Whose Side Are You On Anyway?

There’s a bit of a divisive nature in humans. I’m sure you’ve noticed. From birth it seems, were taught to form into groups, into camps, into tribes. I got my biggest glimpse of this in the navy. I was a nuclear trained electrician on submarines so, let me count the tribes; to the other branches of the military, I would have been a Navy girl (this was 1986-1995 so pardon the outdated speech, I’m sure they have some new terms considered derisive now), and they would have been grunts, or jarheads, or whatever it was we called the Air Force. Since I was on submarines, we were bubbleheads, and they were surface pukes. I was an electrician, so we called machinists knuckle draggers and electronics technicians were whiners. Machinists could branch out and become ELT girls in the lab. (It is rather disconcerting how much of this was sexist, since there were only men on subs at that time, I suppose it was still something we could get away with.) I was a fuckin’nuke (one word) in the engine room, and the coners (get it?) worked in the front of the boat. Smaller and smaller tribes, and so on, and so on…

So we divide each other. By race, religion, politics, and sadly, even by wines. Now, you could argue that those first few are a more important problem, but as I’ve pointed out before, wine is entangled in them all. Like that tree in the movie Avatar, it’s roots extend and encompass all. That being the case, perhaps if we chip away a little at this wine stuff, good waves will ripple out and bring positive energy to the others. Is that really so hard to believe? What better way to work out our differences than over a table of good food and fine wine? It seems a more civilized way to me, a better alternative than carving up the world over cigars, whiskey, and golf courses. (Please pardon me, that was divisive.) Point is, wine can be inclusive if we let it. Wayne Schutz is proving that every day with the FLX Wine Aficionados Facebook group, as are the members who are interacting almost exclusively in a positive, encouraging tone. I apologize if I’m starting to sound like an Aficionados groupie, but I am impressed with the behavior of you all. And I sense there is an opportunity for all of us Aficionados, as well as anyone else that’s interested, to extend those positive vibes. Let me explain.

I have watched over the last two and a half years as the Finger Lakes region has undergone incredible upheaval. As with almost every industry in America, the wineries had to shift gears rapidly to stay solvent. Online sales and events filled the gap, while the tasting rooms shifted and evolved to a more intimate, sit down experience, often with food. I’ve enjoyed the new formats for the most part, and most of the wineries we frequent seem to be keeping that mostly in place, but what of all the wineries that we typically don’t visit. Not everyone wants a “serious” (and more expensive wine), most people, in fact, want an easy drinker that goes down smooth and eases the day away. Something for the beach, the patio, the barbecue. You can drink serious wines at the barbecue, of course, but it’s not the ideal place to ponder the mysteries of the universe. Just refresh me on a hot day, lube the conversational sluices a bit, and create an experience. Just saying, doesn’t it strike you as odd that most of the wine talk is done by a small minority of wine drinkers. What of the poor huddled masses, just out for a delicious beverage, and a tasting room where you can belly up to the bar?

That seems the frontline to me, the tasting room. There are a lot of fronts colliding here actually. The serious crowd, the good time crowd, the bridesmaids/girls just want to have fun crowd, the limo crowd – all coming together and mixing with the tasting room employees. It can be a wondrous mess or a dysfunctional and volatile mixture of egos and exasperation. Add to that the mess of Covid, and the tensions can rise. I’ve watched with some dismay as these groups have occasionally let the stress of acclimating to the new normal, form them into “us against them” factions. I see it in the restaurants too. A lot of this is just normal stuff for a region that depends on tourism for a large part of their income. It’s always a somewhat love-hate relationship. So it ever is when tribes collide, but does it have to be this way?

At any point in that mess of naval tribalism I was describing above, if another tribe attacked then you joined forces and retaliated. As a nuclear electrician, I might haze a coner all day long, but if that same person got shit from a surface puke, we would rise to their defense. Ditto if I was drinking with said surface puke and an army grunt gave offense, we would rise as one. Would it work that way on a grand scale, say, if the alien attack came, would a new world order of humanity form against them? I have an idea to try it on a wine inclined crowd, perhaps even on a larger scale than the Aficionados. I’m thinking about a possible primer of advice, from one group to another – the wine drinkers and the wine pourers. A gentle explanation on how to navigate the new FLX order. I thought I would offer some generalized suggestions to start, and then encourage responses from all of you, whether through public comments to encourage discourse, or through private messages to me if you wish to remain anonymous. This all has to been done in a positive voice. Statements that start with “I hate it when…” are discouraged when possible. Be positive. I’ll start:

Positively Finger Lakes: A working guide to getting the most out of a Finger Lakes trip.

• Be patient. There’s not enough help to go around. There are way too many outstanding wines for everyone’s taste, you can’t accomplish it all in one trip. Savor, rather than rush.
• Be flexible. Things are in flux. We’re all figuring it out.
• Be positive. There really is nothing to be gained with negativity and nastiness. Except maybe more of the same. Make someone’s day rather than ruin it.
• Be responsible. Don’t put a tasting room employee in the awkward position of having to stop serving you. Of course have a DD, but don’t encourage drunkenness in the rest of the group.
• Be kind. The region is loaded with diversity, more so every day. Revel in it, and learn from it. Try not to let uncomfortableness make you defensive and mean.
• Be friendly. We all need each other if we’re going to continue to make this a world class destination for wine, food, craftsmanship, and enjoyment.
• Be attentive. Listen more than talk, and ask pertinent questions. I swear, watch the person’s face if you ask a question that proves you’ve been listening, it’ll change the whole conversation. I’m going to work on this one more myself.
• Be early. You’ll likely get more attention and have a better experience if you go early in the day.

Well, as I said, a short list to start. I’d really like to hear more specific things from all of you in the trenches. Rules for the limo and bus crowds, ideas on what time of the day and week you’re most likely to have a leisurely, possibly extended tasting, what kind of tastings and other experiences are the wine drinkers looking for. You get the idea. If I get a good response, I’ll work on that primer and send it out to the world, or at least to the few dozen of you that read these ramblings. Let me hear it.

Cheers, Jerry.

Oh, and especially number five above…