chicken and rice casserole

We've all heard that there are rules for choosing the right wine. 

These rules are based on the type of meat or fish dish, the cost, the imagination factor, and another unpalatable snobbery. Heck, I'm not snooty when it comes to choosing the right wine to go with my meal. 

I have a rule that applies no matter what's on the menu. 

But before I give you the Franken wine selection rule, let's go through some of the more well-known rules. Red with meat, white with fish. 

Yes, that's a good direction to head in the right direction. 

It's good if you like it when your meals are color-coordinated. 

Heck, I'm happy when my husband is color-coordinated and he doesn't care if my meals are on a certain color spectrum. The price determines the quality. 

Well, I came up with this one after a waiter almost got mad at my wine selection for not having the "smell" of a really "good" wine. 

They look down on us less demanding wine connoisseurs. 

Wine also has a nose and it simply means how it smells. However, the difference between us and them is that we say smell and they say "bouquet". 

Well, the tea-da.How about letting the restaurant's sommelier choose your wine? If you can get one with a sense of humor, it's a great way to find new wines to enjoy. A sommelier is someone who is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional. 

They understand all the aging, grape selection, parts of the country, and wine-making techniques that simple wine drinkers like me just don't want to study. A good sommelier doesn't focus on the price, but on the type of wine, you enjoy. What you eat matters, but really, a good sommelier tries to choose a wine based on my first rule of wine selection. 

This first rule of wine selection trumps everything else when choosing a wine drink. 

This rule #1 is: GET SOMETHING YOU LIKE AND ENJOY! 

This is it! Who cares if it's expensive except for the restaurant that gets the big markup? You go to drink it and if you have enjoyed the wine before or at a previous special occasion you will begin to remember. 

You will start reminiscing, and if that special person you are having dinner with has been your life partner for many years, they will also remember when. 

Romance is not rekindled by wine, but by memories. Wine has a certain magic that can be associated with your personal story. So what kind of wine goes well with my chicken salad sandwich? I'll take the one I like... the one with the magic.