From the very beginning one of the priorities that Lilinoe and I shared was a mutual understanding that as long as our friendship is solid, our relationship will follow suit. In Lilinoe I have found such a sweet soul, a compliment to my sometimes skepticism, the calm of my extreme personality – and most importantly we share the same passion for life.
For the past year or so Lilinoe and I have been talking about learning more about wine, and so when SWAM: Shiroma’s Wine and More opened up at Waimalu Plaza Shopping Center we were very excited. Although it took us over a year to make our first Thursday wine tasting, our first experience was so fantastic that we’ve committed to returning.
SWAM is owned by Jill Shiroma a self-described “Gen Xer who wanted to go to work everyday surrounded by the things she loves and enjoys.” One thing that helps any retail establishment is the level of customer service, and Jill’s laid back personality is as intoxicating as the wine and spirits that she sells.
With each glass that Lorenzo poured came a wonderful story about the history of either the vineyard, country of origin or the wine itself. At the end of the hour, we purchased a medley of wines: Tormaresca Neprica from Puglia, Italy; the captivating Evolution, an organic blend from Oregon’s Sokol Blosser and Lilinoe’s favorite, Matua Valley’s Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand.
Consider yourself invited to the next wine tasting, this Thursday featuring wines from Allied Importers:
- Opici “Villa Rosa” Moscato D’Asti
- Affentaler Riesling
- La Colombaia Valpolicella Ripasso
- Caves Alianca Vinho Verde
- Affentaler Pinot Noir
- Hahn Meritage
- Hahn Merlot
Join us at SWAM, on twitter or I will do my best to stream our experience live.
We’re so glad you enjoyed Sokol Blosser’s Evolution! Jill Shiroma’s place looks like a great one. Best of luck to you all, and cheers!
Kitri Culbertson
Marketing Coordinator
Sokol Blosser Winery
I’ve been wanting to learn more about wines, too. For the longest time, I used to turn my nose up at wine in favor of a mixed drink or the occasional champagne. Thinking back though, I don’t think it was fair of me to judge all wine by the cheapass Boone’s Farm and Spanada the Tutu ladies used to sneak and give to us kids at the luau! Think they just wanted us to go sleep! LOL!
There is a winery, http://www.volcanowinery.com/, up Volcano that has wine tasting all the time. Maybe I’ll take a designated driver and go visit!