My Own Type of Research

     Research is one of my favorite things to do, as long as it is the, "hands on" type of research. I have always been a most curious creature. From the time I could stick my nose into something, that is exactly what I could be found to be doing. My favorite question growing up besides, "What is in the refrigerator?" was "Why?" At present I am trying to learn something about wine. I have started to read  books, pamphlets, and backs of wine labels, Mostly I am working my way down the wine shelves at the local grocery stores. Considering the fact that I drink about 4-5 bottles of wine a year, it is going to be awhile before I can safely assume that I know anything about wines at all. I began my research with red wines. I like beef and it bleeds red so I bought red wine to go with it. Apparently that logic worked because the back of the labels on the wine bottles agreed with me. Continuing on with that logic, chicken, fish, and pork were paired with white wines. That worked out pretty good as well. I originally started with the cheap end of the spectrum in wines thinking that one wine maker was just as good as another, however that thinking was a big mistake. I realized it the next morning when I felt absolutely awful. I also shied away from the boxed wines as they reminded me a lot of the Boonesfarm mistake and I did not want to go there again. Ever. Having a completely biased opinion of my home state, and believing that everything good comes from home I searched online for a number of wineries in the state and found a list of them. I then nagged my local grocer into ordering some of them, and although they cost a bit more than I really want to pay, there are some really good wines that are grown and marketed right here in Maine. I sample wines alphabetically by country according to whatever meat I am eating at the time and so far I am finding that most of the time as far as wines go, I am making good decisions about them. Enjoying how a good wine well chosen, compliments a dinner, I have begun experimenting with the dessert wines, and have become obsessed with finding the perfect wine to go with chocolate anything. It may take me awhile but I really liking doing the research. I also am starting to throw a little wine into my dinners as they are cooking, I find that works as long as I am not heavy handed with it. I look forward to doing actual field work this coming summer to increase the knowedge that am acquiring on a bottley basis.