Kathy King
The Gift of Fine Wine
“There is a fountain of youth: it is your mind, your talents, the creativity that you bring to your life and the lives of the people you love. When you learn to tap into this source, you will have truly defeated age.”
Sophia Loren
I am sure you have heard the phrase to age like a fine wine.
What does that really mean in your mind?
A fine wine is made with precious ingredients.
With grapes that are cultivated with care.
After the grapes are harvested they take a much needed rest.
When the vintner begins to make the wine, he doesn’t use a cookbook.
He uses time, cultivation, and history to make his vin de table.
Fine wine is not about majestic and noble presentation.
Fine wine is about time and patience.
There may be sediment and the taste will not be light.
To drink a fine wine takes a bold palate and an appreciation for the winemaker whose patient ministrations made this fine wine come to be.
Taste the fine wine! Sip, smell, savor the fine wine! Relish in it!
To some, wine is probably not something they particularly like or prefer. But the process of making wine is quite intricate and interesting. Elevage is a French word that describes the nurturing of the wine from fermentation, to barrel, to bottling. Grapes are harvested when they are perfectly ripe. Most long time vintners simply taste the grape. The grapes are then crushed. After crushing comes fermentation. After fermentation comes clarification. Finally the wine is aged and bottled. That is a lot of steps to get this amazing drink! Why are we discussing wine? For one simple reason. We need fine wine people in our lives. We need to seek out those with life experience and learn from them. In our country aging has almost become synonymous with not really relevant because everything must be youthful and new. You have probably heard the term “boomer” bandied about by young folks, I can assure you it is not a term of respect in most cases. How do other cultures treat those who are older? In China they passed an elderly rights law which basically states that they are never to snub nor neglect the elderly. My aunt is Korean, elderly people are revered and caring for your elderly parents is both expected and an honor. My cousin takes his role as son so seriously that he started an elderly care home for folks who are experiencing any sort of neglect! We in our youth-centric society could learn a few things from these cultures. France also has elder care laws. Even Italian families are just one big happy family. My husband and I had the pleasure to meet someone’s “Nonna” in New York. She was treated like a queen. Why? Because I bet if you take the time they can give you tips to “age like a fine wine”. They have lived through many circumstances that we in our society have never faced. I work with the elderly. One phrase that I hear commonly is, “You just have to learn to laugh.” Also phrases akin to “You just need to focus on the good things going on in your life and let go of the situations you cannot control.” One common theme I hear often is to have an attitude of thankfulness for just how much you have. To love fiercely, to not always take everything too seriously because we all are not getting out of this alive. I once had a sweet little lady tell me that smile lines are a blessing! It means you have smiled! I have heard, take the trip, eat the chocolate, and sip the wine and moderation is key. How could we in our audacious youth could have known all of these things? We couldn’t! That is why we need “fine wine” people in our life so that we can one day be fine wine to others. I leave you with this quote by Andy Rooney, “The best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.”. Find some fine wine people!
My books are on Amazon!
The Quacktastic Adventures of Ellie and Lord Barks a Lot
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