Yes, you can’t fool me twice.

The other night, Kevin and I were drinking, er, tasting a fine selection from Tablas Creek, the Vermentino.

Naturally, when he started tasting his first pronouncement was that the wine tasted of oysters.

To which I say, “What? Ewwww”.

Part of the reason is that I have issues with oysters. I can only eat them cooked. I mean really cooked. Like fried. But still, once I get over the thought of the mouthfeel of a raw oyster.. and manage not to vomit, I understand the flavor that he is talking about. A minerality… chalky with a touch of the sea.

At least that is how I would describe those flavors. But as I hear the word “oyster”, I close my eyes and try to block out the gag-reflex response that the word brings up in me, I concentrate on the flavor.

And surprisingly, I don’t taste it. But I do taste the minerals.

Another thing that I don’t taste are the green apples and limes that the label indicated would be there. But, eh… I can live with that, so long as I don’t have to think about the oyster.

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Why is this important?

Well first off, everyone here, at our house has a cold, except Kevin.

Second off, as the only person in the house with a full set of taste buds, Kevin has the ability to do something that the rest of us can only hope for…

Screw with our heads. Or as the only other adult person in the house… just my head.

Why?

When you have a limited palate due to physiology or illness, you are vulnerable to the whims of a goofball. They can make suggestions about what you are tasting. And that suggestion alone can inform your taste.

Case in point?

We are drinking the Gaetano D’Aquino Pinot Grigio in full flush out of the 42^oF out of the Kevin-a-tor. Kevin turns to me and says, “Wow! Is it just me? Or does this wine taste like circus peanuts?” Oh and by circus peanuts he referred to the crappy spongy, marshmallowy candy, not salted, roasted peanuts.

The problem is… as much as I tried to resist thinking it? I couldn’t help tasting circus peanuts. At least for a moment.

And then I remembered. I have had this wine before. I have NEVER tasted circus peanuts in my prior tastings. As I recall, it is exceptionally acidic and crisp (which is probably the same thing) fully of the sourest of Granny Smith apples (an Australian varietal, I would like to add for no other reason than that I know it. Yes. I am a know it all)

When I thought about it. I could taste the things that I remembered.

Now I would like to say that my taste was influenced by cold (if this is what you can call this fresh hell that prevents me from breathing properly). But the reality is when I remembered what I had tasted before? I tasted those things…. in a muted fashion… but I DID taste them.

The reality is influence is important. Which means you should take a moment to consider who you are getting your opinion from. Do you trust their opinion? Do they have tastes similar to yours? If not. Ignore them. They might influence your opinion in a negative way.

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