Going to the dogs.

Friday, March 17th, 2023. St. Patrick’s Day. 11:58pm.

I just finished driving up from Pennsylvania in the rain. Much preferable to Tuesday night’s drive in snow and ice. Such is March. The winter landscape of the back yard on Wednesday, complete with frolicking dogs, has become a muddy pit, with frolicking filthy dogs. Amy is taking a few hours rest between work shifts. I have fled north with three border collies. Amy will get more sleep, if she can keep the cats from the bedroom.

So, I’m home on a rainy St. Patrick’s Day, with no desire to go out and, as a friend told me today, “compete with amateurs”. I’m still wearing my work clothes and the canine’s have not finished reading the messages left by twenty or so patients brushing by today. And I have sustenance, a 2021 Dr. Frank Chardonnay that was opened on Tuesday night and refrigerated. It’s probably even better tonight, the subtle hint of oak is more about texture than taste. Probably be even better in a couple more years, maybe a lot of years. The screw cap still kind of messes with my brain, even after an incredible tasting of every vintage of Tierce, all under screw cap. Not a dud in the bunch, no oxidation to speak of, at all. Figure it this way, usually when you taste an older wine you have two basic things to ponder – vintage notes, and age notes. I wouldn’t say that the screw cap takes age out of the equation, but it makes it much less of a consideration. It’s like slowing down time. Honestly, I don’t know if I like screw caps or not, but I like this wine, so it’s something to ponder.

Where was I? Ah, the Chardonnay. As I said, I think it will age, I think it even more so tonight, since it’s been open three days. It gives me a chance to further define my artificial aging theory. You haven’t heard of this? It’s not original, it’s a riff on something I read somewhere over the last ten years. Here goes, to see how a wine might age, whether it be white or red, open the bottle and pour a half glass, then cork the bottle and put it in the fridge. Every day pour a half glass and recork the bottle. Let the wine come to the proper temp in the glass before trying. The scale is sliding for type of wine, and ever changing with vintage, but start with a bottle of, say, Chardonnay, and try this. Each day could be considered to be one year of artificial aging. On day 3 you have a rough approximation of the wine when opened at three further years of aging. Nonsense! I hear you say. To which I reply, go calculate your GDD’s and plan accordingly. (This is not to say that either GDD’s or my thumb rule are flawed, just that one might be as reasonable as the other.) For reds it’s more complicated, and there is no equation, just take the concept and run with it if it interests you.

So, the dogs and I are here for a weekend. Myself to write, drink, play guitar, “play” piano, maybe even clean house a bit. The dogs are here to eat, crap, roll in (hopefully) mud, and then lay on the couch and lick, lick, lick. That licking is incessant at night, all night, lick, lick, lick… For the moment, though, they are sprawled at my feet like a set of themed throw rugs. The merest twitch of a finger, or scrape of a chair, will have them at high alert and running for the downstairs. Oh, how downstairs calls to them. It is their true recall. Every move we make in the house is watched with intent if it even looks like we’re heading for downstairs.

Oh yeah, I thought I might go old school blog for the weekend. Post anything that might be of interest. I have many half full bottles of wine to get through so I won’t need to go anywhere but, let’s face it, I probably will. I have a few favorite tables, benches, bars, and bar stools to visit. Squatter’s rights and all that. If I have anything that seems worthwhile to say I’ll put it in an update. Maybe I’ll see some of you on the trails.

Cheers, Jerry