(Winemag) - A writer finds a surprising source of knowledge and kinship in a big-box wine shop, meeting a teacher who inspires with his grandfatherly wisdom.

When I was in my early 20s, I thought entering adulthood was simply a matter of checking tasks off a list: Graduate college. Get a job. Go somewhere— anywhere—that wasn’t my hometown.

Also on the list? Learn how to drink. Properly. Outside of house parties in dingy, dark basements via red plastic cups containing questionably colored elixirs.