One night back in February of 2015, while studying for my Certified Sommelier exam, I got bored (and just a little bit tipsy). I decided to take a break and distracted myself by flicking through pictures of wine porn on Instagram- ogling all of the new/rare/cool bottles industry people were drinking and talking about. I paused on an entry by renowned sommelier and podcaster Levi Dalton. He was posting about Crivelli's Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato and described it simply: "Never thought I'd see so many roses in one room." I loved that. It was so different, so not technical, so completely spot on. And I could just see it. It got me thinking about the language of wine--all of the weird words and outlandish references we use to try and capture what exactly it is that we're tasting. I wondered, would they look as funny as they sound?

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I poured myself another glass, flipped over a blank flash card, and started doodling. About half an hour later, the @Freshcutgardenhose Instagram account was live. 

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The name "Freshcutgardenhose" is an ode to Master Sommelier Ian Cauble's iconic quote from the documentary, Somm, about how a wine he was blinding tasted like a "fresh new rubber hose." It's absurd but, you know, plausible, and most importantly, completely visually evocative. It totally encapsulated what I wanted the account and this project to be about: Making it fun to communicate about wine by making fun of how we communicate about wine. All these years later, I'm still having the best time scouring the internet for the tasting notes that make me laugh and inspire me to put pen to paper (or rather, Apple Pencil to iPad).

 

I'm honored that so many of you have seen my drunk doodles and wanted to bring them into your homes or come to me with a creative partnership opportunity. The FCGH Studio is a hub for @Freshcutgardenhose prints and merchandise, a portfolio of my related creative endeavors, and a forum for communication and engagement. Thank you for visiting!

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                                                           - Maryse Chevriere, illustrator & sommelier