Hawk Wakawaka Wine Reviews

Howdy! That’s me! In first grade. Someone wrote and asked for a profile picture to be added to the site–there you go!

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After encouragement from friends I started drawing quirky memoir comics that were originally distributed as zines. Eventually, to save the cost (both economic and environmental) of mailing my little magazines, I shifted to posting comics on the (now not much updated) online comics blog Rachel Learns to Drive.

My interest in wine seemed best expressed via comics as well. Wine culture, and language, is often alienating to those not already indoctrinated in the phenomena. Comics, however, offer an accessible entry into thinking about wine, with the combination of visual elements and wine language allowing readers to imagine their way into the qualities of the beverage.

I love sharing my passion for wine with an audience of wine experts, and wine enjoyers. These conversations continue to prove fascinating, and enjoyable to me. At the same time, I’m proud of the response I’ve gotten from those less knowledgeable about wine, as they’ve written to let me know these wine review comics help them better understand what they will be drinking, and so too what to purchase.

Previously I taught philosophy (and a class called Sci-Fi and Society too, truth be told) at the university level, after having done Ph.D. work in the subject at McGill University in Montreal. Philosophy for me has always been an intersection of reflection on experience, striving for clarity, and an investigation into the truth of things. These three processes show themselves in the way I approach wine as well. The world of wine offers a rich field through which to learn the details of production, history, viticulture, geographical-climate variations in the grape, and to explore the vitality of experience through color, scent, flavor, texture, and joy as well.

My goal in writing about wine, and reviewing individual wines here is to consider each particular wine genuinely–challenging myself to find when a particular wine might be desirable, even if I am less inclined towards drinking it; while also presenting intelligent understanding of an individual wine’s quality, and limit; all in the context of the broader history of wine production. The simple way to put that is to say, I hope to write about a bottle in a way that does more than just suggest a particular wine be purchased. The more interesting point is that I’m invested through my writing here in always extending my own understanding and knowledge of wine, and offering the possibility of new information or insight for readers as well. Effectively teaching a discipline like philosophy depends upon being able to comprehend complex ideas and then translate them into accessible terms without losing their richness. In writing and drawing about wine, my goals are similar–to take a wealth of information and present it in a way that makes it more readily available, while still interesting. With my tenure as a university professor, it turns out I can’t help but approach wine too in this way. It’s a joy to share this sort of process with fellow wine lovers, and readers. I’m grateful for the extension of such conversation in person, and through email, comments, and fellow wine writers’ blogs too.

Samples and Commissions

If you have an interest in sending me sample bottles, or in talking to me about using one of my comics please contact me at lilyelainehawkwakawaka (at) gmail (dot) com.

The work on this site is copyright protected and may not be used commercially without my permission. For such purposes, email me and we can discuss what your proposed use would be, and any associated appropriate fees or exchange.

If you are distributing my work among friends, please be sure to include a link to this website http://WakawakaWineReviews.com, and proper attribution to me, Lily-Elaine Hawk Wakawaka. That’s just called being polite. Thanks!

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A number of people have written asking for more of my biography. Truth? I’m Aleut and Inupiat from Alaska, and have been lucky enough to live in numerous places throughout North America, as well as to travel elsewhere. My 12-year old daughter and I currently make our home in Northern Arizona with an adorable, feisty hamster, and a beautiful, sometimes cranky cockatiel. Previous careers of mine have honest-to-god included being a commercial salmon fisherman, a college admin, a university philosophy professor, a camel trainer, a poet, and a runner. Studying and tasting wine has been a practice of mine for years, and I have various certifications that indicate as much (including my CSW), but I owe the foundations of my wine knowledge and enthusiasm to my friend, Fred of The Wine Loft, Flagstaff, AZ, and my sister, Melanie. I owe the push into comics to Susan (who I like to joke is the hand of God). My idea to bring the two together is a gift of Fortuna, and Ganesh.

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I really do love hearing from my readers. Please feel free to comment on posts directly, and also to write me directly at lilyelainehawkwakawaka (at) gmail (dot) com .

You can also find me on twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/Hawk_Wakawaka . Or, you can find me on Facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/hawkwakawaka. On both twitter, and the Facebook fan page you’ll find updates for both this wine-focused site, and my other comics blog Rachel Learns to Drive. On the Facebook page, you’ll also find fun extras like photos from public events, and announcements of other projects.

If you’d like to check out and follow my goofy memoir comics you can find them at http://lilyelainehawkwakawaka.com

Cheers!