I’ve had some unexpected travel plans drop in my lap so I’m flying off today to Paris. While I should get some time to write for the blog, I’ll likely miss a few days.

However, I will still be posting regularly on SpitBucket’s social media channels about the wine discoveries of my Parisian excursion. If you haven’t followed me on those channels yet, you should check them out.

Though I’ve been to Bordeaux, Burgundy and Provence, this is my first time visiting Paris. As an American wine geek who doesn’t speak French, I have some questions that I’m going to explore while I’m there.

1.) What kind of wine will I find at the wine shops?

The French are notoriously provincial about their wine. In Burgundy, nearly all I saw was Burgundian wines. In Bordeaux, it was Bordeaux, etc. Paris, meanwhile, doesn’t really have its own wine. It’s the market prize that all these other French regions are competing for. What kind of mix will I see? Is there any region that captures the Parisians hearts more at the moment?

Plus, along those lines.

2.) How many obscure AOCs/VDQS can I find that I don’t ever see in the US?

This will be my wine geek scavenger hunt and what I’ll be geeking out over on SpitBucket’s Instagram. Sure, I’m excited to see the Eiffel Tower but what I really want to see is a Château-Chalon or L’Etoile from Jura or one of the crus from Roussette de Savoie like Frangy, Marestel, Monterminod and Monthoux.

And what about the prices?

After working retail for more than 7 years, I’m very familiar with the typical assortment of French wines at American shops. The contrast and comparison with French wine shops will be fascinating for me.

How different is their idea of customer service and wine education?

3.) How easy will it be for me to explore and geek-out without knowing French?

While I can speak “wine” and will have no issues with a wine list or perusing a wine shop, I’m curious about the conversations at the cafe or with the shop’s steward. I’d love to be able to learn more about Parisian wine culture while I’m there. But I have no idea how open or easy it will be.

These observations and general thoughts on the city’s wine culture are what I’ll be sharing on SpitBucket’s Twitter.

Daily News and Tidbits on SpitBucket’s Facebook Page

This won’t be very Paris focused but I’ll still be going through my daily scouring of interesting wine news and blogs that I’ll feature on SpitBucket’s Facebook page.

Even when I don’t have time to get a blog post out, I’m still doing daily posting on Facebook of things that I feel are worth reading and geeking out over. It’s definitely a different approach than what I take to my other social media channels with a lot of content featured that doesn’t make its way to the blog.

As for the blog, again, I’ll probably get a few posts up over the next week. But most likely I won’t get back to regular features till after Christmas.

Happy Holidays!