On The Right Track

I noticed that Gruet Winery, which makes a sparkling wine that I enjoyed and recommended, has been specifically mentioned in two of my wine books. It's a thrill that my student's palate was able to pick out something that experts identify as uncommonly good! I do most of my wine-tasting alone, because I just moved to a new city and my boyfriend doesn't like wine. Sometimes I worry that tasting wine in relative isolation will lead to solipsistic mistakes. I actively try not to be influenced by expert opinions: Reviews have a power of suggestion over my tasting, and I find that I do a better job exploring a wine when I haven't yet heard someone else's opinion. I attempt to read about a grape, region and winemaking practice for background (so that I know what I'm looking for), then taste a wine and write notes on it before I read reviews of it. (This is a general guideline, it's not like I actively avoid wine reviews all the time, far from it!) I use my books for background, not to look up individual wineries. But it sure was fun to notice a familiar name, and then see it again when I went looking for it! Gruet was an easy name to remember because they are the only wine I'd ever heard of that is made in New Mexico.