Wine Is the Key to a ‘Real-Deal’ Travel Experience
By: Charlie Brown
Tags: Wine, Hospitality, Europe, Culture, Travel

Travelling isn’t what it used to be.

My in-laws have stories about travelling around Greece, France and Italy in the late 80s, early 90s, where grandmothers would stand in the doorways of their houses, striking up a conversation and inviting you in to try a local delicacy they’d just whipped out of the oven moments before. Stories of unbelievable hospitality, of strangers giving you shelter when your motorhome flooded, of food and wine flowing well into the night.

Of course, there is a high chance these were exaggerated romanticisms, but I believed them fully and wholeheartedly.

So off I went on my first backpacking experience in my early 20s, fully expecting to find a Europe that was 100% dedicated to giving me a good time for nothing.

Naturally, it didn’t happen. And for many years, I didn’t believe that any of this kind of fuzzy, warm hospitality existed at all.

Turns out, I was looking in the wrong places. Because when I delved headfirst into the professional world of wine, I was delighted to find a world of kindness and generosity that was just like the Europe of my rose-tinted dreams.

It makes me sad when I meet people who struggle to connect with anyone on their travels through winemaking countries. Because I know the secret to endearing yourself to your local bar owners, new friends and restaurateurs. All it requires is a good attitude, a little bit of knowledge and plenty of stamina to keep up with the drinking.

Welcome to the world of wine travel.

Here’s how you do it.

Understand that not all wines are made equal

Wine is experiencing an identity crisis.

On the one hand, you have cheap, mass-produced wine, little more than a grape-based chemical cocktail whose sole purpose is to get you drunk for under $6.

On the other is the world of rich old white dudes wearing gold button blazers and red trousers who faff on about $500+ bottles in convoluted, pretentious ways.

That’s most people’s experience of wine.

But, there is the glorious middle ground, the place that not many people even know exists. It’s a magical world where wine is still there to facilitate a good time but without all the snobbery of the old guard.

This is the place where you will find generosity and wonderful hospitality. Small winemakers or grape growers who care about what goes into the bottle, often made far more ethically and certainly with more heart and soul than the two extremes.

This middle ground is your key to a good time and you can find it in wine bars, wine-focused restaurants or local wine shops. There will be one in nearly every town in Europe.

Frequent the local wine bars often and with gusto

I recently popped into a wine bar with a new friend, where we were warmly greeted by a member of staff saying ‘Oh hi! I didn’t recognise you for a minute (thanks, facemask), how are you doing?”

My friend turned to me. ‘Are you a regular in here or something?’

Not really. That was only my third visit.

In the 2 weeks I’ve been drinking in my current home of Logrono, northern Spain (which frequently changes), I’ve developed rapport and in-jokes with three or four of the local wine bars. And it’s not because I’m the life and soul of the party with perfect Spanish (far from it). It’s because I’ve shown up regularly to each of them, and I’ve asked for more than house wine.

Most good wine bars are a) super friendly and b) will have a decent wine list that stretches far beyond house wine, often at not much more of an expense.

I owned a wine bar for 7 years. Believe me when I tell you that just a little bit of interest and a smile will endear you to the staff more than you can imagine. Which in turn gives you a far better, more satisfying experience. One where you’ve been able to connect with people who live and breathe the wine you’re drinking.

Which brings me onto my next point:

Attitude and enthusiasm are more important than knowledge

Please, please don’t worry about the world of wine being scary and intimidating, only reserved for the initiated. If anywhere makes you feel like that, you’re in the wrong place.

All any decent wine bar, restaurant or winery wants from their customers is a bit of interest and a good attitude, because we all know what it’s like to have rude, obnoxious sorts that ruin your day.

Feel free to ask questions, to say you don’t know what they’re talking about. Us wine professionals are only too happy to talk about our subject for hours, we never mind your questions.

Don’t rely on guidebooks, newspapers or review sites for wine recommendations

Instead, jump on social media, apps like Raisin (great for natural wine) or wine blogs (ahem, my own blog is a good place to start…) and find out where those in the wine trade are eating, drinking and spending their time.

Some say ‘drink where the locals drink’ but I don’t believe it because locals are just people — some will have good taste, some bad. You need to arm yourself with a bit of knowledge about where actually cares about what they’re pouring into your glass.

Otherwise, you could wind up somewhere mediocre, wondering why my promise of great hospitality hasn’t happened to you.

Visit the small wineries

If you’re in a winemaking region, visiting a winery can be one of the most incredible ways to experience the place because wine will run through the blood of most people who live there.

And sure, big wineries can be impressive (if you’re not wondering why they spent all their money on swish wineries rather than on the actual product they make) but often all you’ll get is a quick tour and tasting of the facility, occasionally at some expense.

Here’s what you do instead. A night or two before, go to that wine bar where you’ve created a great rapport with the bar staff just by being friendly and asking a question or two about wine. Then ask them which small winery they would recommend. Call the winemaker up, make an appointment and get yourself over there.

Winemakers are often only too happy to show a willing and enthusiastic wine drinker around their place. You might get a tour around their vineyards. Or tastings straight out of the barrels. Or mean to go for an hour and accidentally stay for 6, meeting their spouse, their kids, their dog, having lunch with the family.

It’s not a given that this will happen, but I guarantee that you will always have a better time and learn more about the region’s culture, geography and people with the small wineries than with the winemaking factory down the road.

Ultimately, wine is a connector

If we’re travelling to experience the ‘real-deal’ what we’re really asking for is a connection to the people and the place we have travelled to. In winemaking regions — or indeed in cities where wine is an important cultural touchstone like London, New York or Paris — wine can be that connector.

Because it is so intrinsically linked not only with the people who make it, but those who drink it and are involved in its production (which will be nearly everyone), you can be a part of this world with just a little bit of knowledge, enthusiasm and thought.

That those authentic, genuine travel experiences can be found. They exist in the bottom of a wine glass.