We are curious about your wine consumption

[Brew and Wine Supply]

My brother and I ran a liquor store for over 10 years. We saw people with problems well before anyone else did. I actually encouraged those people to get help when they came in and told us they quit drinking. We would work with then the best we could to help them along their path. There are/were others who I would like to have told to get help but it was not our place. Moderation is fine, if you think you need help, get it. Excess is not good.
In the new business ( wine and beer supplies) I don't see those abusing it like I did in the liquor business. Seems like we (brewers and wine makers) are a bit more responsible than those who drink for affect as to us who like to drink for flavor and the experience of what we make.
Will step off my soap box and let the conversation continue with out hijack. be care full and safe. enjoy the hobby.

 

[CBell]

I got started on this hobby because I was spending too much money on commercial wine. I figured I could make it myself cheaper.

I can now definitely make wine cheaper, DB and Skeeter Pee definitely at least, but I can also make wine that tastes like a $15 bottle for $5.

My friends at work are all really impressed; many of them didn't even know that home-wine making was a thing, and they all think the product is delicious. Very fulfilling.

But it has become so much more. The mixing of art and science in wine-making is a beautiful thing. You can craft a new recipe to try, ferment almost anything, and also make your end-product better with additions of chemicals, checking your sg and acid levels, etc.

I also love the 'set it and forget it' aspect. It's a great hobby because other than the initial primary fermentation, you can ignore your wine for weeks or months on end, and it actually gets BETTER when you ignore it.


So to answer the initial question, I got into this to make cheap wine to drink and enjoy the buzz, but I ended up addicted to the entire process and have and will continue to experiment and push myself to craft better tasting wines. I do need to part with some of my cheapskate ways when it comes to materials/ingredients to do this, now that I am familiar with the process.

 

[bchilders]

I grew up watching my dad make wine and the funny part about that is he does not really drink wine. I think he mostly liked the thrill of being able to say, hey try this, I make it. He has since stopped making wine. He made what most would call country wines. I have been drinking wine for many years now and my wife and I love to visit wineries and taste everywhere we travel. I started making wine two years ago, A. because I like the satisfaction of making something others can enjoy just like my dad did and B. I plan to open a small winery someday so I consider it job training. I can buy wine that is drinkable and will still get you drunk much cheaper than I can make in the small scale I am at now. I have not come across any winemaker who does it for those reasons. Winemaking is an art and each maker has their own tricks and secrets and we should all be proud to be carrying on a very old tradition. Cheers...

 

[wood1954]

When i first started i drank too much because suddenly i had a big supply of decent cheap wine. However my wife and i rapidly put on weight. We have been on a diet or lifestyle change as she calls it for 3 months now and it really limits alcohol which is good as now we can age our wines easier, but i still like to have a glass or two every night BTW i lost 20 lbs and she lost 30 just by watching our portions and cooking all our own meals and cutting back on alcohol. I've had 4 very close friends or family members who were alcoholics, 2 died due to alcohol and two quit drinking, so I'm pretty attuned to abuse. It's a great hobby, but unlike woodworking which is one of my my other hobbies it can ruin your life if you let it.

 

[UBB]

Deezil hit it on the head for me.

 

[jswordy]

Because they like a good tasting homemade wine that is good quality

Because they make wine to get drunk as cheaply as possible

Yes.

 

[Sammyk]

ah Jim are you riding the fence? Where do you fall in? LOL!
Or is that to be read as yes on both?

 

[tonyt]

It's a great hobby that I absolutely love. We drink the equivalent of about two bottles per week, often in splits. And I give away about as much as we drink. I compare it to cake, I would rather have a pan of hot brownies from my own kitchen than a triple layer cake from the bakery. And I think the folks we give wine to feel the same, home made means a lot more and often tastes better.

 

[tonyt]

Because they like a good tasting homemade wine that is good quality

Because they make wine to get drunk as cheaply as possible

Yes.

Jim, you're sick, but that's what we love about you. hahaha

 

[ffemt128]

We give alot away, probably as much as we drink. Making wine is something I always wanted to try. We make a quality wine at less than half of what we could buy it for. In general I would say we have a glass or 2 of wine each night with dinner.

 

[DoctorCAD]

One of the better aspects of this "hobby" is the social portion of wine. Knowing what you are doing with wine can lead to a kind-of respect by those that don't know, and sharing that knowledge to me has always been rewarding.

Business dinner suddenly become less boring and can even lead to having that upper manager remember your name because you recommended the "perfect" wine at that last big dinner meeting. Bringing up the fact that you can make wines that are just as good as (if not better than) commercial wines just adds to your "remember-me" factor.

In my company, we have a practice where our HR group hires college seniors and sticks them in semi-high level situations to see just how they handle stressful situations. I do my best to introduce them to wine knowledge so that they can fit in or excel at the typical business dinner. It is quite rewarding to see that knowledge pass on to the next generation of leaders.

