Drink what you actually like

Drink what you actually like.

There was a time when I thought I should like certain wines.

I’d go to tastings, listen to the descriptions and wonder what on earth everyone else was tasting.

Apparently there were notes of blackberry, leather, tobacco and the faint aroma of an oak barrel that had spent twenty years contemplating life in rural France.

I tasted… wine.

Over the years I tried plenty. Expensive bottles. Award-winning bottles. Wines that people assured me were exceptional.

Some undoubtedly were.

I just didn’t enjoy drinking them.

Eventually I stopped trying to educate my palate into liking what other people considered good.

Instead, I paid attention to something much simpler.

What did I actually enjoy?

For me, it’s usually an Italian Pinot Grigio. Around £5.75 a bottle is absolutely fine. I’ve discovered I prefer many grape varieties from their country of origin, and these days Australian and New Zealand wines often taste too oaky for my palate.

That’s not a criticism of those wines.

It’s simply what I’ve learnt about myself.

The funny thing is, this has very little to do with wine.

Somewhere along the way we’ve become convinced that there are right answers to so many things that are really just matters of preference.

The right coffee. (Nescafe Original for me)

The right handbag.

The right holiday.

The right skincare.

The right notebook.

The right way to decorate your home.

The right way to spend your weekend.

Experts have their place. They can introduce you to things you might never have discovered otherwise.

What they can’t do is tell you what you should enjoy.

That’s something only you can work out.

So try things.

Be curious.

Change your mind if your tastes change.

Just don’t keep buying, drinking or doing something because somebody else insists it’s the best.

Preference always comes first.

Life is much easier when you stop chasing someone else’s version of good and start trusting your own.

Drink what you actually like.