The World of Wine
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Oregon Wines and ‘Garage Key!’
by Jennifer Margulis
If we don’t drink a glass of wine during the weekdays, my husband and I almost always have wine — preferably Southern Oregon wine — on Friday nights.
Friday night is wine night at our house because we celebrate Shabbat, the Jewish day of rest that begins at sundown on Fridays and ends at sundown on Saturdays.
For religious Jews, Shabbat is a spiritual reset for the week, a time to rest, study Torah, and get back to a deeper connection to Judaism.
Since my family’s not religious — my husband isn’t Jewish and my 12 and 10-year-old daughters are avowed atheists — Shabbat is a day when we stay off the computer (for the most part), spend time as a family (sometimes), and eat French toast made out of leftover traditional Jewish bread called Challah.
To welcome the Sabbath we cite Hebrew blessings, first over the candlelight, then over the wine, and finally over the Challah.
Though it’s fun to tear off a hunk of braided Challah after blessing the loaf, the blessing over the fruit of the vine is everybody’s favorite. The kids raise their glasses of sparkling juice; my husband and I raise our glasses of southern Oregon red wine.
We drink, then clink.
“L’Chaim!” I say, which means “To life!” in Hebrew.
“Chin dan!” My husband cries, which is what his family says when they clink glasses. (We think it’s a regional pronunciation of “Cent’anni,” which means “one hundred years” — as in, “May you enjoy another hundred years of wine drinking” — in Italian.)
“GARAGE KEY!” My son, who’s seven, shouts.
My son revels in the Eastern-European-sounding gobbledygook of wishing us all a “garage key.”
He says it every week, and even though it’s not a new joke he dissolves into a fit of giggles, laughing so hard his whole body laughs too.
Seven-year-olds live for this kind of silliness, though I have my 43-year-old friend Sue to blame thank for teaching the kids to say “Garage Key.”
I take a sip of wine, thinking of how much work goes into making something this delicious and simple and sweet.
The week’s tensions slip away.
Like our local wines, life is filled with sweetness.
And garage keys.
What’s your favorite time and place to bestow a benediction and clink glasses after opening a bottle of wine?
Sláinte to you with a nice New Zealand Pinot Gris or Riesling, something from Marlborough preferably.
Loved this. Now someone has to tell me what "Garage key" means, what language your friend said it in. I know what my dad would have said in Russian but cannot spell it, except in cyrillic. Doesn't sound like garage key. Cheers!
I'm going to giggle about this all night. "Garage key"? Too funny. I believe in our big, Italian family it's simply Salute! Like a blessing for health / well-being.
Weekly rituals are so important! We don't usually do a toast before drinking a glass but I think we'll stop and appreciate the moment from now on.
How nice that you have this tradition. Though we are also Jewish, we don't celebrate Shabbat, but after reading this, I wish we had followed this tradition - especially for the reason of unplugging from technology - when the kids we younger. What a wonderful way to relax, especially over a bottle of wine!
Agreed. Sounds like a nice way to kick off the weekend!
Lifelong Methodist here, but I love and appreciate all of the traditions of the Jewish faith. And of course, Fiddler on the Roof. :-)
Family rituals add much to life. I enjoyed reading about yours. My husband and I have a tradition with wine. Before taking the first sip, we take turns giving a personal toast. It's a special way to stay close. Clink - clink!