Look Out Paso Town

By the time you're reading this, I'll already be on a jet plane, Paso Robles bound for a whirlwind three-day press junket. Yep, you read me right: a press junket. This is treading new ground for me. Not just the trip — I've never been to Paso (don't know if anyone calls it that but I've decided to) — but especially the idea of accepting an expenses paid, tourism-board-sponsored visit.

The offers have been coming fast and furious (at least relative to a previously absolute dearth...), this one landing hard on the heels of the invitation I was unable to accept to attend the Barbera 2010 meeting in Asti. The ringleader of that trip, Jeremy Parzen, along with my fellow band of brother (and sister) bloggers faced similar concerns when deciding to undertake that trip as I do now. And it all comes at a time when the s**t is apparently flying fast and furious around the Internet and Blogosphere regarding questions about the merits of wine blogs, the seeming futility of writing them, and the worthiness and credibility of their authors.

At least as much if not more so than my friend Jeremy, I've been trying to keep my nose above those waters, to avoid getting sucked into the fray. Instead, I'm just going to keep doing what I've been doing. Enjoying wine, eating food, drinking an occasional beer, traveling, riding my bike, listening to tunes, working an honest day job in the wine biz and — when the mood strikes and I have something to say — writing about it all. Unlike fellow wine writers on the payroll of "brick and mortar" publishing houses, magazines, newspapers, etc., I'm not accountable to any editorial board or corporate parent. But I do hold myself accountable. Accountable to me. Myself. I. And you. And I can say with my head held high and an unflinching stare that that's enough for me. I hope you feel the same.

I'm going on the trip to see what there is to see, to find what there is to learn. I know there will be some destinations that I may not have normally chosen to visit, a winery or two that might veer more toward the market-driven norms than I'm usually prone to seeking out. I'm looking at that as a good thing, an opportunity to push my own envelope. If you only ever look at one side of a coin, you'll never know what's on the other... and that's no way to live a life.

Obviously, the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance (sponsors of the trip) and the various wineries, restaurants and farms we'll visit are hoping I'll write about them. Obviously, I most likely will. But like my other Asti-trippin' friend Cory, whose coverage of Barbera 2010 was not only extremely well done but also highly personal and sometimes stridently opinionated, I'll write only when I have something personally meaningful to say.

I'm looking forward to the trip and hope you'll look forward to reading about the experiences that come of it.

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Oh yeah, when this was all bouncing around in my head, along came a tune that wouldn't let go. Just replace "Jackson" with "Paso" and you'll hear it too.