Make your own blend

Somehow the wine in the bottle is considered sacrosanct. Even though the winemaker blends different vineyards, different varietals, sometimes even different vintages, there is an element of horror at the thought of of one of us lesser mortals altering what was in the bottle. Perhaps this is as it should be, after all, we do need to respect the art of the winemaker. On the other hand, sometimes a wine needs a little help like the other evening when we had a 2000 Bordeaux that was very bright, but a little too acidic, and a 2002 Washington State Merlot that was softer, but somewhat dull and flat, so we blended the two: two thirds Merlot, one third Bordeaux. The new blend, dubbed Gene's wine, was balanced and delicious -lively with good fruit. And it was good for Franco-American relations.