Drinking wine

Rosé, that's my kind of wine!

A few years ago, we invited a couple of friends (she's Irish and he's American) for dinner. It wasn't anything fancy really, just finger food and some drinks.

As soon as they arrived, the husband  started apologising. He told me they were a bit stressed at the idea of going to a French house, that they realised they had to bring some wine,  but they didn't know which kind. So they brought a bottle with a cork, because if it was a bottle with a screw cap, I would have probably been offended. Yes, apparently, French people are supposed to hate screw caps; I just didn't get the memo. It must have happened after I left the country. On a side note, I find screw caps so much easier, it took me years to figure out how to use a corkscrew without making a mess!

Anyway, they proudly handed me the bottle, a Red wine, Cotes-Du-Rhones 2011... And I burst laughing:

"Thank you guys, you shouldn't have gone through so much trouble and stress. I don't know anything about wine, and I don't drink red anyway!"

The bottle didn't go to waste though, my husband enjoyed it very much.

Why does everyone assume I know about wine, just because I'm French? It's like presuming every Irish person knows about beer, but trust me, I couldn't differentiate a Bordeaux from a Bourgogne or a Merlot from a Cabernet Sauvignon. And when I have to buy wine in the supermarket, I choose the one  with the pretty sticker, that is not too expensive, and I hope for the best.

I hope for the best for the people who will drink it because I don't like red wine. Actually, it's not that I don't like it, I just don't know how to appreciate it. There so many different varieties, I don't think I could tell if the wine is good or not.

There's something I really don't get though, and that's people drinking glasses of wine in the pub, especially women. Do they think it makes them look more elegant or something? For me, wine has to be drank while having a meal and not on its own. I know this is really a French thing, but I will stand by it!

In fairness, I can have a glass of rosé on its own (or a few...), but I still prefer to enjoy it with food. Maybe it's just the way I was brought up. Wine accompanies food, you don't go out and get drunk solely on wine (except if you're a student, it's "Beaujolais Nouveau" night in the bar, and the wine is free...).

The strange thing is, after writing all this, and explaining how, even though I'm French, I know nothing about wine, I realised I definitely have a French way of drinking it...!