“Ah-ha” Moments

The “ah-ha” moment: ubiquitous, exciting, and uniquely personal, it’s a phenomenon many wine professionals share. Ask any of us what bottle got us interested in wine and you’re likely to hear a myriad of responses, from 1964 Latour to fresh-faced Albariño. It’s often a gateway to developing a personal connection to wine: the surprise of “Wine can do that?” Maybe you’ve experienced this, yourself - either consciously or subconsciously. I’ve had a number of tasting experiences that have set off light bulbs, crashing through barriers I didn’t know I’d put up around what wine “can be.”

What I find most delightful about hearing others’ “ah-ha” moments is how even the most humble, taken-for-granted bottles can provide insight. While the aged Baroli and sought-after Cabernets of the world are undoubtedly sources of fascination, it’s not necessarily the rarest or most expensive bottles that can capture a person’s imagination. Take my experiences, for example: these wines have been singular experiences in my personal journey, and each memory has stuck with me, continually reminding me of how much more there always is to learn.

• Argiolas Monica, Sardegna, Italy

  My very first “ah-ha” bottle was introduced to me by a future colleague, who helped plant the seed of my interest in wine. I’d been working at the original Eataly in Flatiron, NY as a barista and worked our pop-up “wine bar” on weekend evenings. I started off echoing the vocabulary that was handed to me by the wine team, and realized that I was having a good time doing it.

  Enter: Monica, a lesser-known native Sardinian grape. I’d never heard of Grenache, let alone Monica, and its refreshing fruit and seaside acidity were unlike anything I’d ever found in a wine - let alone a red one. It was an intriguing departure from the flat-tasting, overripe reds I’d orbited around out of familiarity.

• Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Southern Rhône, France

  Here’s an interesting one. Not long after my Sardinian enlightenment, this same friend introduced me to the famously powerful, garrigue-laden Châteauneuf-du-Pape. At the time, with my VERY limited wine familiarity, my assessment of this classic wine was that it smelled like “cigarette breath.” Needless to say, I’d love the opportunity to revisit that bottle again today - it would make for a fascinating view into my own understanding and development. It also serves as a humbling reminder of how our tastes develop and change over time, as well as the fact that a wine being well-regarded doesn’t account for personal taste.

• Paolo Bea, Montefalco Rosso Riserva Pipparello, Umbria, Italy 2003

  I call this my “unicorn” bottle. I was working at Otto Enoteca e Pizzeria circa 2015, and had become infatuated with the elegant power of Paolo Bea’s Sagrantino- and Sangiovese-based wines out of Italy’s central region of Umbria. I had tasted other vintages of his Pipparello, the Sangiovese-based red with native Sagrantino and Montepulciano added, but not this particular one. When a table ordered it, I opened the bottle for them, decanted, and checked the bottle with a taste… and waited. The aromas had been beautiful enough to seriously consider utilizing as a perfume, but on the palate… nothing. I thought maybe the wine had gone mute, as sometimes happens when you catch the wine at an awkward stage (not unlike adolescence).

  Then, several seconds later, it began to unfurl. I’d never experienced such elegance, grace, and intention in a wine, even among the many Nebbiolos I’d tasted from our list. That moment is a standout in my memory, though many bottles since have certainly impressed me in their own unique ways. I’ve heard tell that the winery themselves prized the 2003 vintage - but sadly, that it’s now all but impossible to find.

• Malvirà, Langhe Rosso San Guglielmo, Piemonte, Italy 1998

  While an excellent wine in and of itself, what touched me most about this experience was the kind of hospitality that came with it. I had a run of habitually taking myself to Film Forum and then to the bar at Il Buco - a trendy NoHo staple that I certainly couldn’t afford a full dinner at - for a drink and a snack each week. Film Forum had been playing a run of Roberto Rossellini films, which are among my favorites, and the cozy, softly-lit environment of the bar allowed me to remain in that dreamy, post-movie state. One September evening, they were running a dish of soft polenta with chestnuts and a poached egg (with an optional white truffle supplement that was not in my bank account’s future). The person who took my order from behind the bar that night happened to be one of the restaurant’s sommeliers, and after a series of curious questions about their offerings by the glass, he asks me to wait a moment and ducks away to the back. He returns with a producer I’m familiar with at the time, a producer in the Roero region of Piedmont making lip-smacking wines from native varieties. He tells me that they opened this at their pre-shift meeting, and that he wanted me to have it with the polenta. At the time, I wouldn’t have assumed the plush, densely fruited versions of these varieties to age well, but I was more than happy to have been proven wrong. The dank, dark-fruited, velvety notes that came out of that wine with its extended bottle age were heady and comforting - a perfect and appreciated match for the dish, especially when he decided that I needed to have a bit of truffle shaved over the top.

