Let's Wine About It

My name is Casey Kelby and I am a super senior in Aerospace Engineering with minors in Astronomy and Math. I live in Warrington, Bucks County, Pennsylvania, about 45 minutes outside of Philadelphia when I am not in Blacksburg. I am very much a wine novice, although I have been developing my wine repertoire over the past few months, when my since-graduated room mates last year started attending wine events for their class last Spring.

Room mates at Zeppoli's Italian

I drink about 2 bottles of wine per week and usually taste wines on Saturdays at the Gourmet Pantry and sometimes at the Vintage Cellar. I also taste or have a few glasses here and there. My interest in wine has been changing for about 2 years. Originally when I started drinking wine I was 21 with no direction, especially since no one in my family drinks wine or if they do drink wine they settle with "Two-Buck Chuck" Shiraz. When I started drinking wine I stuck with Sutter Home and Yellow Tail, usually Moscato and Sweet Red blends, that is until I found Pinot Noir. I started drinking lighter red table wine blends and, starting last semester, jumped into every varietal and blend I could get my hands on.

My palette changes every day and is constantly evolving, but I am currently into big reds like Zinfandel and Cabernet Savingnon, and I will always have a soft spot for Pinot Noir, Grenache, and Chianti. I also still enjoy drinking Moscato, but have broadened my white palette with dry Riesling, Chablis, and Savingnon Blanc. I enjoy pairing wine with meals or playing cards and enjoying a nice bold red. I am also notorious for drinking wine while enjoying movies and TV shows with friends and family. Wine for me is a way to explore the world while in the comfort of home; I also love trying new foods at restaurants and pairing it with a wine varietal or winery I haven't tried. I spent a lot of my winter break and a better part of my Spring 2013 weekends visiting Virginia and Pennsylvania wineries.

In this class I hope to keep on developing my palette so that some day I may be able to tell the difference between a $20 bottle and something at a higher price point. At this time my tastes are good, but I need to try more varietals and attempt to pull out flavors and textures.