About Me!

Hello! My name is Daja Askew and I’m a current Senior at Virginia Tech. I’m a double major with my first degree in Literature and Language Pre-Education, and my second major in Professional and Technical Writing. I’m from Virginia Beach where I love to go swimming. I’m very excited to be taking this class because I’m slowly beginning to dip my feet into wine drinking. I’d love to have more knowledge on the subject so I can impress my family with new facts when we go out to dinner.

So far, I don’t have a ton of knowledge on wine. I have been to a few wineries including: Valhalla Vineyards, Chateau Morrisette, Ramulose Ridge Vineyards, and AmRhein’s Wine Cellar. At each winery, I was able to do tastings and figure which wines I prefer and which I stay away from. From my winery experiences, I wouldn’t say I’ve gained too much knowledge; however, I do have a basic understanding of how the tastings run, the process of making wine, and the varieties of grapes used (very minimal). At these wineries, I did take advantage of buying the wines I enjoyed to bring home; however, when I run out, I usually just find something cheap at Kroger to drink leisurely with my friends.

I decided to take this class because I’d like to have more knowledge on wine when talking to my family and friends. So far, my knowledge is basic and since I’ve been drinking it regularly, I’d like to step up my game. Whenever I go to wineries, I don’t really understand how they taste so many flavors in the different selections of wine and I’d like to refine my palette. I’m not sure how to talk about wine and I’d love to know more on the adjective used to describe it. Additionally, I would like more knowledge on the process used to make and bottle wine. I cannot wait to learn more over the course of this online class. I couldn’t be more excited!