At First Sip
If you are like me, your first sip of alcohol was definitely not wine. If I recall, my first sip was a margarita. It was sweet enough to allow me to continue to sip, but strong enough to make the first sip count.
During college I was more of a vodka and cranberry or fruity mixed drink type of girl. Truth be told I didn’t really have a preference and usually just drank whatever someone offered. Wine was never my preference and I always thought wine was for old people.
My first true sip of wine didn’t occur until I graduated from college, started my first real job as a Medical Device Sales Rep, and attended my very first national training meeting in Phoenix Arizona. Now if you have ever been to a sales meeting you know they are not shy on the alcohol. I was the newest on the team and fresh out of college. I did my best to fit in, but when it came to ordering wine I had no idea what to order. I admitted to my new team members, “I don’t drink wine so I’m not sure what to order.” One sales rep suggested a White Zinfandel. They mentioned it’s a great start to drinking wine. So I ordered my first glass of White Zinfandel. I felt sophisticated, I felt a sense of pride, and I was loving it. The fruit and sweetness of White Zinfandel was somewhat similar to the fruity drinks I was used to.
In that moment White Zinfandel became my drink of choice. However, drinking wine usually only happened socially and I still consumed my fruity drinks whenever going out with friends.
Next I decided to explore a Riesling. I was in New York for New Years Eve at Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse. I tried to order a White Zinfandel and can you believe they didn’t have it on the menu? The server suggested a sweet Riesling to pair with my meal. I’m not sure what type of Riesling it was, but it was the perfect balance of sweetness and acidity that made the first sip of Riesling my new favorite. Sorry White Zin!
From that point on, I started exploring different wines, but it wasn’t until I became a server at Carrabbas Italian Grill that I started to really learn about wine. Part of the training for working at an Italian restaurant was learning about wine pairing. When to offer a Chianti vs. Pinot Grigio. Or when to suggest our house red vs. Chianti. I loved when customers would share how the wine paired with their Italian dish. This is when I started experimenting myself and pairing wine with food at home to determine how the wine paired with food and altered the first taste.
After learning and studying wine a little more, I decided to try a Zinfandel. My first sip of Zinfandel encountered a big, bold, high alcohol, and spicy wine. Zinfandel is definitely not for the faint of heart and definitely isn’t a wine I would recommend for anyone’s first sip of wine. However, it’s definitely my favorite. I like to enjoy it while watching my favorite show or just relaxing.
My first memory of wine is one I will cherish forever. While my palate doesn’t tend to like sweet wines as much now I think Riesling is a great white wine to try for new wine drinkers. It’s suitable for all sweetness levels and one can try Riesling from different regions until they can fully understand what they enjoy from their first sip.
Wine Spencer is a contemporary wine education and consulting brand specializing in curated wine tasting experiences, in-home wine tastings, bridal showers, bachelorette parties, and other special events. We aim to make wine tasting accessible and fun for everyone. From the novice wine enthusiast to the seasoned wine connoisseur, we invite you to Decant The Experience.
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