The French have been rattling on and on for years about their winegrowing concept of "
terroir." Ostensibly, it means a "sense of place;" whereby you gain a sense about the climate, soil, water, air, sun and just about everything else that helps to grow the grapes in a particular region. While I also believe this to be true and the source of the winemaker phrase "winemaking begins in the vineyard," I've been frustrated by what I've viewed as the continued inability to
truly bottle the terroir of a special vineyard. A white
Entre-deux-Mers that tastes slightly salty because it's next to the sea? Sure, but then a whole lot of other vineyards around the world are near the sea, too!
I'm very fortunate in that I get the opportunity to go to a large number of high quality wine events. The vast majority of the time, I know what to expect for each event, not that it affects my ability to completely enjoy myself, mind you! But every once in a while, a wine event sneaks onto my calendar that provides a whole lot more than expected, upon arrival. The inaugural Napa Valley Tweetup (Twitter), organized by Gabriel Carrejo (Twitter) and Bonfire Interactive...was one of these events. 
