Thanks everyone for the welcome and info. This thread's going to get
buried so I'm hopping off now...

Oh yeah, thanks to UC also. He's fun to play with. I imagine he's this
cranky, self-referential expert in all matters. But at least he pipes
up and says what's on his mind, rude or not. I have to respect that, in
a way.

-ben

Ben Snyder wrote:
> Hello all
>
> Since I've asked a couple questions recently, I thought it would be a
> good idea to introduce myself.
>
> I'm a married guy (wife and four kids) in southern Vermont, USA. I've
> loved wine since I was old enough to drink it, though never really got
> too far into it. Started a very small collection, totaled about a case,
> about six years ago. At the time I liked Beaujolais-Villages, some
> light Cabs, and number one was Alsatian Gewurztraminer. After moving to
> VT and keeping only a few bottles from the collection, I found no one to
> enjoy wine with. Wife doesn't drink at all.
>
> Several months ago, my brother-in-law watched Sideways. He was so
> inspired by it that he came to visit, and declared we will now be wine
> aficionados. OK, no problem here. Since then, every week I have hosted
> a wine tasting/family meal for both of our families. Which is
> excellent, I love to cook, and of course wine :-)
>
> The good part of this is obvious - someone to enjoy wine with. Hardest
> part was getting brother-in-law off of the Pinot kick. Tasting pinots
> side by side every week gets a little tedious. Sideways, I love you and
> hate you... But thankfully now we have branched out into different
> wines. When I purchase a bottle of white, it's usually not embraced
> with open arms, though it does get tasted and enjoyed. The rose I have
> for today is really going to cause a stir...
>
> I happen to prefer reds as long as they are not too tannic, pretty much
> equal preference between a French style and California style. For
> whites, I still enjoy the rose and lychee nose of a good Gewurz, and
> Sauvignon Blanc on occasion. Only had one Chard which I enjoyed, but it
> was really, really good. I'm learning more about French wines, but
> Italian wines are still a mystery to me. And mostly I stick to the
> mid-grade wines, with the rare foray into the upper-mid grade offerings.
>
> After I get some more experience with coherent tasting notes, I'll be
> posting them.
>
> -ben