I'm 22 and interested in learning about wine but I was told I was too young. An older, very impatient, man told me i needed to wait 10 to 20 years to fully appreciate wine. He worked at a wine depot and wouldn't help me!
Can you be too young?
And how/where do I start, since I wasn't able to receive any help by an "expert."
i've tried a few different wines and i was not particularly impressed with any of the "lighter" (?) ones. but i really liked the bottle of ravenswood vintners blend (?) shiraz i bought.
but i have no direction and don't really know what my taste preferences mean at this point.
First of all, the idiot should be unemployed! If he blew off a consumer of legal age in my wine store (if I had one) he'd be on the street in a heartbeat.
Both my daughters began tasting and enjoying wine well before their 21st birthdays. I wish I'd started when I was as young as you!
Find a new store. If you'll post your location, I'm sure someone here can make a recommendation in your area.
PH
Posts: 9259 | Location: Maryland, USA (DC suburbs) | Registered: Nov 22, 2003
Younger people have sharper senses than old people, you will get more out of the wine at a sensory level than an old fart.
Developing expertise takes experience, so the younger you start the earlier you will 'get' the full wine experience.
It took me about 4 or 5 years of tasting many different wines to reach the stage where I started feeling confident in my ability to properly taste and appreciate wine. It doesn't matter when you start it will take several years to gain enough experience to fully appreciate wine.
It was my Uncle George who discovered that alcohol was a food well in advance of modern medical thought. - P. G. Wodehouse
Posts: 3386 | Location: Brisbane, Qld, Australia | Registered: Jan 06, 2003
When I one day have children, I will let them taste a sip of wine at dinner when they are 12. (Not drink mind you) By 18 my kids will have a greater understanding than that medievalist wine depot emplyee can ever hope to achieve.
Brandi, wine is first and foremost about enjoying. If that was his attitude, you probably already know more about wine than him.
Just keep an open mind, and if anyone else gives you lip, taste more.
Posts: 1461 | Location: Sydney, NSW, Oz | Registered: Jun 03, 2003
Brandi, nothing more to add to the above responses except to welcome you to the boards and to suggest that you print this thread off, take it to the wine depot and shove it up his... . . . . . . . . . . . ... nose. The guy is an idiot.
but i have no direction and don't really know what my taste preferences mean at this point.
Don't worry about what your taste preferences mean. They'll probably change as you go along. Just try as many things as you can. Take notes. I wish I'd started this sooner. Attend tastings (in stores or restaurants,) get together with friends and share a few bottles. Finding a good store with a supportive and knowledgeable staff is a big help.
Any forumites in the Norfolk/Portsmouth VA area have any suggestions on good retailers?
PH
Posts: 9259 | Location: Maryland, USA (DC suburbs) | Registered: Nov 22, 2003
Originally posted by brandi: I'm 22 and interested in learning about wine but I was told I was too young. An older, very impatient, man told me i needed to wait 10 to 20 years to fully appreciate wine. He worked at a wine depot and wouldn't help me!
Can you be too young?
And how/where do I start, since I wasn't able to receive any help by an "expert."
the old fart prolly thought you were some college dork who thought enjoying alcohol meant shotgunning a can of Budweiser. Tell the old far to get lost!!! You are never too young (ok... maybe not) to learn about good wine... but if you have the maturity and the good sense to learn good wines.. then you wont be the college dork who shotguns cans of budweiser. I would think that the old fart in the wine store would be HAPPY to educate young ppl on GOOD wines!!
For starters.. find a wine tours and do that. I love the Madera Wine trails... Mmmmm good wine good food!
I'd suggest two things. First, VA has a good reputation for wine, I'd visit some local wineries and see what tickles your fancy. Second, go to some tastings. They tend to cost in the $30 range, you get fed and try a bunch of different wines. Here is a link I use:
I remember at Richmond International Airport (tee hee hee) that they were trying to flog Virginia Claret at $30 per bottle. I can get proper Claret for that price. Decided that my policy of buying from wherever I've been could take a hike on this occasion.
Of course there are several Total Wine outlets in the area. There's also PJ Baggan on Laskin in Virginia Beach. It's about a mile in from the beach proper on the North Side of Laskin next to a really wierd eclectic furniture store.
Also, keep in mind that in the countries with the greatest appreciation for wine, the young people do indeed drink wine (France, Spain, Italy). Maybe it is precisely the attitude of the idiot at the store that keeps this country from becoming a wine savy nation. Start enjoying wine when you are of legal age, and by the time you are 30, you will know a lot about wine. This will make your wine drinking experience more pleasurable for the rest of your life. Cheers!
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www.VinoCritic.Com
Posts: 999 | Location: Southern California | Registered: Mar 01, 2006
my son is 24 and he too has started getting intrested in wine.I seem to get a call once every 4 days from him about what wines to buy.I can always count on a good ca. cab from him on holidays.
A visit to the wrong VA winery could put Brandi off of wines for the rest of her life!!
Pa-leease!