It’s Been a Year Since Coronavirus...Here’s What I’ve Learned About Myself (in a Kinda-sorta Nutshell)
December 31, 2020/January 1, 2021: Here's to a New Year??? At least there's Dom Perignon 2010
March 16, 2020 was my last day working a typical restaurant service. It didn’t surprise me. With the constant updates of COVID-19 shutting places down, it was only a matter of time until I would get laid off.
Days of mask wearing, constant disinfecting, and social distancing turned into weeks and turned into months. I found work in a wine store. I jumped on the sourdough, sous vide, and homemade kombucha train. I turned 30. I even did a wine competition and pursued my WSET Level 3 (results yet to come). I can’t believe in just one year, all of that happened. And I went back to my restaurant part-time.
I guess that’s the one upside of Coronavirus. I, along with many of my colleagues, explored hobbies, expanded knowledge, and still brought people together through food and wine without completely depending on a restaurant job. However, I held back from a few things.
What did I hold myself back from? Well, see the following:
Expanding my #fareandpair blog with new posts and recipes as well as social media video tastings
Not networking
Overall confidence in myself
The reasons for most of this is exclusively discussed with my therapist.
For all that I’ve done this past year that felt like 10 years, I was afraid of expanding my general presence because I felt I didn’t have a good point of view on things and I still don’t know enough to even have a good point of view on beverages. I pretty much endured all the bullshit pivoting COVID-19 did to the restaurant industry and kept my mouth shut so that I didn’t seem ungrateful. Funny how fear negates all the hard work I’ve done...NOT.
As I write all this out in the wee morning hours before studying and going to work, I’m not writing this as a way for me to feel sorry about myself. It’s quite the opposite. It’s a release. It’s a way of introducing/re-introducing who I am. It’s a way to show you all I have a point of view in the wine world. It’s a way to face my fears.
Underneath all that prose, here’s what I’ve learned. More importantly, here’s what I drink to remind myself of it:
I’m a tough broad: A friend of mine told me this back when we worked at NoMad together. I did some really cool shit during this crazy year. And even though I didn’t expand my online presence or stick up for myself as much as I should have, it’s not too late. I have to remember that.
What to drink to remind myself of this: Fort Hamilton Double Barrel Bourbon neat or in a Manhattan-Distiller Alex Clark founded Fort Hamilton Whiskey to recapture the essence of America’s finest spirit. Although this brand is predominantly known for its rye, Alex released a bourbon with a higher percentage of rye content to balance out corn’s natural sweetness. His labels are an ode to Alexander Hamilton’s “Hearts of Oak Militia” that orchestrated a daring raid on lower Manhattan to steal British cannons – which was referenced in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical Hamilton with the song “Guns and Horses” (best to check with Miranda on that one). If that story doesn’t emulate toughness, I don’t know what does.
Fort Hamilton Manhattan with Carpano Antica Sweet Vermouth and Angostura Bitters
Best not to overthink things; KISS (keep it simple stupid) and move on: When selling pretty much anything, we’re usually taught to tell a story or go into a bunch of details. Yeah...no. People just want something that’s good. They want me to just make a decision for them. If they want to hear more about it, they’ll say things like “this is so good, how did you know I’d like this” etc. Plus, more time with close contact means more COVID-19 exposure risk…🤷🏻♀️
What would I drink to remind myself of this: Corona Extra-Remember, it was a beer before it was a virus. You can’t ask for a more refreshing drink to remind you that all you want is an ice cold beer to take the edge off. Shall I go into details….nah!
Saying “no” can be a bitch to do but god does it feel good afterward: I, like many of my race and sex, have been taught to be “yes” people. Yeah, no. And you can say it in a way that doesn’t make you sound like a dick. The best part, most people who you say “no” to completely understand why you’re setting that boundary. It’s relieving. Of course, there are a few that will take your “no” personally; but that’s their problem.
What would I drink to remind myself of this: The Last Word-It’s balanced, it’s proportional, it’s relieving like saying no. You can even garnish with a cherry as if you were saying “pretty please with a cherry on top”.
A little personality doesn’t hurt: I’m goofy, I’m intelligent, and I’m a tad colloquial. At the end of the day, I get my point across. Oddly enough, people don’t mind this–probably because it’s relatable. They don’t always want someone so pretentious and formal. If that means I can sell them on something really cool, then that’s awesome.
Last Word with Ford's Gin, Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur, Fresh Lime Juice, Green Chartreuse
What would I drink to remind myself of this: Foreau Vouvray Brut 2013-I have a love affair with Chenin Blanc. It has ripe yet oxidized citrus and yellow orchard fruit flavors. Fresh floral notes are beautifully contrasted with wet wool and hay aromas (one of my favorite descriptors by a former wine director is split beer that has dried on the wood floor of a dive bar). Screeching high acid and minerality is balanced with a touch of sweetness. Chenin Blanc is even better as a sparkling wine since those bubbles stimulate the palate. The Foreau family specializes in sparkling Chenin Blanc that has great potential for aging as well as making wines in a low key manner (i.e. natural fermentation and aging in ancient barriques, no malolactic fermentation, no chaptalization). Simply delicious.
Hopefully, this was a good re-introduction of myself. Cheers to some new content and stories.