We have been doing Zoom sessions quite a bit these days, along with probably the rest of the country that has been under lockdown.  It is a great way for the families to keep in touch, and we have sessions from four people up to about twelve or thirteen, sometimes the screen resembles an old show called Hollywood Squares, though without the clever repartee.   Even though we can now start seeing people and visiting without the concern of neighbors potentially reporting us to the authorities, we are still maintaining the sessions.  Outside of the usual conversations, I was asked if I could give a lesson on the proper way to open a bottle of wine, as one of the nephews just got a job working at a private country club.

Earlier that day, I had sent his Mother a photo of a “Waiter’s Corkscrew” and suggested that he invest in a good quality version, as the most important part is the corkscrew itself, as I have had some where the screw ruins a cork as it attempts to screw into the cork.  There I was teaching a lesson in wine service etiquette at the table, not that I have ever been a waiter, but I have certainly had enough wine bottles opened for me over the years.  Explaining each step using the tool, seemed like overkill, but I thought it was necessary, especially since it was being done on a video screen, instead of being in person.   There have even been times when I have offered to do the service, when I realize that the waiter or the waitress is a novice.  Everyone has to learn it sometime, and who wants to carry a bulky battery powered new-fangled one in their pocket, when a Waiter’s Corkscrew is so sleek and elegant. 

Well since, I had to demonstrate, and even though with dinners at home all the time, we have a collection of bottles of wine opened and at various levels of volume, I did need another fresh “lamb for the slaughter” I guess you could say.  I went and grabbed one of the newer white wines that have been chilling, I didn’t want an older one in case the cork started crumbling, as I figured that would not happen at the country club.  I went and demonstrated on a bottle of Reserve de Castelnau Entre-deux-Mers 2017 from Chateau de Castelnau.  Entre-deux-Mers translates to “between the two seas,” but here the two water ways are the Garonne and Dordogne Rivers of the Bordeaux region, and the area is one of the hardest to keep track of, because it has several small appellations, and the region grows red and wine, dry and sweet, and then some of the wines go under the generic listing of either Bordeaux or Bordeaux Superiore.  The appellation for Entre-deux-Mers is actually for white wines made from Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Muscadelle and Ugni Blanc.  This particular wine was sixty percent Semillon, thirty percent Sauvignon Blanc and ten percent Muscadelle.  This was just a pretty and enjoyable wine, especially for the Summer time and it was refreshing for both of us, especially, because my Bride was such a kibitzer during the presentation of opening the bottle, that she had worked up a thirst as well as I had.