It was during his time studying Shakespeare in the English countryside that fourth-year English and communications studies student Alan Ai first became interested in wine.
During frequent picnics overlooking vineyards, recent UCLA graduate Jeffrey Wirgs, whom Ai describes as a wine expert, began sharing his knowledge of wine with Ai.
After returning to UCLA at the beginning of the 2006-2007 school year, Ai, Wirgs and several other people who had also been on the trip decided to form a club devoted to wine education.
They named the club the Purple Tongue Society, referring to the deep purple color the tongue acquires after a person has drunk a large quantity of red wine.
But Ai, the president of the club, emphasizes that the group is not a drinking club.
“We do not drink at meetings. As a club, we learn about the different types of wines and regions they come from. We talk about wine culture and etiquette,” he said.
The group also refrains from drinking because they did not want to exclude people under 21 from joining the club.
The Purple Tongue Society, which currently has almost 20 members, holds informal meetings about three times each quarter.
“People who have something to share will give a short presentation, then there is time for a Q&A session. Basically anything going on in the wine world, we discuss,” Ai said.
Last meeting, for example, the group discussed what it means for a region to have a good year, said Harsh Shah, a fourth-year communications studies student.
“We talked about Robert Parker, who rates wine, and what the ratings signify,” Shah said. “The group is simply a place for people genuinely interested in wine to learn about wine’s intricacies.”
In 2007, one of the members of the club who is a waiter showed the group how to properly handle wine and pop a cork, Ai said.
“You have to make sure not to turn the bottle and keep the label facing out the entire time,” he said.
Steven Erkel, a fourth-year English student, said what he enjoys most about the club is how applicable the information is.
“Being knowledgeable about wine is so important for any sort of business dinner and many other events,” Erkel said. “For example, I knew how to pick out the wine for Christmas.”
Innie Kim, a self-described “foodie” and spirit enthusiast who joined the club last year, also believes that having a basic understanding of wine is valuable.
“It’s detrimental not to know how to pronounce the names of wines, the general differences in wine, what food goes with which wine,” said Kim, a fourth-year communications studies student.
“Plus, other people are impressed by it,” she added.
Shah said the club hopes to shatter the myth that wine is an elitist topic.
“Wine shouldn’t be that way; it should be accessible to all,” Shah
said. “Part of the fun of the club is everyone demystifying wine culture together.”
Ai said one of the great aspects of the club is the laid-back atmosphere of the meetings.
“We are not wine snobs, sitting around in tuxedos. Meetings are very relaxed and low key,” he said.
In the future, Ai hopes to bring in a wine expert from a restaurant to come speak to the club during a meeting, but he said it all depends on what the members want.
“Right now, we’re content with the way the club is,” Shah said. “There is still so much to learn since every bottle has a history. Every vineyard has a story.”