This is something I’ve wanted to do for a while. Luckily, you guys make it really easy for us to write for you.  This blog was created as a platform for you guys to ask anything you wanted to know, without fear of sounding silly, or being ridiculed.

And it seems to be working.

I will admit, there is no shortage of snobs, purists, traditionalists, and pretentious, close-minded people, where wine is concerned. And we understand, it doesn’t help when you have a genuine question that gets shot down the moment you ask it.

As far as possible, Yuvraj, I, and everybody else who writes (and will write, in the future) for the blog are trying to remove this air of superiority that surrounds alcohol, and show people that you don’t need a PhD. to enjoy a glass of wine or whisky – just drink what you love, and love what you drink.

It makes us really happy that we’ve been able to reach out to you guys as much as we have. We’ve received quite a few messages from you, and we’re super happy about the support. You know who you are – you guys are awesome.

A lot of you had questions as well, and I’ll be covering some of them today.

So let’s start off. 🙂

---

Question : Where did your love for wine come from? When did it happen?

This was the most popular question, by far.

Part of our college curriculum involves four months of on-the-job training in a five-star property, in all the core departments of a hotel.  I was at Taj Lands End. This was in July, 2015.

Through a number of very fortunate circumstances, I and six other fellow trainees were selected to join the pre-opening team for their famous Chinese restaurant, Ming Yang – it had been under renovation for most of that year.

It was hard work, but we enjoyed every second of it. It was the most enjoyable part of my training, by far.

Part of our training involved a cursory introduction on how wine is made, along with a masterclass on uncorking bottles by ourselves. Our seniors gave us a lot of amazing inputs from their visit to Fratelli vineyards, as well.

Towards the end, they held a wine tasting for us, where our managers explained to us why wine was such a beautiful thing. Since then, I always nursed a bit of a soft spot for wine (and Ming Yang became very close to a second home.)

True epiphany came when our college held a tasting for us. I don’t know how it happened, but something just clicked that day.

I was looking at the four wines on the table in front of me, and I remembered thinking to myself, “This is where I want to be, this is what I want to do.” This was March, 2016. Just a few months ago.

So I’m quite new to the world of wine myself – but I’m studying hard, and things seem to be looking up.

---

Question :  I read somewhere that there are different kinds of glasses for different wines. Do these make a difference, or can I just use the same glasses?

Answer:  You’re absolutely right. Broadly speaking, there are three types of wine glasses – one for reds, one for whites, and one for sparkling wines.

The differences are because each glass is designed to improve the aroma of the wine. Reds are generally larger than whites, and have broader bowls – all the better to swirl, and to have enough area for the aromas to rise up.

And you’ve seen the long, thin glasses they use for Champagne. These are called “flutes”, and they’re designed to preserve the bubbles in the wine for longer.

However, these are losing their popularity because it’s very difficult to get any aromas from them – and much of the enjoyment comes from there. The alternative is a “tulip”, which is a more modern take on it. They look pretty fancy, too.

However, as a consumer, I would actually recommend against buying different sets of glasses, for these reasons:

• It gets expensive. This is a big concern for a lot of people, myself included. There are inexpensive options, but all together, they end up costing quite a bit.
• They take up a fair bit of space. They’re not as small as they look.
• The differences in aromas are, for the most part, imperceptible.

My advice would be to invest in a set of good red wine glasses (Ocean has a great, affordable set – I use them myself),  and use them for everything. But if you don’t want to invest, there’s really nothing wrong with using the glasses you have at home.

Ultimately, it comes down to the company and the vibe – you’re bound to enjoy the wine when you’re having fun, even if you’re drinking out of a thermocol cup. I speak with experience.

---

Question : Do you plan to write about other alcohols as well? I like to read about wine and whisky, but I mostly drink beer. Rum would be a great topic!

Questions like this make me really happy. Yes, we do plan to expand soon, but we’re all a little busy with college right now. There’s a lot of cool stuff coming soon. But the important thing isn’t the promise – it’s delivering on it.

And we want to make sure it’s brilliant. We’ve already expanded to cocktails – Trisha is a great friend and an excellent writer. Check out her articles here.

Rest assured, we’re working on improving and adding stuff.  But as of now, we’re taking this one step at a time.  🙂

Thanks again for all the love – you guys are a pleasure to write for. Keep the questions coming! Leave a comment below, send us a message here, and find us on Facebook here.

Until next week, adios!