12.27.05
Of wine et al.
I was invited over by my land lords for the Christmas dinner.I would not have missed it for the world.For one, the husband is a very good cook, and the other my land lady is an awesome hostess.
Then it was present opening time.I love that part!Who ever said giving is better that recieving..lied!..But when my land lords saw what I had got them,I knew they were really happy.The genuine glee and thank-you beats any gift I could have ever recieved.I bought them crystal goblets (for shiraz wines) and wine to go.
I am so glad I pulled it off, I am not really a wine expert.
My first wine tasting/drinking experience was in Medical School.Yeah all bad habits start there.Its no hidden fact that doctors drink the most,smoke the most, abuse drugs the most and kill themselves the most.It was more out of a challenge,I didn’t know why people drank and what was the fun in getting sloshed or come back puking from a party. “T’is the HIGH lady and you wont know unless you try.”Ok I thought, bought the cheapest red wine I could find in Pokahara.And yes you guessed it I didn’t get a second sip down my throat.The rest of the bottle, of red god knows what went down the drain.
When I first arrived in London, my group at St George’s was hanging out one evening.I do believe we were celebrating some thing.Can’t quite remember what.This is a social culture that amuses me most about England..(tsk tsk its far worse in Scotland and Ireland I hear!!).You want to meet up with old buddies; you meet over drinks, want to meet up new collegues; you meet over drinks, farewell party; over drinks, welcome party; over drinks;meeting for dinner; gather over drinks,just party; over drinks.
So there we were, my first ever to a pub in England.Now I have had some experience with alcohol so I thought I will be fine.Then came the question:
Bar tender(BT):What would you like to drink?
Me:Right, wine would be nice. (I thought)
BT:Red or white? dry medium sweet, or Rose?
..and when he didn’t stop,..I gave him that look, like I need rescuing here because I have no freaking clue.Well he just waited for me to tell him.
Me: I’ll have white- sweet.
Is all I could come up with.. since my red bitter wasn’t all that grand a experience.
BT:.Hmm that is dessert wine my dear, you sure you want to have that?
Me: Right so what should I have?
BT: I’ll say go for white medium, ladyzz like that.
Me:Ok what would you have.
BT: I prefer dry wine
Me:Ok so white wine dry it is.
BT:Large or small?
Me: Huh??
White wine and I did well that evening.I really do believe thats the only reason I prefer white wine over red.
Few months ago, I was meeting some American friends and their Argentinian friends over an Argentinian meal.It was a drink and food gallore.Argentinian wines are quite famous apparently. I had no idea.Since I have always maintained that I prefer white to red and I was the only one on the table of 14 who raised her hand for a choice of white wine, I was made to do the honours of tasting the wine before it getting served.Darn the Argentinian hospitality.Well quite honestly that is a useless excercise when it comes to me.But what the heck, I know how to take a wiff, sip the wine and swirl it around your tongue.Or does the tongue go round the wine..Well whatever.I did do the honours.And no I didn’t get a wiff of apricot and fresh lemon and no it didn’t remind me of the spring flowers or taste zesty or whatever blah blah that connoisseur said..It tasted well-chilled and fresh.Ya fresh! Thats the best I can do.I was thirsty and I was sure it would go down well with all that meat staring into my face.
Few weeks back I was meeting some body, over dinner, for the first time.We did very well for the first few hours I will admit.We had a lot in common.It always helps to meet some one from your own city.We laughed silly the entire evening.I even told him about my wine fiasco at the first time in a pub in this country .Out of all the things we talked about, we both agreed that the whole wine culture and all that tasting before you finally order your wine was just jazz! It doesn’t make any sense and we were both happy to have met each other.2 people who were accepting hands down they were an ignorant lot.It was nice.
Then dinner happened. We decided to go for Thai.And since we had talked so much about wine we decided to go for a whole bottle.I asked him, to be polite, what he would prefer, red or white?And he goes,”One always choses wine depending on what food they eat.Since its Thai we shall go for red… Whokay..mylord!!!????Phew..
Then came last week.I definitely wanted to buy my land lords a Christmas gift.I may not be very good with wines, but I can safely say I am good with gifts…( except the one time when I sent my best friend the 10th anniversary book of her favourite cartoon when the 15th anniversary book was getting released).After a little bit of looking around the house, several dinners with my land lords,I knew exactly what I was going to get them for Christmas.I was sure of what I wanted, where I wanted it from.All I had to do was actually get there and pay the money and bring back the goods.
While paying at the till, the guy behind it..looked at the things I had picked and said,”Wicked choice, good stuff!”
Now I don’t know if thats what he said to every customer that passed his till, or he knew I had needed to hear that becasue I must have looked nervous, or he really thought so.I just smiled.
Rohit Talwar said,
December 27, 2005 at 10:56 pm
ME FIRST!
ok lemme read it now..
Rohit Talwar said,
December 27, 2005 at 11:19 pm
interesting post!
i also started in high school!! =D
educatedunemployed said,
December 28, 2005 at 12:29 am
Hey Rohit,
LOL,no competition on this blog.Nice to see the enthusiasm.Thanks!
