Just need some moral support! ;(

[corinth]

just need some moral support

Hi newbie2,

I too am 2 a rookie to wine making and I too have had people say things to me that I consider insensitive.

You have been given some great advice from these knowledgeable people on this forum.

Beyond family, there are a lot of people in our world who would be thrilled to get a bottle of your wine(self included). When you give someone a bottle of your wine, many times, you will have made their day. The bottle of wine you give to whomever out there is a gift from your heart , a gift that says, I was thinking of you. There are so many people out there who will get a bottle of wine from you and say to themselves," how did she know that this would make my day---I really needed this!" they are thrilled that you thought of them and shared a bit our yourself with them.

Thank you for making your wine and thank you for thinking of others.

Corinth

 

[joeswine]

And sometimes???

I LIKE TO THINK OF MAKING WINE AS A PERCEPTION OF THOUGHT,IT STARTS OUT AS YOUR PERCEPTION OF WHAT YOU WANT IT TO BE ,EVOLVES INTO WHAT IT WAS MADE TO BE,AND WHEN OTHERS TASTE IT , TURNS OUT TO BE SOMETHING TOTALLY DIFFERENT THEN WHAT IT STARTED OUT TO BE! IT'S ALL A MATTER OF PERCEPTION.

 

[jkrug]

I believe if you are going to make wine and share with other people, you will have people that like it and some dont. Everyone has different taste. You need to develop a thick skin and take the criticism along with the praise. . My family is very opinionated and have developed that thick skin. Hang in there and don't let it get you down.

 

[heatherd]

Be patient with yourself, have fun, and make what you like to drink. This is a hobby, not a job, so you can't possibly do it wrong.

My first batch was a cranberry Malbec that was very sweet, which came with the equipment kit my husband bought me as a gift. I wanted it ready in time for hosting book club at my house, and it was. The book club ladies are "big red" drinkers solely. I opened a few bottles and poured what turned out to be a beautiful, clear as crystal, crimson wine, and they took a polite taste but didn't finish their glasses. So I poured them out in the sink. Two years later, because of that one, they anticipate that all my wines will be similar to wine coolers instead of commercial reds. Lucky for me I don't care what anyone thinks, and I didn't like that cran-mal much either, but it represented effort and learning. So I make what I want to drink and don't wait for compliments.

That said, there are substantial numbers of people who LOVE my wine, including my hubby, some of my family, and all my friends. It took time to figure out what I wanted to make, as well, and I figured out that I wanted fewer fruity ones and lots more that are serious wines.

Anyway, keep at it!!!

Heather


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Makin

 

[vacuumpumpman]

Like others have said - make it for your own consumption. After you able to stock up a bit then find out which style of wines your friends like and at that time decide if you want to make wine to please other peoples palate. It all changes over time - your palate may change also - like mine has .

 

[cooldood]

If you think about it ALL wine whether Homebrewed or commercial has the same issue.
I hate sweet wine I prefer mine like my wife luke warm and bittter.

But seriously I have some Chilean wine that 70% of my friends would say is horrible but I really like it. There is no wine that everybody likes. So like everyone else says make it for you and don't worry about anyone else.

 

[winegary]

I give family wine with the understanding that they give me honest feed back. If they don't care for it, tell me why. This way I can improve it. Fortunately they are really kind and are really good at telling me why they liked or disliked it. This has helped me make better wine, and I keep notes on the likes and dislikes. I have only made country wines so far. Don't let it get you down and keep at it.

WineGary

 

[JohnT]

I prefer mine like my wife luke warm and bittter.

Gosh, I sure hope she does not read this forum! If she does, she may instead be "Hot and violent".

 

[cooldood]

That is what u was hoping for

 

[newbie2]

That is what u was hoping for

Yes! Thank you everyone for making me feel better, I'm still peed off but I am simply not sharing with them in future, and I am continuing to learn and make much more wine than before, so sod the lot of em I'm not giving it up!

