What does yoga have to do with wine? For me, more than you might think.
I can stand at a tasting table and be completely absorbed by what’s in the glass, the variety, the vintage, the ground it came from. Twenty years of building a vineyard hasn’t worn that off. What I love most is still the ritual: the bottle opened, the colour, the aroma, the food beside it and the conversation that follows.
That is where yoga meets it. Both ask the same thing, slow down, pay attention, and experience something rather than simply consume it.
My yoga practice has taught me a great deal about attention, discipline and knowing when to adjust.
Ashtanga Mysore is a practice of repetition, commitment and self-observation. Some mornings the body feels strong and capable. On others, the challenge is recognising when effort has become force.
Iyengar yoga has taught me the importance of precision and alignment, how a seemingly small adjustment can change the experience of an entire posture. Restorative practice offers something different again, the opportunity to be still, reduce stimulation and notice what is happening without feeling the need to do more.
Different approaches, but a common thread: awareness.
The more I practise, the more I appreciate that paying attention is not about getting everything right. It is about recognising what is appropriate in that moment.
Wellness doesn’t need to become a purity project.
We live in a world where wellbeing can sometimes feel like an ever-growing list of things to eliminate. Alcohol, sugar, late nights, indulgence. Yet I think there is a more interesting conversation to be had about how we make our choices and what we genuinely enjoy.
The growing interest in sober curiosity has encouraged people to question their relationship with alcohol, and I think that is a positive thing. There are times when not drinking is absolutely the right choice. There are also occasions when sharing a glass of wine over a beautiful meal is something to genuinely enjoy.
For me, the important distinction is between habit and intention.
Before reaching for the habitual glass, the snack or the phone, it can be useful to take one full breath and ask what we are actually looking for. Connection? Celebration? Relaxation? Comfort? Curiosity?
That moment of awareness creates choice.
And choice doesn’t always mean saying no. Sometimes it means saying yes, deliberately.
Yes to the dinner. Yes to the conversation. Yes to learning something new. Yes to celebrating. Yes to pleasure.
And sometimes it means simply slowing down enough to really experience what is in front of you.
As a yoga teacher who also works in wine, I am comfortable with both discipline and pleasure. Early mornings on the mat and long dinners around a table are different parts of my life, and I don’t see a need to make them compete.
Wine, at its best, offers an opportunity to discover something about a place, a person or a craft. Yoga asks us to become more aware of ourselves. Neither experience needs to be approached without curiosity.
Some days call for movement and discipline. Others for rest, good company, an interesting conversation or a beautiful meal.
That, to me, is a much more interesting definition of wellness.
Not restriction. Not excess. Choice.