#92 Wine

Wine had a central role in our lives together. At first, it was just a social drink between us. We would get the cheapest boxed wine. As time went by, Janne realized that she had a natural palate.

When we started making cider, Janne also began learning about processes. She got into reading anything she could about wine. We also would watch a movie or a documentary related to that. One day in 2014, she told me she had signed up for a sommelier course. It was something she had to attend every Tuesday. We agreed that I’d take care of the boys that day and would work from home (Daniel was just a one-year-old).

Janne enjoyed both the academic and the social aspect of that course. It was exciting for her. Whenever she had a test, I would see her study as hard as in university. Just a few days ago, I found still some notes where she was trying to learn about the different grape varieties.

Our conversations at home now included words like “minerality” or “malolactic fermentation”. As I was curious, I started reading myself about it. We watched the movie “Bottle Shock” which was based on the real story described in the book “The Judgment of Paris”. If you are into wines, I recommend both.

At the same time, Janne started choosing the wines for us (I was totally in favor of this). We went through every type of wine and origin. Our local wine shop started getting an uptick in their income. My palate was not nearly as sensitive as hers. I don’t remember how she described them except for one wine: Sauvignon Blanc. Janne taught me that it was the one that smells like “cat’s pee”. I should make a business of renting Félix to sommeliers around the world.

Then it became not only about the wine, but also about the design of the bottle. We liked bottles with minimalistic and unusual designs. Janne came up with some label ideas for our ciders. This is the first inkling I had about Janne’s drawing and design skills. They came useful later when she remodelled our house (a story for another time).

On May 2015, she got her Junior Sommelier certificate. Few times I saw her so proud and secure of herself. She was truly happy that day.