Wine And The Single Girl - Burgundian Babe

All too many times I have gone on dates with men who have said they love wine, and have been brutally disappointed when they order a bottle of some mundane California Cabernet like Silver Oak. I’m sorry, but I thought you were trying to impress me? Did you do your homework? Didn’t I mention that my cats are named Monte after Batard-Montrachet—the crème de la crème of white Burgundy—and Pinot Noir after, well, the Holy Grail of wines? You’d think a guy would have enough common sense at least to order French wine, if not something from the Burgundy region. Go directly to foodie jail. Do not pass GO. Do not collect $200. And, do not expect a second date! 

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Wine and the Single Girl: Que Syrah, Shiraz

Summer is here and what better way to mingle and meet other single people than at a wine tasting event. I thought I'd give it a try and check out the SummerTASTE event at The Grove in Los Angeles. Learn About Wine is hosting this wonderful wine tasting series on the first Wednesday of every month from May through October. It's lots of fun, very affordable ($50 in advance for food and wine), and it helps raise money for the TJ Martell Foundation for Children's Cancer and Aids Research. Don't miss out on their next event. It's on June 1st and it's called "Chardonnay vs ABC (anything but Chardonnay)". Maybe I'll see you there. All this wine talk has me thinking about one of my favorite songs...

Party crasher, penny snatcha'
Call me up if you are gangsta'
Don't be fancy
Just get dancey
Why so serious?
So raise your glass if you are wrong
In all the right ways
All my underdogs, we will never be, never be
Anything but loud
And nitty gritty dirty little freaks
Won't you come on, and come on, and
Raise your glass
Just come on and come and
Raise Your Glass!

                ~ Pink 

Wine and the Single Girl: Split Decision

I was recently given a half bottle of 1966 Chateau Lafite Rothschild by a suitor. He received an A+ in the gift-giving department, but failed in other equally important areas. I have yet to open the bottle, because I am saving it for a special occasion – a night when I have depleted all other splits from my personal inventory. 

As a single girl, I move through the half bottles in my wine fridge quicker than the full bottles, rarely wanting to consume an entire bottle when home alone, which tragically happens all to often. When going out, we single women often dine alone or with a girlfriend. Either way, the volume of wine consumed (unless going through a break up and/or having a nervous breakdown) is usually limited to a glass and a half each due to the weight/alcohol/sloppy-drunk ratio. 

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Wine and the Single Girl: Hit & Melisse

I am a single girl who loves wine and appreciates a good list. The first time I experienced Melisse in Santa Monica was on a date. The garish purple décor had me worried, but one look at the scruffy sommelier who vaguely resembles a younger, sexier Gerard Depardieu had me reassured. My immediate thought was: if the food and wine are anywhere near as French as this guy, we’re in for an amazing evening. A few minutes later, he walked over to our table and introduced himself in the thickest Michigan accent as Brian from Detroit. All ambiance was lost, but my confidence was immediately regained as I perused his impressive, well-balanced wine list. 

We started the evening with a glass of brut rosé Champagne. This allowed me time to peruse the list, while my date could peruse me.  After spending a good fifteen minutes jabbering with Brian about his unusual selection of Northern Rhone wines, I suddenly realized that I had become the a**hole who obsesses over the wine list and has esoteric, haughty conversations with the sommelier while completely ignoring his, or in this case her, dinner guest. I had become a pretentious wine geek; part of me was embarrassed while another part was proud of being able to speak this elite language of wine. Needless to say, my date had been left in the terroir dust.

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