The best wine experiences are deeply personal

Have you ever had a glass of wine that seems perfect? It's a beautiful night. You are out to dinner with a dear friend you haven't seen for years. You have picked an outstanding restaurant and the ambiance, conversation and food are all excellent. You choose a middle of the road wine because you don't want to exponentially increase the bill, but everything is going so well that you don't want to cheat the evening either - and ta-da, the wine is perfect! No, it's better than perfect, it's heavenly. Is it the occasion, is it the wine, is it your long lost friend or is it an exercise in synchronicity where all the pieces blend together to create an all round quasi-magical experience?

But wait, that merlot you had in the plastic cup on the beach at that party you were looking forward to all month was perfect too...

The duo at the WSJ write about precisely this point, that the best wines for one's palate are deeply personal and that while the wine is definitely a big part of it, many factors play into one's memories of the perfect wine experience.