Wine Not?

“Wine is constant proof that God loves us and likes to see us happy.”

-- Benjamin Franklin

Holidays are looming. Time to think about wine. To give, receive, share, store, sip, sip and sip. Mmmm.

If you need evidence that the world is a bountiful place, take stock of the endless amounts of good wine available in the most convenient places-- the corner store, restaurants, local wineries, and especially the Internet. Wine web stores are everywhere, sprouting up like vines planted in coffee sludge.

Wine culture has come along way since 1970’s “white wine and cheese parties,” where people muttered, “fantastic” while sipping Gallo Sauvignon Blanc and tasting Cheddar or Munster cheese. Doctors now discuss the number of glasses one should consume on a daily basis to keep the heart healthy and other benefits of the fruit of the vine. I don’t mind, it just means more wine shopping. Let’s go!

I have a preference for low-yield, family run vineyards because their wines provide better quality control and usually feature traditional vinification techniques (oak barrels rather than stainless steel, hand-picking and pruning, etc.) So, in an effort to help you discover non-mass produced, quality wine, I offer to you an intriguing wine store that sells wine and wine baskets with select wines and gourmet foods (and none of that Yellow Tail stuff…yuck), Atasteofcalifornia.com. Their wine clubs are what I enjoy most. Wine clubs are fun; sign up, pay a monthly fee, and have two or more wines, selected by your wine club connoisseur, delivered to your door.

At Atasteofcalifornia.com, you have a choice of three wine clubs ranging in price from $19.98 to $39.98 per month. The California Wine Club, at $19.98 per month, gets you two California-based wines from family run vineyards in California only. The World Classics Wine Club sends you two wines from around the world that feature the heavy hitter grape varietals such as Australian Shiraz, Tempranillo from Spain, Italian Nebbiolo, or Riesling from Germany, to name a few. Join The Connoisseurs Club ($39.98), a step up with “rarely available masterpieces” for special occasions.

Allow Mr. John D. Davis, and his award-winning Wine Panel at Atasteofcalifornia.com to help you find quality wine at affordable prices. Their website provides a monthly newsletter, gift ideas, recipes for wine and food pairing, and even links to other wine and gift stores. The wine world is so vast and full of detail, I don't mind letting a wine connoisseur make informed decisions for me. I mean, how does a novice with interest differentiate between, wines from, California, Argentina, South Africa or Greece? A one-month trial is certainly worth the discovery of a new hobby or obsession! Atasteofcalifornia.com wine clubs do not require a membership fee, and they ship for free on the first order.

Fantastic!

-Jennie D.