Michel Lelu, Pinot Noir, 2005, Bourgogne (France)
Now nine bottles into my wine drinking campaign, I think I’m beginning to absorb some of that esoteric wine knowledge that had always eluded me. For example, I’ve learned that French wine is distinguished by region more so than by grape, with certain grapes being common to certain regions. I also learned that Country Wine and Table Wine are actually indicative of the quality of the wine, not just a suggestion of where to drink it. This week, in honor of my upcoming trip to Paris, I selected a French Pinot Noir from the Bourgogne region. I found it to be a delightful red, far more mellow than the Cabernet Sauvignon. And unlike the disappointing Merlot, it really stood apart in flavor from the Cabernet … and it had a real cork!

I just submitted the final grades and I am officially done teaching my first class! Although my outer demeanor is reserved, I’m doing a crazy jig in my head. No more late nights of grading, no more weekends spent preparing lectures, no more worrying about students. I get to have a life again!

Exhale, sigh, relief.

Mountain View Vintners, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2002, California
Stew Leonard’s is know for giving away free food samples, and the Stew’s Wine Shop is no different. On a recent trip to the shop I was offered a free sample of this Cabernet Sauvignon and liked it so much I bought a bottle. It’s hard to say why, but this wine was just delicious. Easily the best I’ve tried. It was also the first bottle I bought that had a real cork instead of a synthetic one, so I must be drinking the high-brow stuff now!

Some random thoughts floating about my head this morning…

French is a really, really hard accent. It totally sucks. Words don’t sound anything like they are spelled. Not cool. I’m going to sound like such an American fumbling words in Paris.

Coffee is wonderful. (I think this every morning).

I like my job this morning.

JetBlue just bounced their founder from his CEO position … ouch. I’ve read so many articles about what a great CEO he was, how he revolutionized the airline industry, etc, etc. One bad quarter, a little bad press, 41 million in lost revenue, and yesterday’s hot shot is tossed to the curb.

Translation: I’m going to Paris!!!

Time to start practicing my French…

Au revoir.

Raymond Estates R Collection, Merlot, 2004, California
I was always under the impression that Merlot was the red wine to drink. That was until I watched the movie Sideways, in which the protagonist and wine connoisseur played by Paul Giamatti belts out this memorable line:

If anyone orders Merlot, I’m leaving. I am NOT drinking any fucking Merlot!

Apparently I wasn’t the only one who learned that Merlot was no longer the it wine; after the movie was released sales of Merlot began to suffer, a result of the so-called Sideways Effect. But regardless, it was time for me to indulge my taste buds with a bottle of the now shunned red stuff. I found it to be similar to the Cabernet, but with a little less punch. However the bottle I bought had a label that looked to be straight out of 80s glamour — perhaps fitting for a wine whose time, it seems, has passed.

Stone Valley White Zinfandel, 2004, California
What better way is there to start a wine tasting campaign than with something pink and sweet and unsophisticatedly yummy?

JSM Chardonnay, 2005, California
This Chardonnay was in a big display in the front of the store advertising it as highly recommended, but I found it to be tart and mostly unpleasant. As I sipped it, I longed for a bottle of the very drinkable “value wine” I had always known and loved. I found myself torn: was my palate that unsophisticated or had I simply been duped by the old trick of repackaging something nobody wants as a recommended item to move it off the shelves?

YellowTail, Shiraz, 2005, Australia
I think YellowTail is wine for people who are scared of fancy French names, which of course, makes it perfect for me. The bottles are nice looking without a hint of pretense. In fact they feature a kangaroo on the label and are color coded for easy wine selection.

La Brasserie, Rose, 2004, French Country Rose Wine
I’ve always associated Rose wine with the Billy Joel song Italian Restaurant (perhaps a bottle of Rose instead?). It turns out Rose wine tastes exactly as you might expect it would: like a mixture of red and white wine.

Stone Valley, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2004, California
Cabernet Sauvignon — the name just sounds like wine to me. The flavor was bold and spicy, my favorite bottle so far.

Glenn Ellen Reserve, Sauvignon Blanc, 2005, California
I’d had luck with a Sauvignon the previous week, so I decided to keep it going with a Sauvignon Blanc. I found it to be light and refreshing.