonnay.
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