Yesterday we visited Benton Lane, the first wine club location we joined nine years ago when we came to Oregon. We were surprised that there was a club wine pick up but always enjoy an excuse to visit this sophisticated tasting room. We like this space so much we even took photos of some of their cabinetry and used it as a template for our own home’s custom cabinetry!
I digress… we entered an empty tasting room. It was a cool and dreary day, typical of late November in the Willamette Valley. Most folks were home, staying warm and dry. Shortly after we arrived, another couple came into the tasting room. We started chatting and I realized something really interesting. So many of our visits to tasting rooms end up being social events rather than tasting events. Just the very act of being in a wine tasting room means you have something in common with the other folks around you so you’re not starting from scratch.
Of course, we struck up a conversation. Often these conversations start with wine but you never know where they will end. In this case, it led to multiple connections among us. He used to run marathons and is a member of the Oregon Track Club, so is Neal. She works for the Department of Human Services, I partner with DHS on clients and projects almost daily in my work. That conversation led to track and field which led to Nike which led to… You catch my drift. You never know who you might meet at a winery and you never know where it might lead.