Page 28 - Spring/Summer Taste Magazine

like OpenTable, RESY, or TOCK are great to be able to book in advance and manage your reservations while you're on the go. Other resources are Trip Advisor or Google searches. Still, nothing is better than finding the local wine country newspaper and magazine's restaurant critics writing, plus news and reviews about dining options in the region. This approach allows you to avoid the "tourist traps" and helps you discover new or long-established restaurants that the locals prefer to dine.
Dining at Wineries
Many wineries offer on-site lite bites, and others can offer full meals. Some wineries will include
guests in their mid-day crew meal,
and nothing can be more fun. At
those team lunches, you'll end up
tasting older bottles of wines made by the winery, providing an opportunity to learn about library wines and how the wines made by the winery can age over time.
Where to Find Information
Many visitors to wine country often wait until they get
there to put their visit schedule in place. Nothing could be more dis- appointing as the best wineries are often visited by appointment only or are closed to the public. To find out where to go, plan your
routes, discover local events that are happening, the best source is
the local winery association's website. There you will find a listing of the members, addresses, hours of operations, and, most importantly, how to contact the wineries to schedule your tasting visit. Next are sites like The Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate, Jeb Dunnuck, Wine Berserkers, Vinous for USA-based wineries, or local guides to regions easily accessi- ble via a Google search, depending on what region you are looking to visit. By reading reviews and critics' tasting notes, you can quickly put your trip together based on the wineries you want to see.
Being Responsible in Wine Country
It's imperative to act and behave responsibly when visiting wine country. It's too easy to get drunk and be over the legal limit when so much wine is being offered your way. No tasting room person knows what you did before you arrived in their tasting room, but they can easily guess. The first rule of wine tasting in wine regions is "learn to spit." You'll be amazed at how much more wine you can taste during a day of fun in the area if you master the art of spitting wine out. By doing so, you dramatically reduce the amount of wine you consume while still getting the benefits of learning about the wine and the winery.
If spitting is the first rule, then consuming lots of water throughout the day is equally important. The more water you drink, the less wine dehydrates you, so for each glass of wine you have and swal- low, plan on drinking about the same amount of water as you drink wine. The third is to never "drink and drive."
Wine country driving in the past has wine tolerant police on the roads. But over the past ten years or so, the idea of wine country
•Clockwise: Winemaker Christopher
Cannan of Clos Figueres •Andy and Victoria with Eric Boisseaux of Chateau Vannieres in Bandol, France •Vena Cava in the Valle de Guadalupe, Mexico. The ceiling is a repurposed boat!
police being lenient on drunk drivers has faded as fatalities and acci- dents have increased. Now, with Uber, LYFT, and other driving services available, it's so important that you don't drink and drive. If someone in your group doesn't drink and can be the designated driver, all the better.
Traveling to wine country is a blast. You make new friends and learn a lot more about wine than you ever thought possible. What's more, the whole trip is about tasting the wines, touching/experi- encing the winery, and hearing winemakers tell their stories. Pick a region and visit one soon.
Photos by Victoria Nicole Varela
Andy Abramson is a lifelong wine col- lector; he makes wine under the Comunicano Wine Company label with Doug Margerum of the Margerum Wine Company. He's also the USA's Ambassador for the Grenache Association and carries the distinction of being Knighted into the Chevalier du Commanderie (Knights of the Brotherhood) - Faugeres Confrerie-an exclusive wine and food society whose lineage dates back to the Templar Knights. Andy's newest venture, wineTouria, formed with Los Angeles sommelier Victoria Nicole Varela, is all about the discovery of the wine roads less traveled.
28 Celebrating 30 Years! Taste Dining & Travel • Spring More online at www.tasteweb.net
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