Wine gets nerdy.

Since I started my wine class, I've developed an interest in tasting and buying. But not so much drinking. I now have 12 bottles of wine, and they're just sitting there. But I love to buy the stuff! I was at BevMo the other day buying a birthday gift, and had to consciously restrain myself from buying more. I know it ages well, but I live in a studio, and it's just getting ridiculous.

I'm also getting into reading about it. Not so much the true highbrow take on it but more the fun, unpretentious gurus of guzzling. A columnist at Wired magazine recently came up with some fun gadgets that would make enjoying wine more accessible to the everyman. One of these is a Tooth-Mounted Flavor Sensor, which would send signals about a wine's flavors directly to a speaker in the ear.

"At last, you can with full confidence declare a glass of wine to have 'a wispy touch of pear and loquat, blended masterfully with a strong chord of pepper and cinnamon, all held together by COMPOUND NOT IDENTIFIED -- PLEASE CHECK FOR DRIVER UPDATES.' "

How awesome would that be?! Finally, all snootiness would be erased from the wine world, because everyone would have access to the same information. No single palate would be better than another. And sure, maybe it takes some of the fun out of the tasting, but you could also consider it educational. After a while, lose the earpiece and join the fun.