Why I'm hooked on an Internet wine show

I stumbled upon Gary Vaynerchuk's "most passionate" Internet wine program, aka The Thunder Show, thanks to a TiVo suggestion a few months back. I've been a proud member of Vayner Nation ever since.
  A little background: Vaynerchuk entered the wine world when his father Sasha brought him into the family business, a retail shop in Springfield, N.J. (originally Shopper's Discount Liquors, now aptly named Wine Library). The younger Vaynerchuk recognized an untapped potential in the vast wine community. Taking full advantage of the Facebook/YouTube generation, he launched Wine Library TV in 2006.
  I'm sure many of you are like me regarding wine. I barely touched the stuff in college or even post-college. My vino intake has been pretty much limited to my thirties. While I'm still an advanced novice, my interest continues to grow. Five years ago, I certainly wouldn't have trekked up to the Whole Foods on West 98th Street to find a bottle of Croatian wine. That's what Vaynerchuk is hoping for. Getting his viewers to expand their palette.

  Wine Library TV educates in an entertaining, unpretentious way. His blind tastings are conducted with paper bags. He spits into a plastic New York Jets helmet. He might compare a wine's fruity flavor to a jolly rancher, or a spicy note to beef jerky. He's also big on the "nose" (smell) of the wine, and suggests you take a "sniffy-sniff."
  The strength of the show is Vaynerchuk's infectious enthusiasm. He just wants you to be as excited about wine as he is. I can relate to his desire to share things you're passionate about. He even smartly brings you in to the mix with the closing tagline, "You, with a little bit of me, are changing the wine world: whether they like it or not."
  So, what's your take on Wine Library TV? Interesting or too much vino talk?

—Posted by Craig Russell