Michael Perlis: Why do you drink wine?

I was recently having a conversation with a much younger female friend. We were discussing a mutual male friend, also very young, who is very fond of, shall we say, herbal pursuits rather than liquid ones.

My friend’s comment about our mutual acquaintance was that as long as she has known this person, he has liked the feeling of being “buzzed”, similar to the effect from wine that she and I enjoy.

As I said, this friend is much younger.

My reasons for drinking wine are a lot different. At least, I like to think they are.

At some point, we graduate, I suppose, from the desire to achieve alcoholic bliss to the desire to appreciate the other aspects that wine has to offer:

The delightful nuances that vary from bottle to bottle, varietal to varietal, winery to winery, and vintage to vintage.
The pleasure of discovering new wines and wineries.
The enhancement that wine brings to the meal.

And most importantly, the enjoyment one gets sharing wine with family and friends.

Our palates evolve.

When the first accidental fermentations took place, the “buzz” was the most important thing.  And the wine had flavors added to make it more palatable, so it sure wasn’t the wine we are used to now.

But now, we are blessed, as truly never before, with an amazing range of high quality wines from all over the world, with varietals and styles to suit every palate, whether a beginner or a seasoned veteran.

Alcohol is still, of course, an important factor. After all, it is a product of the fermentation that creates this remarkable potable. And I am especially aware of the higher alcohols that are often characteristic of the wines I am particularly fond of – Zins, Syrahs, and Petites. If you wish, blame it on the longer hang times necessary to get that maximum ripeness, resulting in higher sugar content which results in higher alcohol.

But, it would be disingenuous to deny the physical feeling of well-being, along with the emotional ones, that one gets when enjoying wine.

Why do you drink wine?

Michael Perlis provides outsourced controller services to businesses that do not need a full-time controller. He balances this with his interest in wine: reading and writing about it and, of course, drinking it. He is still trying to figure out how to combine these two pursuits. Feel free to contact him about either at mcpfinancial@aol.com or michaelthezinfan@aol.com.