Long ago, I gave up on the idea of ever being able to drink wine or alcohol. I've given it a try, but the instant I take a sip -- and I literally mean a single sip -- I skip any phase of enjoyment or simple buzz to go straight to the need to vomit. I think there is just something in my inner being that is incompatible with drinking anything stronger than a Diet Coke. I have often thought that if I dedicated myself to a structured regimen of trying to build up a tolerance, I might be able to make some headway... But then I always figured, why bother?
My complete lack of wine knowledge does make me a total idiot whenever I host a dinner party and have no clue what wine to serve. It also forces my boyfriend Tom -- who fittingly enough is a wine enthusiast -- to have to order wine by the glass whenever we are out for dinner. But I always enjoy shopping for wine with Tom, or watching him taste -- I always love to see someone in his real element.
Recently, Tom introduced me to Wine Library TV, a daily video blog that airs five days a week and attracts 80,000 viewers. WLTV stars Gary Vaynerchuk, the Director of Operations for the brick and mortar retailer Wine Library in New Jersey. Tom is a regular WLTV viewer and downloads the podcasts to his iPod. I became an instant Gary fan when Tom asked me to watch his appearance on the Conan O'Brien show back in August 2007:
http://view.break.com/343258 - Watch more free videos
As you can tell from the video, not only did Gary succeed in getting Conan to suck on his own sweaty sock, but Gary has a completely unbridled enthusiasm for wine and teaching others about it.
Last week, Tom and I had the opportunity to meet Gary and have dinner with him before a book signing and Q&A at the Rockville Barnes and Noble for Gary to promote his first book, 101 Wines Guaranteed to Inspire, Delight, and Bring Thunder to Your World. I can tell you that Gary is incredibly nice, down to earth, and a stand up guy. His love for wine is infectious, even for those of us who don't imbibe. I'm not sure if a teetotaler can actually qualify as a Vayniac, but at least count me in as a huge fan!
My complete lack of wine knowledge does make me a total idiot whenever I host a dinner party and have no clue what wine to serve. It also forces my boyfriend Tom -- who fittingly enough is a wine enthusiast -- to have to order wine by the glass whenever we are out for dinner. But I always enjoy shopping for wine with Tom, or watching him taste -- I always love to see someone in his real element.
Recently, Tom introduced me to Wine Library TV, a daily video blog that airs five days a week and attracts 80,000 viewers. WLTV stars Gary Vaynerchuk, the Director of Operations for the brick and mortar retailer Wine Library in New Jersey. Tom is a regular WLTV viewer and downloads the podcasts to his iPod. I became an instant Gary fan when Tom asked me to watch his appearance on the Conan O'Brien show back in August 2007:
http://view.break.com/343258 - Watch more free videos
As you can tell from the video, not only did Gary succeed in getting Conan to suck on his own sweaty sock, but Gary has a completely unbridled enthusiasm for wine and teaching others about it.
Last week, Tom and I had the opportunity to meet Gary and have dinner with him before a book signing and Q&A at the Rockville Barnes and Noble for Gary to promote his first book, 101 Wines Guaranteed to Inspire, Delight, and Bring Thunder to Your World. I can tell you that Gary is incredibly nice, down to earth, and a stand up guy. His love for wine is infectious, even for those of us who don't imbibe. I'm not sure if a teetotaler can actually qualify as a Vayniac, but at least count me in as a huge fan!
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