2006
California
"I tasted - careless - then -
I did not know the Wine Came once a World - Did you?
Oh, had you told me so -
This Thirst would blister - easier - now"
-Emily Dickinson 1830 - 1886
No. 296 [c.1861], st. 3
Wine is a curious drink. It's really hard to review or blog knowing someone may buy a wine based on what you have to say when different people have different tastes. Add to it food and you've got another obstacle to consider. Add to it yet again - atmosphere (company, solitude, music, a good book, a warm fire - you get the drift) and you're in a new dimension. This wine was an example of how atmosphere can either take away from a wine or add to it.
I stepped back in time in so many nostalgic ways as I took my children to the home of my best friend from high school. She lives by my mother's old high school stomping grounds, and around the bend from my grandparents beautiful home of so many memories (long since sold). We picked up my friend's daughter at a horse camp in MY old hometown of first really happy memories - Glastonbury. I was raised in a duplex on a horse farm and loved that gorgeous animal from age 2 on. So, I was in heaven as there were almost 40 horses there, and I think we visited each one. The smell of a horse's neck hits my senses like the bouquet of a great wine. My eldest child inherited my equine love and was equally happy. My other two children were content to get to brush a couple of horses and "take care of them".
We went back to my friend's for dinner and, while our girls sat playing cards and laughing, eating popcorn and drinking soda, she and I sat by the pool, listening to classic Rolling Stones, and drank Papio Pinot Grigio. It struck me as I was driving home that night how the wine didn't have to be good. It was cold, melon-like in taste, slightly dry, but more sweet - possibly even headache material for me later. I wasn't knocked over by it, but I enjoyed it anyway. It was the atmosphere, the atmosphere was key. My friend and I don't talk sometimes for a year or more - I sometimes even get bent out of shape about it and think I won't knock myself out pursuing getting together (yes, I am unfortunately high maintenance). Then she calls me, or I even call her out of the blue and just arrange a time. And it's as if no time has passed. The imperfections that may exist from time to time fade away and no longer matter. We're together again, unconditionally, emotional, reminiscing, confiding. This wine was like that for me. It's imperfections faded away as I sat side by side with my Soul Sister once again.
As I did not purchase this wine, I went online looking for pricing and came across the following review by someone else (LOL):
"Tastes like licking the floor of a factory that made green apple jolly ranchers but stopped some time ago."
Seriously, it was not THAT bad! Actually, that was a review for the 2005 Pinot. So, perhaps a year made a slightly positive difference. In addition, Papio Wines supports primate conservation which is pretty cool indeed.
7.25 out of 10
$10.99 or less / 1.5L bottle
12.5% alc. by vol.
http://www.papiowines.com/
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