may i have some grey poupon?

Josh and I arrived in Beaune yesterday evening. It's about three hours southeast of Paris, situated in a flat valley between rolling hills and vineyards everywhere. vineyards that are changing their colours to all hues of yellow and some red, with old stone walls lining every small plot of land. idyllic? mais oui.

Ever since we stepped in the door of the house our aunt Val and uncle Alain (and friends) are renting, we've been enjoying the finest cheeses and wines, all the while gazing from atop a ridge to the valley below. Vineyards are everywhere around and you can stroll through them, picking grapes if you wish. The season is finished; the vinicultures have picked their grapes' worth. It was funny to find this out after we had strolled by the edge of a vineyard the afternoon before, nimbly picking a grape or two and looking around conspicuously.

This is true high class vacation. Our aunt and uncle's friends Russ and Sinclair know a lot about wines, and engage everyone present in smelling, tasting, and discussing each wine. Wines have different levels of acidity, bitterness, fruitiness and a host of other qualities of which I don't yet have an inkling. Each field and its winemaker produces a distinct wine. And any one wine will itself change from year to year, quite drastically sometimes depending on the weather and growing conditions. The 2002 wines, for instance, are generally good to drink now, while the 2001's need several more years of sitting. The latter are still too aggresive to the palette and need more time to smooth out. This is all mindblowing to me; before this trip I've had little experience with wines, and it all just tastes so good. I'm not sure if I'll ever be a tough wine critic though. Does the true wine lover love all types of wine or just the best wines? I think Plato, or perhaps just my philosophy class, asked this question, and it's an interesting one. Most people might side with the latter, but I'm still divided.