  I hesitate to bring up this experience for fear of “humble bragging” or highlighting a prohibitively indulgent experience - a common trapping of the industry - but I want to emphasize the effect this had on me as a young professional. Taking care of someone not because they invested in an expensive dinner but because they are curious, motivated, or kind is an ideal I’ve kept close to my heart since. I make an effort to uphold this paying-forward of experiences by investing in the education of those around me to the best of my ability. A little kindness goes a long, long way.

• Anapea Village, Rkatsiteli Rose Qvevri Traditional, Georgia 2018

  The most recent surprise I’ve had with wine came from what is commonly understood as the birthplace of winemaking as we understand it: the Caucasus, specifically the country of Georgia. I was already familiar with the local specialty, Rkatsiteli, a white grape often treated in the traditional way: aged in large terra cotta vessels called kvevri and left to ferment, sometimes age, on their skins, making these “orange” wines by today’s nomenclature. But this wine was new to me. An even less-seen color mutation called Rkatsiteli Vardisperi (or Pink Rkatsiteli) sporting blush skins not dissimilar to those of Pinot Grigio, again treated in the local tradition with skin maceration and kvevri aging. The nose alone of this wine was a surprise to me, despite having had wines of a similar style more than once before. Somehow, the aromas were simultaneously savory, sweet, soft, and precise. Colors came to mind: soft pinks, rusty salmon, pale yellow, sandstone. As with most of these wines, it opened up over the course of several days (they’re quite tightly wound at first) and showed incredible finesse with aromas and flavors I hadn’t yet experienced. While each wine is unique in its expression, sentiment, aromas, and narrative, this was a wine that arrested me immediately. For all the wines I’ve tasted, I was still caught entirely off-guard - a happy sign that there is much out there we’ve yet to discover.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this recounting of wine adventures, and that they’ve perhaps piqued your curiosity! Venturing outside of the familiar is never a safe bet, but it’s always enlightening. There are plenty of wines I haven’t enjoyed from a personal standpoint, but I’m equally grateful to have tasted them. Whether they match my own preferences or not, there is something to be learned about a region, a style, a winemaker, a method - something to further expand your tasting history. And sometimes, as shown above, we get very, very lucky.

Welcome to Wine Geekdom

        So you’ve decided to invest in your wine education – congratulations!  You’re stepping into a fascinating world combining language, culture, geography…and of course, delicious, delicious wines.
        Starting on your wine journey can feel intimidating, but having the right tools at hand can make getting started feel more manageable.  If you’re looking to do some self-directed study, I’ve broken down my approach for you here.  The “method” or process below is what I’ve used consistently throughout my career.  It has helped me to make new connections and to trust my own palate – the biggest challenge for anyone looking to get started. Feel free to customize this process to your own preferences and access. 
        If it looks like a lot, remember to take it just one step at a time.  Start wherever your comfort level is, and grow from there!

Ok, so where do I start? 

        The best first step is to learn more about what you know you already like.  It’s something you genuinely enjoy, and it’s likely already somewhat familiar.  Practice writing tasting notes and looking up technical information.  Even if this doesn’t feel natural or “make sense” right away, it’s all about building the practice! And always write down anything – no really, anything – that you feel or think about the wine.

• One of the most important things for new wine aficionados to understand is that, due to marketing and outdated attitudes, many of us feel that there is “correct” verbiage to use.  Beyond a few technical exceptions, this is not the case!  I’ve heard everything from “built like a ballet dancer” to “bubblegum dropped in gravel” to “brooding and mysterious.”  I promise, there’s nothing too out-there, and besides – it’s a tool for you!  Write in a way that makes sense to you.

• Write down all your thoughts/tasting notes – especially the ones you’re more self-conscious about.

