Wine, French Grandmas, and Platonic Pick Up Lines...

Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8Ub5OGGBAg
Read: The Economist
Movie: The Newsies

Yesterday, a few friends and I went on a trip to the Vouvray wine caves, organized by your's truly. There were seven of us, each someone I had met in the past week. The girls were impressed by my social skills - so I let them in on my method - the 3 approaches to pick up a friend.

1) The Introductory Approach
This is when someone you already know introduces you to someone new. The person you knew then becomes the mutual go-through friend who can remain as the go-through friend until the new friend you know through the go-through friend is no longer new and is the friend you know and can then become the friend you know who introduces you to someone new. This is a nice approach, I feel - very Austen/Montgomery. However, there are a few downsides - the first being, you already have to know someone in order to be introduced to that person's friend who is stranger to you. Second, that friend whom you already know may only have other friends who are like themselves and thus you might end up with a homogeneous bunch of hangouts ...which may be good or bad depending on how much you like that person you know.

2) The Creeper Approach
I will demonstrate via dialogue:

Person A: Hello!
Person B: Hello!
Person A: So, You know about that thing tonight?
Person B: What thing?
Person A: You know, the thing!
Person B: Oh, that thing.
Person A: Yeah - are you going?
Person B: Oh, I might
Person A: Yeah, me too. Are you going with anyone?
Person B: No, I don't think so.
Person A: Yeah, me neither...
Person B: Oh...(awkwardly)...do you want to go together?
Person A: Oh...yeah, that would be cool.

3) The Desperate Approach
a

In order to use this approach, you must either be very confident in yourself, or well...just very desperate.
(Once again, demonstrative dialogue)

Person A: Hi!
Person B: Hello.
Person A: I'm looking for friends! I don't have any friends. Do you want to be my friend!?
(Please note the repetition of the word "friend." The auditory reinforcement will emphasize your overtly-convivial air and persona, if not already obvious.)
Potential Downfall: Don't smile too much if you feel yourself getting nervous or if you have a scary smile. This might frighten the potential friend. Word gets around quickly. A scary smile--> no friends.


Using various combinations of the above three methods, I managed to get the group together :)

Our trip was very lovely. We hopped on the 61 bus at Place Jean Jaures and took it to Vouvray, which is about 9 KM from Tours.
Vouvray is absolutely lovely with rolling green hills, small quaint homes, crumbling stone steps, and...wine. Delicious wine.
Upon arrival at Caves des Producteurs de Vouvray, I was met by many pleasant things. First, there was this nicely sized shop filled with the most delicious looking wines, juices, wine-jellies, and bubbly. Second, there was a very nice tour guide who, I must admit, was one of the few attractive French men I've seen thus far in my visit. He lead us first to a room with traditional wine press machines and gadgets which were mad baller:
Then we entered into the CAVES.
It was cool, damp, and dark - some parts cold enough to freeze some of the wine (will explain later). The tunnels ran underground some 7 km long. One friend told me that a couple of silly tourists wandered into the cave one day and a guide had to go running after them - getting lost in some parts which are pitch black or venturing a particularly windy path would be less than ideal. It was so much fun! We looked at rows and rows of Vouvrays, each bottle turned on its side depending on its age and fermentation process. The caretakers put white tape on each bottle to mark when the bottle was turned. All the bottles are turned by hand - and there are thousands of them! They are also set in crates with a lever you can press to change the inclination of the bottles. Only the bubblies are inclined completely upside down. After a wine has been sitting for a while, the sediment falls to the bottom of the bottom. In order to get the sediment out, the bottles are inclined so that the sediment settles at the neck of the bottle. Then, they are stored at the perfect temperature so that only the liquid at the neck of the bottle is frozen (the sediment part) - the bottles then go through this machine where the frozen capsuls are popped out of the bottles, and then the bottles are re-sealed.
Most if not all Vouvray wines (which are white) use grapes called Chenin Blanc, which are native to the region. There are many different wineries along the Loire river of both reds and whites, but Vouvray is the second largest maker of bubbly, the first being the region of Champagne. Personally, I prefer Vouvray's sparkling wine, of which there are two kinds: First, "Méthode Traditionnelle," or more widely known by its former name of "Méthode Champenoise." This kind has more bubbles and is better for parties, etc.
The second is "Vouvray Petillant” which has finer bubbles. Thus, you can taste more of the wine itself. I liked Vouvray Petillant the best, but bought a bottle of still white for my parents.
After the tour, we had a tasting and I tried seven different wines - brut, sec, demi-sec, stills and sparkling.
The sweeter ones are made with grapes that are picked later in the maturation process, the dry ones with early, younger grapes. I had this one kind that was so sweet, it tasted like honey. It even moved more slowly in the glass - very cool. After finishing the wine, we hit up the shop. Then, with a slightly rosy face and a heavy,clinking plastic bag, I left with the girls walked through the countryside munching a baguette.

On our way back to the bus station, I thought, wouldn't it be cool if I could have a French grandma whom I could visit in Vouvray? Together, we would pick fresh legumes from her garden, laugh at French jokes, and, elbow deep in dough and our noses covered with flour, we would kneed the bread for fresh, brick-oven baked baguettes for that evening's dinner. In the midst of this day-dream, my friend, Amber (who very may well be a kindrid spirit!) and I passed by this smiling elderly French lady standing in a small garden. "Grandma?" I thought. But I didn't want to miss the bus so I hurried on. Sure enough, just as we reached the stop, we saw the 61 rounding the corner...imagine our relief - our persons laden with heavy bags of alcohol. But the bus didn't stop. In slow motion - it passed - our mouths gaping in disbelief - the faces of several dozen school children smashed against the windows, laughing and making faces at us. "Catch the next one - this one's full!" The driver managed to yell at us (in French, of course), before continuing on his way. Right. The next one. In forty minutes. So we all found some shade and sat. But soon I grew restless. One girl suggested that a few of us go on a walk, so, in hopes of seeing that French grandma again, I tagged along.

We took the same path full of lovely small homes and gardens. We approached this one particularly beautiful old home, and I began to think about what it would be like to live there. I was so caught up in my reverie, that I almost did not notice, straight in front of me....GRANDMA!
"Oh my God!" I told Amber. "There she is!"
I stared at Grandma, and was gathering up the courage to speak to her, until she shifted, and I saw behind her...ANOTHER GRANDMA...and they were having a jolly time. 2 french grandmas?! - so joyous I could not speak. So Instead, I stared creepily as I passed - slowing down and smiling at them...until the first grandma could not help but notice me and she spoke - (in French) - "you were the girl I just saw!"
Me: Yes that was me!
Grandma: Oh okay.
Me: My name is Jean!
Grandma: Lovely.
Me: Yes, I am an American student and these are my friends, we are all students, who are here to check out the wine caves.
Grandma: Oh yes. We never go - it is to far to walk...

Then she started telling me about her family and we stood out there and chatted like that for the next 15 minutes or so until my friends and I had to leave. Before we parted, she said something to me which I did not quite understand...but I did pick out the word "encore," which means "again," so...I thought about it...and maybe she said "I hope I see you again!" Which would be REALLY COOOL because I want to go back (maybe a bike trip this time) and be friends with her and the other grandma! Yayyyyy!