THE WRITER

Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself

Hey there! My name is Carlos, and I’ll be your host this evening. I’m delighted you found this space, which is as much yours as it is mine. mostly mine, sure, but still, welcome! I wish I could invite you in, offer you a chair, and uncork a bottle. After all, the best way to talk about wine is by drinking it.

I live in Chile, so the focus of my writing will often be on the wine and culture here. Although I became a citizen in 2019, I was born in Bolivia and have lived in five countries: Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, and the U.S. In the States, I spent time in Ohio, where I earned a marketing degree at Kent State University, and later in New York, near Poughkeepsie, while studying culinary arts at the Culinary Institute of America.

For 15 years, across three countries, I worked as a cook and eventually a chef in restaurants and hotels. Over time, I had a say in food and wine pairings, and I was fortunate to work with some incredibly knowledgeable sommeliers and passionate wine enthusiasts. While I’m not a certified expert, I learned a lot about wine—both formally, in culinary school, and informally, through years of practice and tasting. I even started studying to become a sommelier until life (or the lack of it) got in the way. Working 12-14 hours a day in a hotel kitchen will do that! No wonder I have enough time to write a blog now that I’m no longer in that industry. It even leaves me plenty of time to enjoy wine.

So, why should you listen to me? Here’s the bad news: I’m not qualified to tell you what wines to drink. But here’s the good news: nobody is! The best we can do is find people whose tastes match ours and hope their next recommendation hits the mark. That’s what I’m here for—to share my passion for wine in a laid-back, approachable way. Wine can be intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be. I’ll show you what I’m drinking on a regular night with friends, and maybe together we can take the pressure off wine and make it a casual, enjoyable part of any Tuesday evening, no longer exclusive of special occasions.

Anyone who tries to make you believe that he knows all about wines is obviously a fake.

Leon Adams

That’s a Weird Name for a Blog

It could’ve been any other day, but let’s go through them one by one. For … reasons, I shall start on:

  • Thursday — That’s almost the weekend. I want to think about wine the way some do about beer, something you can drink any day, not just on a weekend.
  • Friday — Also known as the weekend. Also known as date night. Not the right message if I use this weekday.
  • Saturday — Same as above. Probably even more. It’s the night for special occasion dinners. Hard pass on this one!
  • Sunday — What is this? Church? Better than the last three, and a good day for drinking in front of the T.V. watching sports, but it just didn’t feel right.
  • Monday — Too early in the week, and also typically a tough day. It would be too reasonable to uncork on a Monday.
  • Tuesday and Wednesday — They both felt good, and out of those, I liked the sound and flow of Tuesday better.

Every daily victory, no matter how small, is reason enough to uncork a bottle. First warm day of spring after a particularly cold winter? There’s a light red for that! Maybe a garnacha or a cinsault. Did you just make the best-ever grilled cheese sandwich? Pair it with a Chablis! It’s raining and you don’t have to go outside? Put on your favorite rainy-day album (did I just show my age? I meant to say playlist) and enjoy a silky merlot. Unexpected visit from a good friend? Hopefully you have an Albariño cooling in your fridge. Heck, maybe all there is to celebrate is that you made it back home after a long day of work and traffic. That might be the time for a cab.