Well, the wine I fell in love with was a Windy Oaks Pinot Noir 2003 to die for! It had everything – supple, plummy, some olallieberry, a hint of leather (the kind on a jacket that has been worn by an Italian BMW driver) and only 14.2 alcohol. Enough to hold all those flavors, plus some tannin, but not enough to toast your eyeballs.

BUT, it’s gone. All gone. And the 2004 has crept up in price by $6 (bringing it to over $30 a bottle). There’s a lesson here, which probably involves not falling for a wine you can’t afford to buy a case of. Or something like that.