Famous on-screen love triangles bear resonant and expressive memory triggers. Love triangles come in all shapes and sizes, with varying degrees of difficulty. They even span an emotional response spectrum ranging from steamy to grievous. In other words, it’s all as contrasted as the assortment of Pantone hues that exist in the world!

Love triangles aren’t limited to just romantic internal battles. It can be a love triangle with a career move. It can be a love triangle fixated on your choice of which weekday carbohydrate you’re going to cheat with (potato or pasta?). It can be a love triangle between those fighting for your everyday time and attention. Any of these can easily result in taking a personal inventory of life and simply trying to find an overall balance with all of it.

But there’s something about that on-screen, romantic love triangle. Carrie, Big, Aidan (Sex and the City). Nina, Darius, Marvin (Love Jones). Belle, Gaston, the Beast (Beauty and the Beast). It’s a no-man’s land of personal preference. You root for them like contenders in a WWE match — with a loud, passionate voice… and investment.

Some common wine drinking decisions can garner the same type of intense conflict. Is it one, or the other? Is it both? Is there a wrong answer? Let’s see where you fall:

[ The Love Triangle ]
YOU – NOT CHILLING THE RED – CHILLING THE RED

We’ve all heard the motto, “don’t chill the red wine!” and we sit and roll over like a dog reacting to a command. You might even get the side-eye when someone sees you stick a bottle of red on ice. That’s fine. You might still be more apt to not chill the red from force of habit but this can be a messy love triangle.

Room temperature is usually a good place to be for a red, generally in the 60°F to 65°F range. But sometimes warmth and the perception of it can make a red wine seem much rougher and alcoholic than it really is. While I’m not saying your snazzy bottle of Bordeaux needs to take a freezing bath by any means, in some cases it might benefit from a slight chill. Maybe 2-5 minutes on ice, then take it off. The intention isn’t to really make the wine cold, but rather to bring the temperature of the wine down. 

[ The Love Triangle ]
YOU – THE SINGLE VARIETAL WINE – THE BLENDED WINE

Do you reach for single varietal wines or do you opt for blends? Is one really better than the other? There’s just too much intractability to gauge this answer. There’s a variety of other factors, whether that’s vintage variation, terroir or some other reasons. It’s important to know that there are many reasons for a single varietal wine and many reasons for a blend. In some cases, there are regional limitations that prohibit the use of another grape. In other cases, the varying levels of grape usage are to help balance out an otherwise not-so balanced wine. There is a great selection of wines to choose from either way!

[ The Love Triangle ]
YOU – THE BYOB – THE CLASSIC RESTAURANT

Ah, the soft spot! There is almost a romanticism in choosing a wine off a wine list. Even the most avant-garde seeming list is quite symbolic of typical dining fashion. Then you have on the other end… the BYOB, the one that gives you free rein to bring anything your heart desires. This is about that time in the love triangle you bring out your imaginary yellow legal pad to make a pros and cons list. In pro-BYOB land you’re not dealing with a hefty markup. Alongside that though you’re dealing with the limitations of what shops are able to purchase and you’re at the mercy of hoping your selection works with the menu options. On the contrary in pro-classic restaurant land, you’ll be looking at a list made to complement the range of dishes offered and look into wine selections which you may not be able to purchase otherwise.

[ The Love Triangle ]
YOU – CORKS – SCREW CAPS

This love triangle is the broken record of wine drinking decisions. It’s the controversial, bickering love triangle, honestly. This love goes back and forth like no other. While both bottle closures can result in fantastic wines, you hear it time and again. Some say the cork is just about nostalgia, others will say it’s the only tried and true closure. Some say a screw cap is not an indication of lower quality wine and avoids issues like “cork taint” as dealt with corks. Corks are expensive but are a natural resource. Screw caps are easy to open but not biodegradable. Not to mention there’s a myriad of options for cork alternatives as well. This can go on in a loop! Who is really better for you — the wild ride or girl/guy next door? Subjective!

Do you find yourself with any of these internal love battles? We are not here to judge you based on where your affinity lies in any of these triangle scenarios. Love is an intense and beautiful thing. It’s better accompanied with wine!