David Artsmith - Alcohol has a varied reputation. On the other side however, wine can be a terrible temptation, leading people to excess or folly, and dragging otherwise successful and functioning people down into the dregs of addiction and obsession. It is also a way to toast good fortune, celebrate a victory, or enhance the fun and frivolaty of a party or festival.
Of all the different alcoholic beverages that you could choose, wine probably has the most sophisticated demeanor. Beer is often considered base, the draft of the common person, and hard liquor has a well deserved reputation for getting people wasted. However wine is that perfect balance between light and heavy, powerful enough to get you quite tipsy, yet refreshing enough to be taken in little sips.
Wine also has a reputation for having a more sophisticated taste than many of its alcohol counterparts. Wine is often composed of a variety of grapes, which can be mixed and matched, and added to by spices, or fruits, and hints of other flavors. Wine making can be a rather delicate and fine art, with a wide variety of savory tools at the manufacturers disposal for creating a variety of intriguing beverages.
Even the consumption of wine is high end, with a variety of accessories being made available to enhance every moment of the experience. From high end marble drink coasters, to vacuume wine stoppers, to accessories designed to release the bouquet of the wine, there are a lot of gadgets that can be employed.
Because of this complex reputation there are a variety of wine contests that are held around the world each year, to determine the best type of wine in any of a multitude of categories. The outcome of these competitions is very important, not only for the substantial cash prizes, but also because of the importance of maintaining image in this industry. Those who win get to claim that their product is superior to all others, and can brag on this for the entire year.
However to some extent the reputation of wine has been created by the vineyards that grow the grapes and make the product. It is important to the bottom line of a lot of companies that make wine to maintain this air of mystique, this classification as the beverage of gentry, and sophistication. The purpose of the contests held each year, of anointing a best and worst wine, is as much to maintain the popular spirit of the product as it is to actually judge the results.
In general wine has a reputation. Slightly nobler than lesser intoxicants, it is a more sophisticated way to get sloshed. This is a reputation which is carefully cultivated by both wine manufacturers, and wine enthusiasts alike.
