Wow, who would have thought going back to work after a restful vacation would be so . . . so . . . challenging?  No, there weren’t any ‘fires’ to be extinguished, but – okay, do you remember when you were a kid, and you couldn’t wait for Christmas vacation to start?  It seemed like it took four years to get from Thanksgiving to Christmas . . . and THEN, freedom for the best time of the year.  Oh, how we relished those days – they went by so SLOW!  Each day getting us closer to the magical day of Christmas, and then POOF, that part of the vacation was over – BUT, we still had the New Year’s celebration to look forward to and still no school.  But, like it always does, the day comes – it’s New Year’s Day!!  Woo-hoo . .  .parades, football, dinner, bed, time to get up for the first day of school.

Oh my gosh, those were the WORST days to be a kid – c’mon, you know that you dreaded having to go back to school after the Christmas break.  Well, okay, maybe not ALL of you, but we did.  So, it was with our break this year.  We both enjoyed time off starting at the end of the day on December 21st until the end of the day yesterday.  Oh, it was like magic had somehow transported us back to our school days – don’t have to get up and get ready.  Don’t have to be somewhere at a specific time . . . and then Christmas came – and went – and POOF, that part of the vacation was over . . . BUT, we still had the New Year’s celebration to look forward to and still no work.  But, like it always does, the day comes – it’s New Year’s Day!!  Woo-hoo . .  .parades, football, dinner, bed time to get up for the first day of work.

We’ve always been taught that the more things change, the more they stay the same . . . so even as time has flown by, some things in life are still the same.  And since we’re talking about things changing (or was it staying the same?), we decided that tonight would be a perfect night to enjoy a Pinot Noir.  Yep, the same folks who love those big Australian wines, those big California Cabs and Zins are breaking down and sipping on some beautiful Pinot Noir.  We decided to open a 2009 Snap Dragon Pinot Noir from Snap Dragon Winery of Sonoma, California.  Challenge #1:  the winery has no website of its’ own.  So, those in the business can probably tell us the reasons why; however, those of us NOT in the business call this a bit of a problem when trying to help the wine gain some identity.  This wine is fruity.  Pure and simple.  It’s light, airy and ready for easy drinking.  At less than $12 a bottle, it’s not going to be lining the racks of your wine closet, but for something that’s out of the ordinary, fresh, fruity and easy to sip, it’s not a bad choice.  Would be buy it in quantity?  No, probably not, but for our friends who enjoy Pinot Noir, is it something worth trying – sure, why not.  It’s best described as, “Juicy and fruity with ripe raspberry, fresh strawberries and spicy oak notes. This wine gets along with pretty much any dinner companion – from roast chicken to spicy pasta to difficult in-laws.”  Put in that context, pretty decent!!!

In the big picture, we’d probably find a different Pinot to enjoy.  There are some AMAZING wines from California, Oregon, Washington and other areas, that would and should offer better Pinot Noir’s than this one, but at least we’re ‘branching out’!  And, speaking of branching out, as your New Year unfolds, we hope it’s easier getting back in the saddle whether you’re going back to work, back to school or back to the basics.  Having gotten today out of the way, it ‘should’ be easier getting up tomorrow . . . and we both know that there will be plenty of work to do once we get back into the swing of things.

We hope that you have plenty to keep you in the swing of things as well, and as you enjoy your favorite wine, please do so responsibly and recycle whenever possible.