Wine Tasting at O'Beery

There was a wine-tasting event at O'Beery McLiquors on Friday, December 10th, 2011, from 6-9 p.m. O'Beery McLiquors is a liquor store and bar in Bel-Air, Maryland. A representative of Island Distributing, Brett Dimaio, was set up to let customers sample wine from his selection. He stood at his booth with small disposable cups and an assortment of wines from Island Distributing. The selection included Island Mist flavors, Whale Rider flavors and Stella Artois wine. When asked about his favorite wine, he said that "I like our Pinot Noir that I sell from our Whale Rider line. I tend to prefer dryer wines. It's from New Zealand, and this particular import is very, very good."

With all the different brands and flavors of wine, it's difficult to know where to start looking for something that satisfies. Some people are biased against things they haven't tried, and others are simply afraid to try something new. When asked if there was any particular thing to keep in mind when choosing a wine, Mr. Dimaio said, "The main thing is not to be afraid of it. If you enjoy sweet wines, buy a sweet wine. Don't be intimidated by people who say you have to have dry wine to be real wine."

Many people tend to think of wine as being some category of drink that is inferior to liquor, or a "feminine" drink. "If you want something for a reader to take away from your article," he explained, "wine is just another alcoholic drink--just like beer. Just like liquor. No one ever likes their first beer, yet they get over that really quickly; they drink lots of beer. Wine just takes a little bit for people to learn to enjoy it. They get all intimidated for no particular reason. It's all alcohol--it's all good or bad--it can all be enjoyed or not liked. People tend to allow themselves to be intimidated by it starting out. People who are comfortable with it can go and enjoy it. The main thing that wine comes in handy for is food. You can sit around and drink beer all day. If you're going to get hammered you can drink liquor--mixed or straight. If you're going to drink a beverage with your food, nine times out of ten wine is that drink. Now, there are a lot of foods to be had with beer, as well, but wine and food are a natural pair."

Mr. Dimaio spoke with a steadfast knowledge of alcoholic beverages. Within five minutes of speaking with him,  his pride of the subject matter was clear. The wine-tasting had several interested customers, and he made several sales to people who entered the store for beer or liquor.

For more information on wine-tasting, visit http://wine.about.com/od/winebasic1/ht/winetasting.htm