Heading in Barefoot

Before I came to college, I don't think I'd be in a class called "Geography of Wine".  I never thought I was interested in geography or becoming a wine snob.  Well, here I am four years later planning wine tastings, wine dinners, winery visits, and the whole nine yards.

As a college kid who wastes her money on things she doesn't need and runs into problems every month when bills show up, I have to keep my wine purchases, and alcohol purchases in general, on the very down low.  So, I wouldn't be the most sophisticated wine drinker.  Barefoot wine, Sutter Home, YellowTail (although that's when I'm feeling fancy and splurge a bit), Gallo Family, and anything else Kroger will give me for less than $10 are usually the extent of my palette.

As for the type of wine I usually drink, I go for fruity.  As we said in class, fruity is America's best friend; we like things sweet.  My favorite wine is White Zinfandel, while also going for Riesling, Moscato, and anything that has the word "sweet" in the name.  Over Christmas, I had a sweet red table wine from Chateau Morrisette, I believe, and actually liked it a lot.  So who knows, maybe by the end of the semester I won't just outwardly deny red wines simply because they're red.

This semester, I'm looking forward to learning more about what I'm drinking, what I'm reading, and how to be, well, a grown up. (Yes, I believe I will learn something about that from John Boyer)  My family doesn't drink wine, my mom doesn't really drink at all.  I don't have a lot of experience with wine, but have found that I like it a lot after many weekends drinking it.  I've also found that when I walk into a wine section of a grocery store, and even more intimidatingly, into somewhere like the Vintage Cellar, where I don't know what I'm looking at, I feel like a complete n00b. I don't want to be that.  I want to impress my friends and colleagues with my knowledge.

So, here's to a great semester learning all of the ins and outs of wines.  Come graduation, I'll be walking into the Vintage Cellar knowing exactly what I'm looking for. And I can't wait.