One of the things that bothers me most is people that put artificial barriers on the wines they drink.  It makes me cringe when I hear people say “I only drink reds” or “I only drink whites” or “I only drink Napa Cabernet”.  “You big dummies”, I think to myself, “you are missing out on so much good stuff and great experiences by limiting yourself”.    I recently realized that I am missing out by not taking the same approach to life that I take to wine. I recently flew back home for the funeral of my cousins wife.  A wonderful person whose loss was a major blow to my cousin and their son.  I wanted to be there to offer whatever comfort I could.  Following the funeral we were all invited to lunch at a nearby restaurant.   As happens at weddings and funerals folks that don’t see each other that often get a chance to reunite.  It was open seating and I found myself sitting with a group of people that I had seen several times in my ...

I had Presidents Day Monday off of my other job (the one that pays the bills) and since Valentine's day fell on the preceding Saturday my Valentine and I decide to make the 5 1/2 hour drive to spend the weekend in Temecula to do some wine tasting and enjoy the area.  We made our first visit to the area last year. This trip we wanted to visit some of the smaller places we did not get a chance to try last year.   Our overall impression of the wine was similar to what is was it was last yea r.  The wines, with some exceptions highlighted below, are for the most part drinkable but are not special and distinctive and do not justify their high prices.  The tasting rooms for most part are comfortable, interesting, some offering great views, and the tasting room staff at all the wineries we visited were friendly and helpful. Most of the larger wineries spend as much time promoting their banquet and wedding facilities as they do promoting their wine. I'm thinking hal...