Getting Organized

In order to get ready to drink wine from 100 different grape varieties, (blends count) I had to get organized. I purchased a Moleskine black book (the legendary notebook used by European artists and thinkers for the past two centuries, from Van Gogh to Picasso to Hemingway....might as well continue the tradition of great writers) and I listed one grape variety per page. Since the majority of the names are unrecognizable, I highlighted the red grapes in red so at a glance, I can easily access the list in my little black book. An important resource will be the The New Wine Lover's Companion with history, geography and pronunciation of the grape varieties.

With black book in hand, I was ready to start the wine journey. The first variety on the list is Agiorgitiko, a red Greek grape. Since I live in a dry area in Dallas, I usually do my wine shopping in Addison, where the liquor stores are lined up one after the other. I walked in to store # 1 and asked if they carried Greek wines. All three of the attendants stared at me cluelessly so I repeated, "Greek, like Zorba the Greek". One of the women asked me to follow her as she shuffled to the Australia aisle and pointed to the "Jacob's Creek". Well, I knew at that point that part of this journey was going to be just finding the wine. My next stop at store # 2 was the same story, no Greek wines. Finally at Goody Goody, I located a $15.00 bottle of 2005 Boutari Nemea, made from 100% Agiorgitiko grapes. Thank heavens for the wine manager, Robert Emery who will become my new best friend as I embark on this journey~

P.S. I would love for anyone to join me in this project. Download the list and then we'll start with the first A and move to the last Z. You are welcome to post your comments on any of these varieties.