What kind of wine drinker are you?

Open that Bottle Night is February 28th and to be honest, this is the first year that I have heard of this concept. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s a fantastic idea. Having a special night to invite all your friends over for a dinner party and finally open THAT bottle of wine that you have been saving, but you were not quite sure what you have been saving it for. Birthday party, anniversary, promotion; which occasion is special enough to open that prized bottle? But this got me to thinking… there are so many different ”kinds” of wine drinkers, and what kind of wine drinker am I? These are the categories I came up with:

1. Build the cellar

This wine drinker is the collector. Much like I collect shot glasses this is the person who likes to acquire wine purely for the sake of looking at it. Their wine cellar can range from a 2007 Geyser Peak Sauvignon Blanc that retails at $10.00 a bottle to the coveted Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon that won’t go for less than $1,000; they collect wine. Now it’s not to say that these people don’t like to drink wine as well, it’s just a more difficult decision as to which one to drink. This is when the OTBN would come in handy. It gives these wine drinkers an excuse to open that special bottle, which they have plenty of.

2. Bottle to Bottle

These drinkers are the ones who can’t ever seem to fill their cellar because the moment they buy the wine and put it on the shelf it’s gone the next dinner night. They also tend to be the ones that when they buy a bottle of wine and like it they will buy another one. Every occasion is a good occasion to open a bottle of wine, no matter what bottle. Also storage comes into play with this category as some don’t have the room to store 200 bottles. They may cellar and age some exceptionally special wines but for the most part, the corks get pulled and the wine is drunk.

3. It’s all about the food

Our winemaker Tyler Heck came up with this category as he says this one describes him the best. He says from a winemaker’s perspective it’s difficult to drink a glass of wine without a meal in front of you.

“I tend to not treat wine like a cocktail. I’ll usually go for the scotch on the rocks or a beer if I’m just trying to relax from a hard day’s work. But with a nice dinner, I’m always reaching for the wine. I do cellar and age a lot of the wine in my collection because I know that most are released pre-maturely and will get better with some time. I have to admit that about 85% of the wines in my cellar are red. Wines in my collection include several bottles of Heitz Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, a Charbono from On the Edge and M2, a private label from Mike Martini. What I am eating will dictate the bottle of wine that I open. Fish, or chicken I’m going with a white, otherwise it’s all about the red.

4. To finish or not to finish? That is the question.

It’s common knowledge that a bottle of wine will typically be about 4 glasses. There are some, like my parents who want just a glass of wine with dinner but rarely ever finish a whole bottle of wine in one sitting with just the two of them. This is where half bottles become very convenient as they usually provide 2 glasses, perfect for couples. On the other hand there are those that just can’t fathom opening a bottle and not drinking the entire thing. Whether they think it won’t be as good the next night or as a child they were always taught to finish all the food on their plate, that bottle is getting drunk.

I’m sure there are many sub categories of wine drinkers but regardless, what ever kind of wine drinker you are there is room for us all. I’m already planning in my head the bottle I want to share at my Open that Bottle Night party. What wine will you be opening? Let us know!