3S

What is the right mix of ingredients in life? What would really make it a heady mix- a tasteful experience? In ‘winespeak’, its called - The Balance. The harmony among the wine’s components – fruit, acidity, tannins, alcohol; a well-balanced wine possesses the various elements in surgical proportions! The formative years, the germination of life is like the Green – a wine made from unripe grapes that is tart. But then the growth, the upbringing is important… the Breed, similar to good handling which again is the result of soil, grapes and vinification techniques. This determines the depth and character in a wine – only wine??
With time, life shows its identity, making the individual Distinctive – elegant, refined character that sets a wine apart! It is Developed – mature; a well-developed wine is more drinkable! And then again in the superlatives of life… some achieve the Elegant label- the refined character, stylish but not heavy wine.
But in this journey cycle, the movement is not a team effort. Some are left behind while some charge ahead in the rat race of life…Forward, like wines developed when the fruit is prominent, ahead of its peers!
Perception changes with age, with years and with the exposures of this game! Young, forever at heart? In simple wines signifies youthful restlessness; in finer wines, refers to immaturity! The traits develop as cross-functional teams, principles of duality are formed. Even like in wines… Strong- robust powerful, big. Weak – lacking grip typical for the wine; without character! Thick – dense and heavy in texture against Thin, lacking body and flavor. Meaty, a wine with chewy, fleshy fruit; sturdy and firm in structure. Mellow- smooth and soft variant or even the Musty flavor – stale dusty or rank aromas! Well, if everything could be envisaged so easily, life would really be of the Noble rank – of perfect balance, like the world’s finest wines – Cabernet, Sauvignon, Merlot or Riesling.
There is the screen behind the mirror with varied shades! Off dry, in wines, which is like not quite dry but a perception of sweetness too faint to be called wine-sweet.
Life is more like an exothermic reaction. The end-result makes us modulate ourselves and fight for a better ‘morrow! The Sparkling of wines, with bubbles created by trapped CO2, might be a natural or induced phenomena. The slight hint of carbon dioxide in young wines lead to Spritzy! The Crisp, fresh brisk character… the Flinty, dry mineral character… the Harsh, with its heavy biting character… all of these have the external stimuli that makes them endowed with varied measures.
The introverted lot also finds a place in the sun; the Deep wine, having layers of persistent flavors that gradually unfold with aeration. The Honest wine, without flaws, typical and straightforward, simple but not too great. Does honesty pay? Is it a virtue that ties you to the age old Aesop’s Fables? Or is it just a rare kind of wine, brewed on demand?
But as the hour glass measures out the moments under the sun, what remains left of the hardships and the battles, is,. The Bouquet, as even in the wines… it is the complex of aromas that develops with age in fine wines… ya, with age!
The Aftertaste remains, the impression left after the wine washes down the system, the finish of a wine and the balance sheet of life! Fine wines have a lingering aftertaste…
The uncertainties of life weave the Intricate details of overlapping and contrasting emotions, nuances… the interweaving of subtle complexities of aroma and flavor in wines! Huh… all good things come with the clock ticking back, the inevitable mist of the end, the finish… death! It’s called the Legs, the vicious rivulets that run down the side of the glass after sipping; swirling, a mingling of glycerin and alcohol… the residues of a fine drink!
They See, they Swirl and then they Sip – the wine tasters. An art form for the crème de la crème! The high stakes, the huge money and the patient accurate analysis and evaluation, yields dividends!
Do we really care to apply these 3S in life? Do we care to even see through the mist, the translucency of factors that might help us appreciate what we have and what we need to share? Have we ever tried to taste the ‘magic’ portion that seems poisonous to us but is the lifeline of many out there?
The aspects of life are packaged in ways that make us surge ahead. That refines the present and creates the future but forgets the past, the present perfect and the past participle. A value-based system is needed, not a need driven one. A push type movement is needed, not a pull through one! We need retrospection and not a dismissive hurry to beat the heat. We need to share… and not sort; we need to hold and not halt… we need to heal and not hurt.
Life is like wine tasting! Hmmm… in many ways… it identifies the best in class but aint improves the minnows. It identifies the clauses behind the superiority complexes!! It creates the distance and reaps the harvest.
I do not know the smell of the best wine out there, I cannot know a Nebbiolo from a Syrah… a Sangiovese from a Blanc… but I know, when you pour ‘em all down the throat they all lead to nirvana!!
When would we ever learn… when would we ever learn, to discern the unnecessary luxuries of life from the needs of the hour! When would be stand and stare with a caring heart… when would we evaluate and envisage equality? When… when would 3S not led to a void in life but a voyage of equality… when??

(Disclaimer - Ya, its about wine and therez quite a lotta knowhow here... but somhow doesnt reflect on my skills as being a human pitcher/connoisseur... wine n wine tasting...quite an amazing art and quite a lofty subject of life which kinda amazed and irritated me, at the end even puzzled me into feeling a lotta things together.. somehow just tried to scribble in the abstracts... )