 

[knifemaker]

Another thing is, that some people refuse to believe that something that is homemade and not produced by a huge winery, can possibly be good. I have a sister that says she doesn't like homemade wine, but has never tasted my wine, even though some of my wines, I think are better than anything that I can find commercially. I think that I can never convince her, because of her preconceived ideas. Their loss as far as I'm concerned. Dale.

 

[richmke]

Try this next time:

Over the next few months, find a store wine that is similar to the wine you have made. Enjoy the store bought wine. Put your wine in the bottle (leave the wine label on the bottle), and bring that to the next family gathering.

See if your wine gets a different reception. A lot of the experience is perception. For close minded snobs, the fiction is what they need to enjoy the experience.

 

[Elmer]

I only started making wine in February but my husband and I have been enjoying the fruits of my labour several times a week. I've made about 12 different ones, a few kits but mostly country wines, we think of it as about a 95% rate as we like them all but the watermelon. Obviously I am still learning all the time but they taste good to me, and they are all crystal clear.

Took a bunch of bottles to a family gathering this weekend and I couldn't believe the rude comments and snobbery, I am now totally mortified. Lots of snide comments under breath and talk about too dry and needs a long finish. HUH? It's homemade wine and I like dry wine! Whatever happened to white lies. Did they have to be so brutal!!!!

Anyone else had this? Feel so deflated now. I've got 3 wines fermenting in the kitchen and I've lost all my mojo!

When I first started (making 10L kits) I encountered alot of the same remarks.
The best compliment I got was "it is drinkable" and the worst being "it was flavored water".

However I continued making wine and learned to make better wine and experiment.
I also learned to make wine that I like and make wine only for me.

I also make sure all my labels have the term "homemade" on it. This way there is no expectation that they are about to drink a $50 bottle of wine for the rolling French hills. This is wine I make in my basement!

now some people in my circle like my wine and I share with them. I always bring a bottle with me where ever I go.
Unless I go over to my buddy's house, who is a snob and never has anything good to say. He gets nothing.

As long as you are happy with what you make, than that is all that matters.

 

[JohnT]

Another thing is, that some people refuse to believe that something that is homemade and not produced by a huge winery, can possibly be good. I have a sister that says she doesn't like homemade wine, but has never tasted my wine, even though some of my wines, I think are better than anything that I can find commercially. I think that I can never convince her, because of her preconceived ideas. Their loss as far as I'm concerned. Dale.

One of my favorite episodes is when Me and My Wife attended a gathering group dinner through our church. I was asked to bring the wine.

I never label my wine. Why go through all that trouble of scraping them off when I reuse them??

Well I remember glancing over at the "wine table". I saw a man in a three piece suit pick up a bottle and look for a label. I overheard him say.. "Nice wine, but I hate it when the labels fall off".

He had no Idea!

 

[Jocelyn]

I agree with everyone else don't share if their ungrateful about your craft.
I started when you did all my wines are young that said so are my friends, they are also cheap no matter how terrible the wine is ( two of our have been not so great a Niagara mist that ended up with sediment, flavour was okay for what it is, and my most recent a Shiraz that has a ridiculously sour aftertaste) at some point in the evening someone will start shouting vino and the group will chime vino vino until I break out a few bottles. Occasionally someone even brings out the beer bong, perhaps if the family doesn't like the flavour they may enjoy it if you wine bonged at the next family gathering...

 

[JohnT]

I agree with everyone else don't share if their ungrateful about your craft.
I started when you did all my wines are young that said so are my friends, they are also cheap no matter how terrible the wine is ( two of our have been not so great a Niagara mist that ended up with sediment, flavour was okay for what it is, and my most recent a Shiraz that has a ridiculously sour aftertaste) at some point in the evening someone will start shouting vino and the group will chime vino vino until I break out a few bottles. Occasionally someone even brings out the beer bong, perhaps if the family doesn't like the flavour they may enjoy it if you wine bonged at the next family gathering...

A wine bong? Yikes!

 

[Jocelyn]

It's essentially a funnel lol

 

[Tom_S]

That reminds me once when I was looking for some plumbing fittings at the hardware store and this young guy was buying plastic tubing to make a beer bong.