 

[jswordy]

Jim, you're sick, but that's what we love about you. hahaha

Hey, I'm no wine snob. If saying that I like being drunk is "sick," then sign me up cuz I am CRITICAL! If getting there with $3 a bottle wine that's better than $15 a bottle stuff at the store is sick, then call the hearse cuz I am TERMINAL!

I just don't see that the two goals listed are either-or in any way shape or form. I like to enjoy my great (and even the not so great) wines to the point where I am "comfortably numb" when life will allow it (like FRIDAY nights, as Arne knows!).

I used to drink Bud Light, period. Goes down quick, lights you up. But beer is inflammatory by its nature, and so bad for the heart, whereas wine has resveritrol and actually can be beneficial. We went low-gluten several years ago and it was an easy switch. I understand what Boatboy is saying about the flavor, too. After 3 glasses of wine, I don't feel like I have gray hair. I can't feel my knee joint grating bone on bone when I walk. My elbows don't ache, and I sure as hell don't have anything stressful on my mind. It's a time machine in a glass.

Like ffemt128, I give away. I have one friend who has a Vinotemp full of just my labeled wines. Gives me homemade goats milk soaps now and then. She likes to take them to fancy wine and cheese parties and put them on the table with the rest of the wines. Then the bottle goes dry and people start asking if there is any more, and was it she who brought it, and where did she buy it. She immensely enjoys doing that!

I'm right there with her on that.

In my 20s I had a rip-roaring bar-hopping time during the last period in our country's history when that could be done without severe potential penalties. I have never hurt a flea due to my personal habits. We are now in a Victorian revival in terms of our laws, etc., and so I stay at home now or go only to friends' houses that I can reach by deserted country roads. Life is good. And now I am thirsty.

 

[rob]

Well said Jim, right there with you.

 

[wineforfun]

Gotta agree with Jim on all accounts. He always says it best.

I like a good wine but could care less if it pairs well with fish, steak, pasta, etc. as I drink wine to drink wine and get "happy", not to sit around and discuss mouthfeel (my mouth feels numb after a bottle so my mouthfeel great), smell (I want to drink it, not smell it) or texture (it is wet, that is it's texture). My "social experience" with wine is to sit around with friends and socially partake in wine or their beverage of choice. No more, no less. I guess I am just not a sophisticated wine drinker, nor do I have any desire to be.

Now don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with doing the above, it is just not for me. We all have our own thing, and that is not mine.

I limit my intake to mostly Friday and Saturday night. Usually a bottle or so each night. Try to avoid the weeknights as it will interfere with my sleep and work.

 

[jswordy]

...my mouth feels numb after a bottle so my mouthfeel great...

Ba-HAHAHAHAHA!!!! Damn, that's a good point there.



Sigh ... Ima drink a bottle in you and Rob's honor tonight! That'll be above and beyond my usual.

 

[tonyt]

Jim I totally get it. We could hang out.

 

[Sammyk]

No wine snob here and I agree with Jim. We have not made or drank wine most of our lives until we started in 2011 making wine. We have no idea what wine goes with which food. MAYBE some day we will take the time to learn but it is not likely at our ages.
For dinner we open of a bottle we have not had it awhile not even thinking about the dinner menu.
On another note we will drink the mist type kits all winter long with dinner even though most are summer drinks. Oh yes, watermelon wine in the winter with what ever is for dinner. We do like most of the mist type kits.

So I guess we are NOT wine snobs!

 

[Stressbaby]

It's a time machine in a glass.

For this, my dear sir Jim, you have won the internet.

 

[berrycrush]

It makes great talking subject when you bring a bottle of wine made by yourself to a party, same when you serve your guest at home with it.

 

[dangerdave]

I know some have heard this before, so I'll keep it short. Four years ago, my lovely wife was a restaurant manager working 60 hour weeks. Over the course of six months, the onset of DDD (degerative disc disease) made her unable to continue working---DDD runs in her family. She is in pain most days, most of the time. She hates taking narcotics for fear of becoming addicted. Soon after stopping working, she discovered that wine eased her pain and helped her sleep. We were mostly beer drinkers before that. Drinking several large bottles of wine a week can add up, so I checked into making my own. After the start-up costs, making your own is much cheaper---as you all know---and it's better wine!

Two years ago this month, I started my first kit. Now, I have hundreds of bottles in my cellar, and we drink wine each and every night. We love the taste, and the buzz, and I very much enjoy the challenge of making a good wine and the love and adoration of my peeps (friends, family, and coworkers). Everyone in both our families love wine---especially free wine---so gift-giving has become a no-brainer, and our holiday gatherings have become wine festivals. I still have some staunch beer-drinking buddies who won't touch my wines (mostly, I think, because they might like it!), but that's just some stubborn macho BS, if you ask me. I'll get them all eventually!

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