October 19, 2017 by Tasha Taylor No CommentsBlog, Travel, Wine & Food

Wine Stories: Flat Roof Manor

In this blog, I showcase a chapter from my book in progress “Wine Diaries”. It is a collection of short stories inspired by wine and adventure.

Over the years, I’ve been working on writing a book. I began in 2014 to hand-write down my thoughts and words into a green leather bound journal. At the beginning every chapter was built around a four letter word. In 2015 I expanded into another two books that began with both three and five letter words. In 2015 the books were then typed out by a very good friend, word for word. In May 2016, I began to write an introduction and worked late at night on bringing the book to life in my own mind. Over the next year and a half the book remained dormant. I went through an incredibly challenging time in my life and after becoming settled again in October 2017, I began to sift through it to bring it to life again and work through the narrative and the overall organization of chapters. Although the whole book was written in an abstract way and then pieced together the overall narrative is a type of “sex and the city” meets “wine” type of style.

Written all my hand and then typed out and edited, this book is a set of short stories that reflect my life in the overall themes around love, life and adventure. The narrative (the underlying theme of it all) is about wine – fermented grape juice and how it can be related to everything in life. Before learning to write my ideas down into a narrative that makes sense (and one that is still being processed) I spoke these words through leading events, and wine school classes and even videos and have been living a wine lifestyle for the past two decades of my life. While reading through the chapters you’ll get to know my journey in life, my trials and triumphs of love and life and family and learn about wine along the way. This entire book is built around three, four and five letter words – or as I like to say – Sex, Wine and Pizza.

This snippit of a chapter is brought to you by Flat Roof Manor, a South African Pinot Grigio. South Africa has a pretty special place in my heart. Not only is it one of the most magical places to visit at the tip of South African continent, but it also is the next place where I will be completing my book. For one month I am going to be staying at a winery and working a harvest. It’s going to be a truky epic experience, I can feel it. I am very excited. In fact, the other very cool part about this is that there were 96 people who applied for this internship and I was one of the four who were hand-picked to take part.

This chapter of Wine Diaries is originally titled “Door”

Today, I walked through the doors of my brand new, very first condo with my Dad. I bought a condo, wow. holy crap, I never thought I would own something. That mean’s I should open champagne and start adulting now right? Besides, when one door opens, you should always open a bottle of Champagne, especially when you’re celebrating a big milestone and your Dad is right there

Is this your thirties? When all this adult stuff starts to happen. It seems right now doors are opening all over. Is this what your thirties are like? You turn 30 and the all this adult stuff starts to take action in your life. It seems right now doors are opening all over. Are you allowed to open door #1, and door #2 and door #3 – or are you supposed to pick just one door? Frankly, I am a person who believes that you can pick all 3 doors (not without it’s challenges) but what door do you pick and how do you know which one you’re destined to open? Everyone feels purchase anxiety after a big purchase, don’t they? I mean I’m kind of dying inside, thank God the champagne is helping with my deicision to buy a half a million dollar condo in downtown Toront. Actually though, I’m actually really excited, it’s everything I’ve ever wanted in a home. I’m pretty sure I’ve dreampt about this place…

I remember walking in through the doors of our new office for the first time. My very first office and yes, another bottle of champagne was opened to celebrate. I remember thinking, how am I going to afford this each and every month? Five years later moving into our next office (and my next condo – and they are the same place) I am still thinking the exact same thing. What is this life I’ve created for myself, how will I make rent every month. Endless sleepless nights thinking through business strategies and being inspired by fermented grape juice and creating a career path for myself and my staff. So many of my life doors I’ve walked through have been mostly supported by faith and hard work.

Some people are afraid to open new doors, they stay stuck in in decision and sit in the same room with unhappiness weighing them down. Opening a new door should feel like opening a bottle of wine. Full of mystery, excitement, wonder and dreamworks. When we go on a wine tour I love taking people behind the cellar doors and showing them the magic of wine really happens at a winery. The best things happen behind winery doors. Experience the enchanting smell of fermenting grapes in stainless tanks, see winemakers practicing their artisitic craft, listen to the sound of wine aging in barrels, understand the art of the angel’s share, dine in romantic candellight, walk through caves of aging champagne bottles, and this is just the beginning. Behind every single door you open is a life experience that will touch your soul, change your life and offer direction in the direction of your soul’s. When was the last time you took the key to a door and opened it with an open heart, soul, body and mind? Perhaps it’s time for you to find a door and open it with child like eyes and discover something new and exciting.