• Some ideas:

  • What do you smell?  What do you taste?  Is it light like skim milk, or heavy like cream? 

  • Is it easy to drink alone, or does it need food?  What do you like to eat with it?

  • How does it make you feel?  What does it remind you of?  Remember: this is for you and you only!  There are no right or wrong answers.

• Next, practice looking for the relevant information that will tell you more about why this wine tastes the way it does.

  • Google the producer – the entity or person making the wine.  If you’re not sure which words on the label refer to the producer, type in the whole name of the wine and determine it from the search results.  This can be an individual, a small operation, a co-op, or a large company.

  • Familiarize yourself with tech sheets. These are immensely helpful industry tools that often list significant information about how the wine is made.  They are often found on the producer’s webpage for that particular wine (although not every producer will have them).  If you don’t understand everything (or even very much) on the sheet, don’t worry!  This is all about getting a first look.

I’ve done this enough times that I want to know more about what I’m tasting!  What’s next? 

        Excellent!  Let’s build on this exercise.  This will probably look like a lot of information, so feel free to take it at your own speed.  There’s a technique in here for everyone!

Building your tasting chops

• Do a Google image search for “wine flavor wheels.”  These are an incredibly helpful tool for learning to find aromas and flavors.  Each of us has unique strengths and blind spots when it comes to tasting, and some people have an easier time than others – that doesn’t mean you can’t learn to pick them out!

• Using the flavor wheel, start at the center and move outward.  This will get you in the habit of looking for broad categories (e.g. stone fruit, tree fruit, berries…) before narrowing down to specific fruits (peach, pear, blackberry). 

• This also works for non-fruit aromas and flavors!  Categories like “spices,” “herbs,” and “flowers” can all be good starting points before going into specifics such as “nutmeg,” “sage,” or “rose.”

• This is where it’s important to remember that everyone is different!  Some people have an easy time picking out certain aromas; some people have an easier time creating a mental image.  Still others find it easier to describe the condition of the aromas (e.g. overripe, tart, bruised, dried) rather than specific notes (e.g. golden apple, peach, thyme).  Try different techniques and see where’s easiest for you to start – it’s all totally valid.

• The way a wine smells and tastes is a complete picture made up of parts.  Beyond specific aromas and flavors, challenge yourself to pay attention to textural and structural components.  Is it noticeably smooth, or more rustic feeling?  How acidic is it (how much does it make your mouth water?)  How much grip do your red wines have?  (This is an aspect of tannin, something we touch on in-depth during the Winemaking class of Wine Fundamentals).

• Take a step back and consider: how does the wine make you feel?  This one is as subjective as they come.  Is it joyful, simple, mellow, bright, big?  A seaside gulp or an armchair sip?  Is it something that feels best for a big, boisterous group or for a small gathering of intimate friends?  These questions flex the more abstract side of your brain, and remind you to zoom out to consider the whole wine.

• A note on tasting notes:

  • Always write your own tasting notes before looking up others’, especially when you’re starting out.  The power of suggestion is very real!  Take the time to get to know your own palate before cross-referencing, and you’ll see yourself gaining confidence in your own abilities.

• A note on apps:

  • Today’s apps offer access to information the likes of which the industry has never seen.  While apps like Vivino, Delectable, and more are fantastic for logging your bottles, keeping notes, and networking with fellow wine-obsessed folks, please use caution when looking for educational resources.  These are generally not a good source of objective information.  I can’t tell you how many wines I’ve seen listed with the wrong grapes, regions, or descriptions – but feel free to use them as record-keeping and community resources!

• When it comes to tasting notes, please rely on your own personal research and tasting experience rather than those of others.  Taste is not objective.  Even wine professionals disagree (often!) on what they personally enjoy, so simply following strangers’ opinions of what is “worth the money,” “good” (an immensely complicated subject), or tastes a certain way is completely subjective.

 Wow, I’ve learned a ton! How do I learn more about different winemaking regions and what all’s out there?

        Congratulations on gaining more confidence with wine tasting and analysis!  Here are the next steps on your path to ultimate wine geekdom.

• Get deeper and use them to learn where your wines are from – country, region, subregion – and see what professional writers are saying about those areas.

