Chickpea to Cook

I wasn’t really supposed to do this. But these luscious Merlot grapes were hanging plumply from the vine everywhere I turned during my visit to the Firestone Vineyard. When nobody was looking, I just had to pick one. Ok, two.

I was at the vineyard on a beautiful September afternoon just before harvest, which means these tasty fruits were nearing their optimal sugar content.  As a budding wine enthusiast, I thought it pertinent to my wine education that I sample the ingredient in the raw.

I snapped a tiny round fruit off the vine, its sticky, blood red juices oozing onto my thumb and index finger. When I popped it into my mouth I wasn’t ready for the complexity of flavor. It was tangy and sweet, slightly crisp and juicy.

It tasted so good, I didn’t want to swallow. Easily the best grape I’ve ever put in my mouth.

It was wine in chewable form. I can’t say it tasted just like a pour out of a bottle of course, but I have a hunch that if the Flintstone vitamins were to come in “Merlot” flavor, this is what it would be like.

Did I just compare a Merlot grape to children’s vitamins?

Anyway, you get the drift.