When’s the last time you showed some appreciation?

If you’re like most of us, you’ll shake your head at that question because, and don’t we think like this, our answer to the question would be … “I show appreciation all the time!”

Hmm, are you certain? I’ll go out on a limb and pose the premise that we let times go by where a simple “thank you” was not offered, a time when we walked by a beautiful piece of nature without noticing it and the time someone offered a bit of sympathy, which we accepted as if we earned it.

I know that may sound a bit caustic, but let’s be honest with ourselves, we’ve all been there. It’s part of our human nature. Sometimes we are so caught up in our minds that we don’t show appreciation and that’s too bad. We humans need to give appreciation more often and learn how to receive it with humility and grace.

I was reminded of the necessity of showing this value at a recent visit to my bank.

It was a day that had not gone as expected — the day had, well, not been the best (I cleaned that up a bit!). It seemed that if there was a day that a well laid out plan would go awry, it was that day and apparently my face showed my feelings.

After the initial greetings with the bank teller, she asked me how my day was going and I was at a loss for words. I kept trying to be truthful and yet lighthearted but my tongue was at a loss to express my feelings. The teller looked at my face, put down our pending financial transaction and simply said:

“We are blessed with what we have, aren’t we?”

That sentence of appreciation loosened my tongue and we entered into a very short conversation about the necessity to see and hear the goodness around us. She made me smile.

Smiling! Isn’t that a terrific way to show we prize something? I know that to be true because a smile comes to my face every time I think about a good bottle of wine or when I have the expectation there’s a new wine out there for me to taste. Smile time!

But to get that bottle of wine, someone has to have the idea to make wine, plant grapes, wait for them to mature, gather the bunches of grapes, press them, work with the juice and then finally bottle the wine.

To put it more simply, someone needs to have the passion, persistence and patience to make wine.

Therefore, let’s honor a few Minnesota wineries that are showing those values and compare two of the wines they produce.

It’s always fun to have a blind tasting to compare the products of wineries. So, I got bottles of La Crescent wine from Chankaska Wines (Kasota) and from Round Lake Vineyards & Winery (Round Lake).

My partner and I tasted both renderings of La Crescent and had differing opinions. It wasn’t that one of the wines was not good or that we didn’t like one or the other. Our differences are subjective — we have differences in what we like to taste and we taste things differently. Interestingly enough, we liked both wines but for disparate reasons.

Round Lake’s La Crescent is fruity and provides a lush warm mouth feel that ended in a sweeter citrusy finish. Very nice — well made with a nice lemony aroma. Chankaska’s wine had a noticeable lemon/lime aroma that jumped into a jammy taste and finished with an apple/pear dry taste — quite complex and interesting. The tasting verdict? My partner preferred the Round Lake wine and I voted for Chankaska’s wine.

Then our tasting went to Marquette wines from Crow River Winery (Hutchinson) and from Winehaven (Chisago City).

We both agreed that, when one drinks a Marquette, one better be prepared for some acidity or even some harshness of taste. Crow River’s wine gave us both that acidity along with lots of blackberry and peppery tastes. However, I picked up a hint of vanilla from its barrel aging process and noted its semi-dry finish. Winehaven’s Marquette Reserve had the requisite blackberry and spiciness that should be in the wine but, for me, it had a softness I liked and I also tasted some woodiness to go along with its nice dry finish. We both picked Winehaven as our favorite Marquette.

This tasting process is subjective and depends on the tasting situation. Later that night I had Crow River’s Marquette with a hot dog and sauerkraut. It was absolutely amazing how the kraut and wine paired — they were perfectly complementary.

It’s important we appreciate those folks who are passionate about making wine, are persistent in their efforts to produce a good northern climate product and have the patience that will benefit not only those of us who enjoy the fruits of their labor but that additionally benefit our state.

“We are blessed with what we have, aren’t we?”

Next week, it’s color time!

As always, eat and drink in moderation but laugh with reckless abandon!

Cheers!