First, I want to apologize for my lack of blogging lately.  I know this last month I have been absent from posting and blogs have been few and far between.

Second, I want to share with you why I’ve been absent from blogging this last month.

You should probably know that I am very into wine.  Red, White, Rose, Sparkling… I really enjoy it all!  But I never used to.  About 4 years ago, I was cross-trained at the Mendocino Wine Bar at Disney California Adventure.  I really didn’t care for wine so I wondered if I’d even be an asset to the Wine Bar Team.  But there was a need at the location, I was over 21, so I was thrown in there with the ‘wine-os’, with no clue what I was getting into.  I learned most everything about wine from Elizabeth Palmer and her husband, Greg… Robert Mondavi veterans and wine enthusiasts for over 30 years.  They are the sweetest couple and SO knowledgable!  It wasn’t long before I started to understand that wine-making is an art (and a very difficult and exciting one at that!) and from there, my non-wine palette changed drastically and I came to love and appreciate the world of wine.

I have been studying the wine industry on a global scale off and on since then, more seriously for several months recently, and this last month more intensely than ever, in hopes that I might earn the title of ‘Sommelier’… a wine steward.  My other job includes serving at a fine dining restaurant and I want to be able to recommend and talk with my guests about wine and food on a more professional level.  (Not to mention that for this particular location, taking the Level 1 Sommelier Exam is required!)  So last Thursday, I prayed that the Lord would guide me through all the questions and help me to remember all that I had learned…

…I am pleased to announce that according to the Court of Master Sommeliers, I passed my exam and am now officially a level 1 Sommelier!!!!

We had a lovely Champagne reception and I got my pin and certificate which you may see in the following photographs.  (My last name was misspelled, but ah well… I PASSED!!!!!)

Thank you to all of my friends and family who prayed for me and to all of my clients who have been patient with me through my absence.  I love and appreciate you all!  Now for level 2… Certified!!  *wink*