Damp January (?)
Happy New Year! I’ve spent the past few weeks reflecting on 2023 and feeling lucky to have made wine in both Spain and Colorado with family and friends to help me. And now looking forward to 2024, bottling up the next vintages, fun adventures, and of course spending more time with friends and trying new, exciting wines.
I’ve never done dry January for a variety of reasons. I like having wine on my mom’s birthday, I don’t want to turn down professional opportunities that involve tasting wine or something special from the craft cocktail bar I work at while home in Colorado. I also don’t attend many holiday parties, so by the time January rolls around I’m not craving a month off. Although I will say my family’s annual tradition of Feast of the Seven Fishes on Christmas Eve was pretty wild this year. Imagine hours of cooking seven fish, wigs (a new element), Earth Wind & Fire dance parties, and a lot of wine…
But every January the cultural conversations around alcohol, sober-curiosity, and health get me thinking. One of the things I grapple with most about being a winemaker is that alcohol isn’t healthy for you, in general. I worry sometimes I’m involved in an industry that we will look back on and cringe. But I also know that wine brings people, families, and friends together. Connects us to agriculture, to history, to our own culture, the culture of others, and much, much more. A couple of days ago I saw a Jim Beam commercial with a bar full of people singing Sweet Caroline together. The tagline was ‘It’s healthy to be with people’. On the one hand, this came off as an obvious attempt for a big whiskey company to market to younger generations who are drinking less and less to lead healthier lives. But I also understand a part of the point, especially post-pandemic, of the importance of gathering, of having a ‘third place’ that’s not work or home, meeting new people, and enjoying the company of friends.
The ad also reminded me of Dan Buettner, the author of The Blue Zones, who claims that while alcohol isn’t the best for you, having a glass of organic or natural wine over a meal with friends is not unhealthy. Of course, this isn’t based on biological research, but in a society starved for more ‘offline’ connection, if a sustainably made glass of wine helps you catch up with a friend, have a fun family dinner, or inspires you to cook a new, memorable meal with someone, than I think that’s positive and a reason to keep making wine.
That being said, this month of January I am going to highlight some interesting new ‘wine alternatives’, explain what ‘dealcoholized wine’ is, and dig into some topics on wine and health, like if natural wine is better for you. So stay tuned and thanks for reading!