Editorial: Wine Tasting Then and Now

We have gone wine tasting for many years, decades actually.  It is our avocation and it enriches our lives.  As Americans, we taste the wines of California more frequently than any other part of Wine Country, but have also visited many other locations.  We often go to European destinations, especially in France and Italy.

But not this year.

Because of Covid-19, we have curtailed our travels and do not go to places with crowds.  We’re sure many of our readers are imposing the same restrictions on themselves.  So, for example, this will be our first year without wine tasting in California since 1976.  Alas, but there are worse fates than skipping tasting rooms and there have been too many sad cases to feel too sorry for ourselves.

Many wineries have been forced to close their tasting rooms for various periods of time.  As we write, many Napa and Sonoma wineries are open for seated tastings outdoors, by appointment only.  We’re sure that must be fun, in its way, but it is a different experience than the ones we have enjoyed over the years.

Like so many people, for reasons more important than wine tasting, we eagerly await the conquest of this disease so we can return to Wine Country.  In the meantime, we are supporting our favorite wineries by ordering remotely and refilling our cellar.  We’re making a point to open some of our better bottles and using wine to add pleasure to our lives.  We remain confident that there will be better time ahead and that we will see the vineyards in bloom again…soon.

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