Wine Country Style – Heaven to be Had

This spring, some friends and I drove up north to Sonoma County for their annual wine barrel tasting event. The idea is that you get the chance to taste the wines while they’re still in the barrels, before they’re bottled 12-18 months hence.

People apparently like this idea, because it gives them the chance to buy wine “futures” on wine they predict will turn out really well. Some wines are hard to get your hands on, so this is a chance to buy early and potentially make a profit when everyone else is scrambling over the bottles. There’s a whole world of investors who buy and sell wine for a profit.

My friends and I weren’t in it for the barrel tasting (let me be the first to say, barrel wine is NOT a pleasant beverage!), but any excuse to drive up to beautiful wine country is fine by me.

I’m not in any way a country girl, but wine country gets me every time. I often fantasize about one day moving up there, or at least having a reason to travel there regularly.

It’s a common fantasy among San Franciscans, and it’s even become a cliche among the Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs. The cliche is that you get rich with your startup, then you buy a vineyard and lose money for the rest of your life. Oh, but what a life!

I’m going to do another post soon about the reality of buying a slice of wine country heaven. How much do houses cost up there? Is it totally insane to buy a share in a vineyard? The wine biz has long been a big mystery to me. Every time I pass a boutique wine shop I wonder how the hell anyone makes money selling wine, in the face of places like Trader Joe’s. Time to investigate!

Where is your slice of heaven?