  • Start with one country, rather than tackling the winemaking world all at once. This gives you a smaller focus and a specific place to start. Once you better understand the structure of one country’s winemaking, you have far better context for studying another.

• Search for books* or reputable sites** with information about the region.  

• Some ideas for deeper research:  What grapes grow there?  What is the climate like?  What is the notable geography?  What soils can be found here?  Who are the historical producers?  The renegades?  What is the region’s history?

• *My personal favorites: Wine for Dummies (despite the name, a fantastic place to start), The Wine Bible by Karen MacNeil, The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson & Jancis Robinson, The Oxford Companion to Wine by Jancis Robinson & Julia Harding, Windows on the World by Kevin Zraly, and The Science of Wine by Jamie Goode.

• **Reputable sites include: WineFolly.com, JancisRobinson.com, WineSearcher.com
  Many regions and appellation consortiums have their own websites as well: loirevalleywine.com, for example, or chianticlassico.com. These are the best resources for up-to-date regional information.

        Taste some more! As you explore a region more deeply, try to taste your wines side-by-side.  Here are some ideas for your experimentation - and don’t forget to take notes!

• Compare the same grape from neighboring regions

• Compare the same grape made by different producers/methods/styles

• Taste different styles from the same sub-region

• Wine is all about enjoyment – so it can be a fun practice to try out different pairings with all the wines you taste. Keep track of what works and what doesn’t, what surprises you, and of course, do a little research once you have your own opinions.

• Try out different food components: fat, protein, acid, salt, heat, umami, sweet

• Cheese, meat (fresh/cured), fruit, mushrooms, olives, peppery crackers… if you have it, give it a shot!

        I hope you find this guide both enlightening and exciting! Feel free to jump in wherever feels comfortable and take it one step at a time. As always, please feel free to reach out by email or this site’s contact form with any questions.

Cheers for now!

Welcome!

Welcome to The Virtual Wine School’s blog! For its inaugural post, it feels appropriate to say a little about my personal approach to wine, and how these classes initially came about.

Before I worked in wine, I assumed I would end up working in a field tied to the liberal arts: drawing/painting, film, philosophy, language — if there was something to interpret and explore to infinite depths, I was interested in it. Looking back, it’s really no surprise that I eventually found my way to the wine industry. As a combination of science (geology, geography, climate, biology, chemistry), philosophy, language, and sensory perception, it offers an endless number of avenues to explore, none of which can possibly be exhausted. But beyond all this, it is something physical and impermanent, quite literally created to be consumed. It is social, fascinating, transportive. And as much as I value the knowledge that I have accumulated and continue to seek out, it is these more intangible qualities that truly inspire me.

It’s not a new concept to discuss wines in terms of personality. A juicy, refreshing, fruited white as a light-hearted friend ideal for casual gatherings; a niche, savory, nervy pale red as the funky art kid you want to hang out with; a smoky, velvety, deep red as the trusted confidant who seems to slow down time. But there’s more to it than style. Something between acidity, body, and minerality — there can be a sense of energy or tension in a wine, something that escapes formalized wine tasting sheets. Fruit can feel more alive, or less. It’s common to talk about a sense of cohesion or a sense of place, but I can’t help but feel that there’s more at play than plain quantitative assessment and the coming together of “parts” like body, fruitiness, and structure.

I’ve been lucky to work with incredibly curious, intelligent, and thoughtful people, a number of whom I helped to educate as part of a restaurant’s wine team. There has been no reward in my career greater than watching someone have their “a-ha” moment: the switch flips and a light bulb goes off. They catch a glimpse of something: liveliness, personality, imagery. I remember my own experiences of “Wine can do that?” — a thought that still comes to mind in moments of pure beauty, clarity of expression, or overwhelming force. It doesn’t take anything more than intentional tasting and exploring the aisles less traveled.

This is what I hope to give to others: the opportunity to have those “a-ha” experiences. Wine is analyzed, traded, marketed, written about, idolized, scoffed at, taken for granted. What other beverage creates such dichotomy? My aim is to make wine as accessible as any other beverage and spread honest, contextualized knowledge that empowers the public to decide for themselves what they do or don’t like, yet also to convey its infinite potential of expression. With confidence comes the willingness to branch out and see more of what the world of wine has to offer. If we pay attention with curious and open minds, it will continue to surprise us.