Drinking Wine + Doing Laundry

Math is hard. Drinking wine doesn’t have to be. We all figured out how to do our own laundry…Well, I hope at least. You just have to start somewhere.

Before I met my husband, I thought I was a wine drinker. I drank white zin afterall. Oof. White zin is like doing a load of whites and someone throws in a red sock. Not good. (And we’ve all done it.)

And as much as we all love doing laundry…wine doesn’t have to be a chore. It took me some time to figure out that wine is meant to be enjoyed…with people, with food, while doing laundry.

Laundry isn’t all bad. Now, as a mother and stepmother, I relish in my seven minute getaways to the laundry room. Even though inevitably, the second I walk in to the warmest room in the entire house in the dead of Wisconsin winter, someone will be calling for me. Repeatedly. I simply take in the aromas of spring rain and fresh linen and wait. It’s like a game of hide-and-seek that I always win.

As I’ve grown, my distaste for laundry has dwindled. I may be lazy when it comes to laundry–There is no separating lights from darks in this house–but it is something I have grown to appreciate. The simple joy when I open the dryer and two identical socks pop out–immeasurable! And when all the laundry is done and folded, that feeling of accomplishment is worthwhile too.

Drinking wine should be enjoyable as well. And you don’t have to get arse-over-tea-kettle drunk to have “fun” drinking wine.

In our earlier wine-experimenting days, my husband and I purchased a wine aroma kit and invited some friends over.

Making a game of it, we each had a slip of paper numbered 1-15 and then passed around the small aroma bottles, trying to guess which was what. No one got them all right and the conversations around what each scent reminded us of made for some great visits down memory lane. Who knew that the scent of cherry or leather could prompt so many stories!

Another part of wine drinking that I have really learned to appreciate is how to pair wine with food. I will tell you that I never ever thought I could enjoy a big bold red wine. I figured I just wasn’t sophisticated enough. Red wine was obviously for people who used fabric softener and had front-loading washing machines.

Wrong. Red wine is meant to be enjoyed while eating. And it doesn’t have be poured with filet mignon or rack of lambs. Ever had red wine with a cheap pepperoni pizza? Gotta try it! A sweet red pairs quite nicely with take-out Chinese food. And of course, just grabbing an easy drinking red wine and enjoying some venison sausage and cheese while playing scrabble or cribbage makes for a great mini date night once you get the littles to bed.

At some point, I even managed to pair red wine with a stemless glass and enjoy it sitting on the patio watching the sunset. Like everything, it takes time and a little trial and fail to find something I liked.

You don’t have to fear wine. There is no wrong way of drinking it. Have a glass before you tackle your kid’s everything-is-inside-out load and cherish your few moments of uninterrupted me time. Wanna mix your reds and whites? Go for it. And if it happens that way in the laundry room, and everything turns out pink, just tell people you are a huge fan of rosé wine!