There's are different shades of meaning to the phrase, "drink responsibly." The more common one, of course, has to do with driving. Another that probably comes to mind easily is about sustainable farming. (Nerdy factoid: Organically grown grapes have way more resveratrol than conventionally-grown ones, because resveratrol is created as part of the grape's natural defense against fungi and bacteria, and spraying the plants with fungicide dampers that immune reaction.)
But there's also the issue of carbon footprint, and there's none more egregious than Beaujolais Nouveau, which is rushed to market on November 19th. In Wisconsin, however, we can play make-believe with a local facsimile from Wollersheim Wineries. (Granted, it's a different grape, but--hey--it's made by a French dude, so...close enough, right?) Unfortunately for me, there's none to be had without making a special trip up to the Crossing Meadows Festival Foods (or possibly down to JavaVino)--which kinda neutralizes the "responsible" part.
I'm afraid that I ear-bashed my cube-mate yesterday explaining Beaujolais Nouveau, and again wondered why the bottomless well of wine-nerdery isn't more appealing to the average programmer. Upon further reflection--by which I mean having nothing better to do with my head this morning while its hair was being shampooed--I became even more convinced that programmers and oenophilia should go together like, well, champagne and oysters. Except that I'm not much of a seafood fan. (And I usually prefer prosecco anyway b/c it's lighter and not so overpriced & over-hyped.)
Why? Well, naturally, because of the glaring similarities between wine and software development. Really, the simile should itemize itself, but here are a few:
Similarity #1: Software and wine both take time to develop. Even primeur wines such as the afore mentioned Beaujolais Nouveau aren't quite a matter of stuffing the grapes directly into bottles. Craftsmanship, respect for the raw materials, etc. are all a factor.
Similarity #2: Software and wine can both be over-rated and overpriced. (Naturally, that doesn't apply to anything I write, you understand.) But I think we can safely say that any software with the word "enterprise" in its label is fair game. Just like any number of pedigreed labels in this age of "wine lakes."
Similarity #3: Fads come and go. 'Nuff said. Except that the consolation prize is that anyone who knows what s/he's doing (and have the moxie/clout to countermand Those Who Know Best) can make out like a bandit.
Similarity #4: An educated customer base trumps an ignorant one. I don't even want to speculate on how much damage Sideways did to the market--either by dampening respect for Merlot (which, by the bye, just happens to be the key ingredient in one heck of a lot of Bordeaux) and triggering a stampede into Pinot Noir. But if I did, I'd expect it would be something similar to all the applications written specifically to get customers to turn over ephemeral personal info. in exchange for badges, bragging rights, points, or what-have-you.
Similarity #5: The pundits' priorities are not necessarily yours. Wine Spectator giving a bottle of over-oaked fruit punch 90 or more points. Robert Scoble bloviating about anything to do with The Real World. Same deal.
Similarity #6: Context matters. You don't pair fish with Cabernet Sauvignon. You don't use Excel spreadsheets as a production database. Boxed wine works just fine for cooking. You don't need your own server and domain name and IP address for your cat sweather knitting blog. Just sayin'.
Similarity #7: Keep an eye out for the small players...and beware special-interest "regulation." Contrary to the dot-com era's prediction, the internet didn't quite change everything. But boy-oh-boy did it lower the barrier to entry, and gave word-of-mouth a growth boost only seen in C-list monster flicks. Enter interstate shipping laws and the ongoing attempts to kill net neutrality--in other words, big business co-opting the evil nanny-state to squishing their competition.
Similarity #8: There is no substitute for knowing what you want and why. That pretty much summarizes all of the above. But it also takes time. Plus attention-span. And maybe a certain amount of humility to realize that no one should be expected to read your mind.
