My first call was to Margaret Jenkins… “What do I have in the fridge? Tarzali Reisling 2019… because I like it! It’s good to have a bottle in the fridge in case friends call in. Also, Tarzali is the first winery I visited when I joined Wine Appreciation”.
My next call was to Wendy Sturgess, “What do I have in fridge? Point Leo Estate Pinot Grigio. I tasted, enjoyed and bought some when I took my sister there just before the lock up. It’s a beautiful drop. Hopefully, I can find someone to enjoy it with me”.
Next, Marg Walshe… “What wine am I currently drinking…?” (…sounds of Margaret going to the fridge)… “Cofield Provincial Parcel, Beechworth Chardonnay, 2015. I was given it by lovely neighbours recently. It’s rather a nice wine, very smooth, with ‘rich flavours of citrus and apple, a complex texture and a crisp palate’.”
Ray O’Shannessy responded, “I’ve been drinking Gapsted Pinot Grigio which I bought at a recent Wine Appreciation visit. It’s very nice, I’m enjoying it very much.”
My final call was to Keith and Heather Rodgers, convenors of the Wine Appreciation group. “What are we drinking with our meal tonight? Mudgee Creek 2018 Shiraz. It’s a lovely red, we only drink nice red! Life’s too short to drink cheap wine (Keith adds in the background ‘and white wine’). The alcohol content is 14% which is good…that’s 8 standard drinks in bottle. It’s fairly powerful.”
I asked Heather about any plans for future group visits to wineries … “We don’t think it’s worth arranging visits until we can enjoy sitting at a restaurant together. We’re not interested until the situation is back closer to normal. It might be a couple of months. We’re not interested in social distancing when we are meeting to have a social occasion.”
In the meantime, other Wine Appreciation group members are, like Margaret, Wendy, Marg, Ray, Keith and Heather, highly likely to continue appreciating wine while ‘in isolation’.
Beverley Lee - with thanks to Margaret, Wendy, Marg, Ray, Keith and Heather for having a chuckle when asked the question!