I'm A Bit of A Wino

I nervously ring my hands as I eye the set up. Romantic candle light? Check. A charcuterie board with five different foreign cheeses and premium meats that I spent a suspicious amount of time selecting at the farmer's market? Check. Five glasses for five different wine pairings to go (hopefully) perfectly with the meticulously selected food? Check.

I'm not entirely sure when I thought bringing a girl to the tasting room for a first date was a good idea. Nothing says "hey look at me, I might possibly be an alcoholic?" like sampling different wines. It didn't say, "hey I wanna get you drunk?" did it? Because that wasn't my intention at all. Wine is what I do for a living and there was that one photo on her profile that showed her reading with a glass of wine. Am I being too presumptuous that she would love this idea from a single photo of one night with a half glass of wine?

As I'm reconsidering everything and debating throwing the towel in on the whole idea, the clock chimes seven and the bell above the door dings as she comes in. I know it's her because of the agreed upon time and it's Tuesday and we aren't open on Tuesdays. I've had all day to come up with something better and I haven't started second guessing myself until it's too late.

I glance over the balcony, down at Emily. She's beautiful. Short brunette hair that has a natural wave that she's tried to tame, but it's wildness only makes it more attractive. A wine colored summer dress and those kind of strappy sandals that drive me crazy. A thousand times more gorgeous than her profile picture. And a million times more out of my league.

As if sensing my staring, she glances up and greets me with this brilliant smile that lights her whole face and makes her deep umber colored eyes sparkle. "Avery?"

I cough to clear my throat and pull the collar of my shirt away from my neck. "Hey." My voice cracks with nerves. "Come on up." I try to casually wave, but feels like it comes off a bit too desperate.

Up close, I can see the smattering of freckles that decorates her face and arms. Normally I'm not one for freckles, but on her, it's like freckles were made for her and only her.

"This place is beautiful." She breathes, gazing out the glass wall that looks out over the vineyard. Rows upon rows of snaking grape vines, lush with leaves and fruit.

"Have you been before?" I pour us the first sample, a gorgeous deep red merlot with swirling notes of berries, so I have something to do other than stare at her.

She shakes her head, turning to him. "No, I've always wanted to, but haven't had the time. I...I normally don't try new things."

"Yeah, me too. This is new for me."

"Being at a winery that you own?" She raises a skeptical eyebrow.

I nervously laugh. "No, I meant dating. Through an app."

She grins teasingly like she knew what I was talking about the first time. "Same here."

I cough nervously. "You're a data analyst, right?" I hope I'm remembering correctly from her profile.

Blushing, Emily takes the seat from across me. "Yeah, not super glamorous, but it pays the bills. Nothing like owning my own business." She reaches for her glass.

"Wait!" I practically shout and instantly regret my tone.

Carefully, she sets the glass back down.

"Sorry." I drop into my chair. "Sorry, I just...I uh, wanted to walk you throw a tasting. If that's ok?"

Her fallen features instantly brighten. "Oh, I would love that."

"Good." I physically and audibly sigh with relief. This isn't my usual M.O. I'm not usually out on the floor and I had to practically beg my brother to help me figure out the "proper way" to wine taste. "I must apologize in advance. This is usually my brother's thing."

"Oh?" She nibbles on a large piece of gruyere. I should have sliced the cheese into smaller pieces.

"Yeah, I'm more of the behind the scenes guy. Dom is the front of house. He's the one that travels around to find new wines and combinations for us to try."

"So you don't like wine then?" There's a hint of teasing in her voice.

"No, the opposite, actually." I nervously laugh. "I have yet to meet a wine I haven't liked."

"Have a wide pallet then?" She sounds a bit disappointed.

"Not exactly." I lift the glass of merlot and swirl the deep red-plum colored liquid. As it swishes, I can just make out the earthy chocolate smell that will be the finishing note on the back of my tongue. "I've found that wine are like people; each one is unique and each one has something different to offer." That sounds stupid. I instantly wanted to punch myself. She probably thinks I'm talking from my ass despite it being the most genuine thing I could have possibly said.

She picks her glass up and does the same, sticking her nose inside the glass to breathe it in. "I've never thought of it like that before. Normally, I stick with the same couple of wines, but--" She pauses to taste a sip, runs her tongue over her softly plump lips. Her eyes wide as the flavors role around in her mouth "--but I'm finding that I can really like trying something new."