I was asked by a doctoral candidate, “which wines pair best with writing.” My answer was simple, “I don’t drink when I write.” Writing, for me, requires focus and control. Before I put fingertips to keyboard, my process is to take some time to dream about the story I want to tell. “I don’t drink when I write but I do when I dream.”

Which Wines Pair With Writing?

Creating a vision board is one of the methods I use to craft a poem or a story. Magazines spread out on my living room floor, I cut out pictures and words to give life to images in my head. I also use a little wine to spark my creative genius. Every writer has her own preferred method. If you need a little something to help you get out of your head,  I recommend wines that are fresh, aromatic and lower in alcohol.

Wine of the Week: Dócil Loureiro Vinho Verde

Winemaker Dirk Neipoort’s Dócil Loureiro Vinho Verde pairs well with dreaming and vision boarding. The wine’s nose of fresh flowers, citrus and minerals elicits sweet dreams. Pause and smell the wine. The palate relaxes the ego. Docil Vinho Verde is fresh, luxuriant, with citrus fruit, vibrant flowers, and raw honey. This is Vinho Verde excellence. This is the stuff that dreams are made from.

I am finding myself dreaming and writing a little more these days. Therefore, drinking a little more Dócil Loureiro Vinho Verde. Vinho Verde has been a go-to relaxant for a while. In my book: Searching for Cloves and Lilies: The Wine Edition, where I pair wines with original poems. I pair a Vinho Verde with the poem titled “Love.” I write, “The mood of the poem ‘Love’ is playful and carefree. Love asks us to forget our past and ourselves for a moment.”  

Technical Info

The 2019 Vinho Verde is made from the Loureiro grape. “Loureiro stems from its traditional home, the Lima Valley, and is produced from vines growing in a granitic soil. Vino Verde wines comes from the northern part of Portugal. “Vinho Verde wine region starts just below the Portuguese-Spanish border, and extends all the way to the Atlantic Ocean, where it meets with the city of Port (where most Port wine is made). The region is also fairly wet and rainy, as two rivers run through it, the Douro and Minho.

The winemaker is Dirk Neipoort (I said Dirik in the video).