Wino

Today was one of those days where I desperately needed a glass of wine.   A day where you just needed something to take the "edge" off and the best medicine was wine.  

Do you remember those days where you'd look forward to Thursday night's and going out to the bars with your roommates and friends, letting loose after a long stressful week.   I loved those nights.    Unfortunately those college days are long gone and now replaced with happy hours and classy evenings drinking wine.   Which I prefer and love doing don't get my wrong.    

During college I was not your typical "college drinker."    Sure I played my fair share of drinking games but I was never your college drinks type of drinker.   No.   I was in my own league.   I was that girl who was carrying a bottle of Riesling during tailgate instead of an ice cold pack of beer, playing beer pong with wine in my cups, and even pre-drinking with wine.   What can I say.... I love wine.    On the evening I met my boyfriend, he offered to buy me a drink.   I stood there unsure of what to do.   The bar special was a glass of beer, a shot, or a glass of wine for a certain price.   I remember thinking to myself, just order the wine Jessica, you hate beer and don't like taking shots.  He won't care that you are a wine drinker.   So when I told him my reasoning  for ordering wine (because I love wine), he still to this day says from that moment he knew I was different and a girl to not let get away. 

Red, white, sparking, Chilean, sweet, dry, you name it, I will try it.   So far I have loved almost every type of wine I have tried.    One of the greatest things about wine is that for some people it is a hobby and a part of culture.   Wine making is an art and as I continue to expand my taste buds and understanding of wine, I find myself becoming more and more intrigued.   Learning how to pair certain wines with certain foods.   What a vintage wine means. (A "vintage wine" is one made from grapes that were all or mostly grown in a particular year, and labeled as such.)   How to choose a brand of wine and where they are grown the best.    How to "aerate" your wine and when to use a decanter.   I know I have a lot to learn and I look forward to expanding my knowledge with wine.

According to Urban Dictionary, I am somewhat of a wino; an alcoholic who believes drinking wine is justified because of its associated status among other types of alcohol.   I am mocking myself of course because sometimes my friends tease me for being such a wino.   I have never been the type of girl who craves a nice cold beer or a cosmopolitan when in need of a drink.   Instead my ideal drink is a nice cold glass of Gewurztraminer, which is one of the most famous wines of Germany (and I am German which is probably partly why I like it so much) and/or a nice room temperature glass of Merlot.   Delicious.

Having been a wino for a few years now, I have to admit that I feel empowered and classy when I hold a glass of wine.  I think people look extremely sophisticated when they are sipping wine out of their stemmed wine glasses.   May be that is a little weird but I don't care.   All I know is that little details truly make drinking wine such an art and a hobby of mine that I really enjoy.   I can't wait to grow into a wine connoisseur and hopefully make my own wine firsthand one day.    I am proud to be a wino and I am going to wine whenever I want too.

Are you a wino?   What is your favorite kind of wine?    How did you learn about wine?

"Wine makes daily living easier, less hurried, with fewer tensions and more tolerance." - Benjamin Franklin