Wine-ing

I am feeling a bit whiny. This is primarily because I am very impatiently waiting for my Monday appointment with the ENT. I'm sorry, but 2+ weeks is a little too long to wait to find out what that thing is that is growing on my parotid gland. Since I am basically a positive person (and, of course, I am positive it is a new version of cancer for my body to deal with), I'm going to transfer my whining to wine-ing.

My husband and I enjoy wine. From our earliest days together, we've gravitated towards wine producing vacation destinations and have spent many days tasting and exploring wine countries both in the States and in Europe. Through a chance encounter many years ago while swimming in Friend's Lake (hello, random!), Tom was able to turn his interest into a career in the wine business. After stints working as a sales rep for a distributor, and as Daniel Darves-Bornoz's "wine guy," he has been the Wine Director at Dale Miller Restaurant for the past year. Wifely pride aside, he has developed an excellent reputation for both his palate and his personality. You know how some of those "wine-guys" are insistent that they know what good wine is and you don't? Well, he isn't. If you like it, it's good - 'nuff said.

While I enjoy wine, sometimes I can be a bit particular and if I'm not enjoying a glass of wine, I'm not interested in drinking it. I generally prefer New World wines, although I am a sucker for Alsatian whites, obscure Italian whites (Pigato) and Amarones. One of the best things about living with a wine-guy is that we have, at least until the boys are old enough to indiscriminately drink it with their derelict friends, a large collection of bottles from which to choose. If Tom opens something and I don't like it, he doesn't hesitate to pull something else, which is really quite a luxury, yet another reason I consider myself to be a lucky girl.

He does these Tasting Tuesdays things down at DM and I was just looking over the schedule. I was trying to prioritize and limit myself to one or two of the tastings, but, honestly, for me, there are more reasons to go than there are to stay home. Especially when you're directly comparing number of children at home (3) to number of wines to be tasted (a minimum of 6 or 7). Factor in nibbling on Dale Miller's tasty food, instead of cajoling my boys to "just try one bite" of something I made at home, and there is a clear winner. So, if you're looking for me, I mean, trying to expand your wine knowledge, give DM a call and make a reservation - these things have been filling up way faster than the time between my doctor's appointments.