“Things work out best for those who make the best of the way things work out.”
John Wooden, the legendary UCLA basketball coach, made that wise observation some 50 years ago.
Coach Wooden was a wise man, and we certainly could use his calm demeanor as we navigate the rollercoaster times in which we live. The pandemic has been no favor to the men and women who oversee wineries around the world, and the wildfires have been another unneeded punch to the gut of so many California winery owners.
To put it bluntly, wineries need our help. And the best way we can help them is by buying their wines.
So if you normally purchase one bottle of a given wine, consider buying two. Drink one now, and while you’re doing so, think about when you might want to drink the second. Also consider what you might want to eat with it.
For wines you find you really like, consider buying a case and laying down the bottles for a while. Red wines, in particular, evolve with time in the bottle, so plan to drink a bottle every month or every two months or every three months. (Generally speaking, the per bottle price goes down when you purchase a case.)
Another reason to stock up now: We’ve been hearing that some wineries in California’s North Coast region won’t be bottling a 2020 vintage because they didn’t get their grapes harvested prior to the fires. That means their earlier vintages will be in higher demand.
2020 has been a year like no other for everyone. That includes grape growers… winemakers… winery owners… me… and you.
It seems appropriate that we end this blog with another wise observation from Coach Wooden: “All of life is peaks and valleys. Don’t let the peaks get too high and the valleys too low.”
