Happy New Year! With 2020 in our rearview mirror, we can look forward to what’s to come in 2021. Now is the perfect time to set goals for the coming weeks, months, and year. As we all know, keeping your New Year’s Resolutions can be tough, since the most popular resolutions involve restrictions—diets, quitting a habit, saving more money, and so on. The Wine365 team decided to make our resolutions a bit more fun for 2021 (and can’t we all use a bit more fun after 2020?)!
Read on to see what Wine365’s staff resolves to do in 2021…
2021 Wine Resolutions
Nick Poletto
My resolution is to be perfectly prepared for my Master of Wine exam in June. More specifically…I pledge to be better at:
- Discerning between Grüner Veltliner and Burgundy in blind tastings
- Noticing American oak aging
- Writing short, precise answers
Henry Sidel
My 2021 Sake resolution is to record more short, educational videos on Youtube and Instagram.
Joe Janish
My first wine resolution is actually a non-wine resolution. In 2021, I will work to NOT try to pair each evening’s dinner with a wine, but instead to mix in a Sake at least a few times a month – and to stretch those sake-and-food pairings past my usual habit of matching sake with sushi or spicy Asian and Indian dishes.
My second wine resolution is to help make Wine365 more accessible to people who enjoy wine, would like to learn more about it, and want to feel smarter and more confident in their wine-buying decisions. And if that sounds like a self-serving, blatant promotion for this website, well … it is … but, heck, this is a wonderful resource for people seeking wine guidance and who want to feel more empowered to explore beyond their comfort zone.
Jennica Ossi
I want to re-taste my tried-and-true wine purchases of my 20’s. I had very little education on wine then and, well, you have to start somewhere! Now that I have an education and further developed palate, I want to revisit these wines to understand why I chose them repeatedly.
Questions to ask myself during the tasting will include: Why did I choose them? Was it because they were readily available? Was it because they were $8-$15? What’s the Great, Good, Bad, and Ugly on the nose and palate? How has my palate developed over time? Am I just spoiled now?
Stay tuned… I will update you before 2021 is up!
Ron Breitstein
My wine resolution for 2021 is to start drinking and enjoying more of the aged wine in my wine cellar. I’ve been collecting for over 30 years, and I don’t want to miss out on some special gems I’ve been saving!
Daniel Hartenstein
My resolution is to drink some of the older items in my collection. I usually try to share any wines that I have tried to keep and allow them to age and see how they develop over time. Ideally, I like to do this with other wine aficionados and have a nice discussion about them. But over the last year (due to COVID-19), I haven’t been able to do this at all. I plan to do this again in 2021!
Gabrielle Tapia
I spent much of 2020 looking at wine from a technical perspective while I completed the CSW exam. This year, I want to get more experimental! I want to try more rare varietals, US wines (that aren’t from the West Coast), and wines from less-famous international markets. Learning about wine has been one of my greatest joys, so this year I want to expand my knowledge in a less-traditional way. I hope to document my findings through Instagram and end this year with a greater knowledge of unique wines, and a couple of new go-to bottles!
Missi Holle
I would like to dig deeper into Sherry! I have learned the basics about sherries (where and how they are produced, and the style classifications), but I’ve only tasted a few of the different styles. This year, I’ll be on the lookout for opportunities to learn more through tasting events (assuming those return in 2021!) and taste-along webinars so that I can discover which styles and brands are my favorites. Salud!
Vesselina Stoyanova
My 2021 wine goal is to further my wine knowledge and train my palate to recognize basic varietals and New World vs. Old World, in the glass. Hoping to have the time and opportunity to study and take the WSET Level 3 test. Oh, and create wine & food pairing for cats! (LOL)
Diana Zahuranec
I want to improve my wine recommendation skills. I’d like to be more comfortable and knowledgeable when I suggest a wine to friends and family, and be able to take their tastes into consideration. And for that, I’ll need to continue to build a lot of steps beforehand: learn more about grapes, wine regions, study that WSET material, and taste, taste, taste!
Jillian Lepore
As a social media coordinator and an avid social media browser myself, it may come as no surprise that one of my New Year’s Resolutions is to spend less of my free time on my phone and more of it reading books. Because let’s face it, I pretty much spend most of my days staring at various sized screens. More specifically, I am planning on expanding my wine knowledge by reading more wine books and guides. I already have a few lined-up to read but am open to any and all suggestions!
Kurt Eckert
I resolve to drink even more Gewurztraminer (because it’s just so good, and to set a good example); and I resolve to drink more new-world Pinot Noir, to re-acquaint myself with this categories evolution and avoid being pigeon-holed into the Burgundy snob role! And I will indulge my guilty pleasure love of Dolcetto, whether d’Alba or Dogliani, so long as it’s from Piemonte.
Jack Horn
My 2021 Wine Resolution: get my WSET II certification.
While the informal wine education I’ve received in the past year and a half has been invaluable, my main resolution for 2021 is to further my formal wine knowledge by obtaining the WSET II certification. The WSET Level 2 is a step up from the regular WSET Level 1 test, but is still considered an intermediary examination in the wine world. It covers all the major grape varietals and regions in the world where wine is produced. There are also some technical aspects that are included in the exam, such as how wine is stored and how a novice can read a wine label. While a lot of this might be a review for me, I’m excited to round out my professional experience with a certification that is both practically applicable and intellectually stimulating.
