On the fourth of May, it will be fourteen years of my blog, some will be happy for me, some will be amazed at that as they think that I am probably wasting my time, and most will be rather indifferent.

This article will be my 2,575^th piece and to me that seems rather monumental.  The first year I wrote an article to be published every evening at 01:10 GMT (at least during DST), because I get rather fixated on a concept.  I wrote the first year, every night, just to acclimate myself to writing again, as I had graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1976 and had gotten out of the habit of writing.  Then for the next perhaps ten years, I wrote an article to be published every other evening (still at the same time).  Then I started to slack off and started publishing an article every third night, and this has proven advantageous as I had discovered Instagram.  There is a maximum character limit per published article, and I started tailoring the articles to fit this unknown count, and there have been days when I have had to abridge my own works, because I can get too verbose, imagine that.  I also write with a conceit that I imagine that I am talking to a friend at a table as we enjoy a glass or two of wine.  I don’t have any designations and after over fifty years of enjoying wine, I might be embarrassed about how little I know.  With amazement, somehow, I have acquired a readership of about 8,000 each week now.     

At first, I was gun-shy, and I think that I was perhaps goaded by friends and relatives to give it a go, as I was a very enthusiastic wine drinker, who maybe got a little carried away with collecting.  I have read that my generation might be the last generation to collect and develop hobbies and I hope not.  Since I have always remarked that I have a face for radio, it has allowed me to become a collector, sometimes to my Bride’s chagrin, because beyond wine, I have collected many forms of paper ephemera, classic literature (I mean is there anything more enjoyable than reading from a deckle-edged, raised spine book), hobby literature, art and a wardrobe that might make a boulevardier envious.  My Bride and I both agree that we must curtail our passion for buying wine, but we still do, and I guess we just must drink more often together and with friends. If you follow me on some social media sites, I have been showcasing a bottle of wine from the cellar each day, more to remind myself of what needs to be enjoyed sooner than later, and since I started this feature if I calculate properly, it will be at “No. 571.”

So, if one day you are at a wine shop, a wine tasting, a nice dinner or even a casual dinner, or at a winery and you see this over-dressed and hatted individual taking photos of a wine glass and a bottle, while asking for information, it may be me with my Bride.  One other thing that I will mention, because of the “conceit” of my narratives, I don’t rate wines (I leave that to the professionals) and I try not to denigrate any wines, as sometimes the only wines that we may encounter are mass-produced wines, but they even have a proper place in the pecking order, as they may make an individual try another wine similar to a wine that they had, and they can be very pleased and we have a new wine drinker.   We are still having fun, and it is a delightful avocation when one is retired, though I probably would have enjoyed it when I was working as well.  And I must end with a dear thank you to everyone that lets me ramble on from an honorary “Street Somm.”