Editorial Comments:  The recent workshop, "Wine Appreciation" given by yours truly in the Oakland/San Leandro, California area seemed to be successful, not just financially but also educationally.  (see the pictures below)  The presenter, who faced an audience which ranged from experienced wine enthusiasts to young novices, was challenged to try to keep everyone interested.  So, just to be on a safe side, we began with Wine 101, and moved on to more advanced topics as the presentation progressed.  Sample questions discussed in this workshop were as follows:

• Why are some wines more expensive than others?
• What are "balance", "body", "leg", "tear", "aftertaste", "tannic", etc.?
• Is old wine always best?  How should wine be stored?
• Which is better:  wood cork, synthetic cork, or screw cap?

Fun fact:  Guess approximately how many grapes it takes to make just one bottle of wine.  24, 100, or 240 grapes?  More than that?  Actually, it is approximately 600 grapes!  I would not have believed this until I made my own Pinot Noir wine recently.  I grew three plants and they produced a barrel of about 13 pounds of grapes.  I assumed it would give me two gallons of wine but as it turned out, I got only 4/5 liter (equivalent to one standard 750 ml bottle)!  I have come to appreciate the hard labor involved in all wineries so that we can enjoy a bottle of fine wine!

Answer to the trivia question from the last issue:  The experts tend to agree that California's best wine comes from: a) Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.  This wine is often favorably compared with the France's most prized wine found in the Bordeaux region.  Cabernet is considered the king of red wine varietals.  At its best, California's Cabernet is an elegant, highly structured wine that over time, becomes satiny, rich, and extremely complex.

Today’s trivia question:  Which of the following rules for wine tasting is incorrect?:

a) white wine first and then red last
b) young wine first and then old wine
c) dry wine first and then sweet wine
d) chew mints to clean your palate and tongue between tasting wines.
     ( answer in the next Deaf Grapevine newsletter, January/February/March '08 )

Gallery of Photos on DCARA Wine Appreciation Workshop   (photos by Ronald M Hirano)