Recovering from the Holidays - Tasting Blind...

Setting up

The Goddess of Wine had a rambunctious crowd of tasters at the Morro Bay Wine Seller, all eager to test their sensory perceptions about wine. The initial 8 wines were bagged for security reasons, and #FirstAcolyte, JD, pre-poured all the wines before the class took their seats.

Everyone received tasting grids on which to write their notes, as well as aroma charts to help them with descriptors and vocabulary. The results were, as always, fun and interesting. Several individuals were delighted to discover their strengths; others realized they needed more practice.

Wining in Santa Barbara...World of Pinot Noir...

The Goddess of Wine was very happy to be able to attend the annual World of Pinot Noir, held this year for the first time at the Bacara Resort & Spa in Santa Barbara. WOPN has been considered the crème de la crème of single varietal events for several years, and I have always wanted to go. Some background from the website:

"Our mission is to bring Pinot Noir producers from the most exceptional and unique regions in the world together with Pinot Noir enthusiasts for a weekend of celebration and education on the shores of California's beautiful Central Coast.

Our annual event takes place at the beginning of March and includes two days of in-depth Tasting seminars and excursions, Grand Tastings, a Burgundy seminar and tasting and gourmet, locally-influenced lunches and dinners. These extraordinary food and wine extravaganzas will be hosted by participating wineries and feature an outstanding panel of sommeliers from across the U.S.

The World of Pinot Noir was established in 2001 by a small but dedicated group of winemakers from California’s South Central Coast. We are a non-profit 501 (c) (6) trade organization."

Wining thankfully...

Yep, it's that time of year again. Articles abound - what wine to pair with turkey, what recipes to use, what we're thankful for. Christmas music fills the air...etc.

I'm thankful, too. Thankful that I get to play in the wine biz - tasting great wines and delicious foods, hanging with winemakers and writers and enthusiasts, dreaming of the day I can put the day job aside and focus 100% on wine.