High School??? you are on a fast track aren’t you??
Japna said,
December 28, 2005 at 10:12 am
hehehe!
Well I can tell you my first eperience of wine was with RED and it sucked! so i completely relate with you. By the way i can never understand this thing about ordering the wine according to your food.
vishwa said,
December 28, 2005 at 2:14 pm
Edu,
i had my first and last taste of beer when i was 6 or 7, and i still remember the ‘yuck’ feeling on my tongue.
Hope you had a great christmas!
educatedunemployed said,
December 28, 2005 at 8:32 pm
Japna:
Hi, neither can I.But I have come to feel that all Italian, continental food, fish go well with white and spicy,with strong flavours go well with red.I have also come to realise that understanding and liking wine is an art.
Vishwa:
Thats way bit too early..Ya many a good drinkers have told me that beer needs a lot of learning to like it.Why bother I say, when there is good ol’ water for rescue!
Rohit Talwar said,
December 29, 2005 at 1:40 am
#sure its an art!
and..err..me on a fast track…hehe.. =D
WishfulThinker said,
December 29, 2005 at 2:43 am
I like wine! And I can’t for the life of me pretend to appreciate it! So far, I haven’t had a bad experience with it! *fingers crossed* My fondest memories of wine are linked to wine making sessions that buddies of mine would have in our hostel. Imagine the havoc that ten alcoholics can create with fifty liters of hostel-made wine! Cheers!
Ginkgo said,
December 29, 2005 at 4:05 am
rofl..nice blog…
To be on the safer side, I always ask for the waiters choice
that way I get to taste what all he suggests and then pick one out of that…
Read one of ur older posts..Im ok u r ok’
lolz, that was hilarious as well.
Thought u were referring to that book that I had long back…
interesting read, neverthless..
Got reminded of the dissections that I had to undergo, when in school doing the Biology lab practicals…dissecting a rat cockroach et all..
Worst was the fact, that the lab was just before our lunch session..
and any amount of scrubbing will not take the smell of ur hand..
yikes!
educatedunemployed said,
December 29, 2005 at 7:18 am
Rohit:
Oh yeah..:p
wishfulthinker:
I like wine too.I may be a shade better,but lucky you..Or is it that you will drink anything with 11% alcohol in it?I did read your blog ‘With a little help from my friends’
Ginkgo:
Thanks..:)
^To be on the safer side …
either that or order house wine.Its usually mild, not to mention the least expensive.
^yikes!
You bet!
Vikram said,
December 29, 2005 at 8:49 am
Hahaha…that was funny…it reminded me of the first time i tried wine…i think i was in the 7th grade and was invited to a christmas party…i go there and find a girl from my class…and she sees me drinking wine and the next day..all girls give me the “shaarabi” look…haha..
YOGI said,
December 29, 2005 at 11:46 am
That was good read.
WishfulThinker said,
December 29, 2005 at 1:12 pm
I dont restrict myself to percentages! As long as it has has alochol, I’ll drink it! And if it doesn’t have too much alcohol, then I’ll just drink lots and lots of it!!
But I still prefer whisky if I’m drinking liquor though. No, beer is not liquor. Nor is wine. 
lazy leo said,
December 29, 2005 at 4:12 pm
Hi gal,
found you!! (humse chhup ke kahaan jaogi?)
i prefer red wine to white….maybe coz it’s sweeter? (oohh…probably sacriledge to real wine lovers)….and i will never for the life of me understand why people like beer…
I quite like Malibu, Pina Colada and Bailey’s…..sherry is ok……and therein ends my 1st hand knowledge of alcohol….
my tryst with ethanol started only about 2 years ago and the only time i got wee bit drunk was last new year…(wo to company ka bhi asar tha!)…let’s see what happens this year….. by the way, you’re right…we two have yet to meet up for drinks (the english way!)…though the lassi that day was good too…
educatedunemployed said,
December 29, 2005 at 9:35 pm
Vikram:
In 7th even I would have given a boy my class a sharabi look.Its amazing how times, social circles and experience change one’s take on things.
Yogi:
Thanks.
Wishfulthinker:
Hmm I see the loyalty to alcohol.I figure with 50 litres of hostel made wine amongst 10 guys,you must have an appetite for it.
And thanks for the gyan.:)
Lazy-leo:
Heyyyyyyyyy.Was not hiding any where.Welcome to my blog.
Hmm, I like that comapny you are referring to.That company makes the sparkle brighter.
You bet , we haven’t had ‘drinks’ together ever..We should, before I leave.
stillthinking said,
January 1, 2006 at 12:44 am
hehehe
thought this would be an appropriate link for this post:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/12/29/wine.tech.ap/index.html
and BTW, there is no fifteenth anniversary edition of C&H. The tenth was the one, and only. yet another misunderstanding over IM. i meant my copy of it was 5 years old, hence tattered and blah blah blah..the rest is history.
keep up the good work
n
7:08 PM