ChocoVine and Life

ChocoVine, for those not in the know, is a wine that- as the name suggests, is made of chocolate. And wine.

The misshaped metaphor vaguely hinted at by the title of this post stems from the fact that spoiler alert when you drink ChocoVine, the first thing you taste is "the great taste of Dutch chocolate" which is sweet, generally. (Unless you like real- not that impostor, type dark chocolate; in which case, it'll be more bitter but still sweet.)

Traditionally speaking, when one is a child one is generally carefree if not happy. Candies, affection, attention, carefreeness. Unless you're little orphan Annie. In which case, you're out of luck. Until some rich guy bails you out... assuming you can melt his cold black heart first. In either case, childhood tends to be free of the disease of responsibility. When the world still seems fresh and as if nothing could go wrong and everything is possible. Wanna be a cop arresting the bad guys? You got it! Wanna be a doctor who takes care of sick people? Right on! It's sweet and endearing, like chocolate.

Then you taste "fine Cabernet wine". Wine (and alcohol) require(s) no further explanation. It fucks you up. Only adults drink it, or so it is believed- if one rules out underage shenanigans. Adults have to face the harder things in life. Gone are the dreams of being that cop who arrests the bad guys. As Mathis so perfectly sums it up in Quantum of Solace: "When one is young, it seems very easy to distinguish right and wrong. But as one gets older, it becomes much more difficult. The villains and the heroes get all mixed up." Bring on the questions of morality and responsibility as you not only wrestle with your dreams slipping away but the arrests one has to make, and the patients one has to see. To arrest someone who didn't commit a crime but simply fits a profile? To give medical attention to someone who is sick but has no money? It fucks you up, like alcohol.

The metaphor isn't that elusive. First you take something chocolaty and sweet, then it takes you by surprise as red wine makes its way past your uvula and into the deep dark chasm that is life.

It seems very simple but it's one thing to lay out a metaphor and another to understand it. I can only do the former at this point.