Wine and Wine

Itching to write on wine for sometime now. Visited wine festival held in Bangalore few months ago. They had good collection of Indian wines. I looked forward to visiting it since I carried my memories of wine tour in California. There were wine tasting and grapes stomping and other activities. But as expected I did not find it too great.

Now its just because of my expectation that I was disappointed. Nevertheless, the fact that Bangalore was hosting the wine festival and that people are patronizing wines is good enough.

My experience has been a drive through the scenic Napa and Sonoma valley lined with acres and acres of vineyards and old mansions. Every vineyard has its winery that can be toured to learn about the grapes, its variety, how climatic conditions affect wine type; wine process and storage facility. Not complete without wine tasting sessions with good cheese and crackers.

Through the years, have learnt about different wine types and their specialty. My friends and seniors know whom to contact for an expert advice on wine :P Yeah weird source isn't it? I have an interesting anecdote as well. That story is for another time. Anyway if you need a recommendation on this elixir, you know now whom to ping! Here are some pictures from few of my wine tours.

Landscape dotted with rows of vineyards along the way.

 

On the left side too

 

A fitting statue; Liked why the grapes bunch is too important here. 

 Grapes ready for harvest

 Wine tour. A friend arranged for a private tour. This man was explaining how they choose the grapes and all that story; it was nice to learn a lot while sipping signature wine.

Wine processing units

Oak casks- they provide a distinct flavor to the wine as they mature

First glimpse of wine

An old winery at Sonoma valley

Aged casks

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Posing in front of the wine bottles during one of my trip to Napa - me in 2007