Got wine? Got a good cause? What about an insured nose (Robert Parker’s) and debate about its efficacy – or at least the question of mind over matter? Yes, yes; it has been another nerdy week in wine!

Biz Stone and his partner in crime at Twitter are first to bat in my lineup this Friday. They are teaming up with the folks at Crushpad and Room to Read to bring The Fledgling Initiative to bear. Check out this video describing the project to learn more!

Bringing home the runners is Jonah Lehrer (and friends). His philosophical diatribe over at ScienceBlogs provides a more “scientific” perspective on the art and science of blind tasting. He uses errors Parker made recently retasting 2005 Bordeaux (as explored by Dr. Vino, who was present for the moment in question, and further discussed by Felix Salmon) as his premise.  Lehrer’s piece question whether wine experience or our senses dictate wine enjoyment. It’s not a perfect piece of blog journalism, science or philosophy; but all of the above links are sure to stimulate your mind this Friday morning and worth investigating for yourself.

Have you ever tried to blind taste wine? What was your experience doing it and what was the occasion?

As much as we may hate to admit it, the smell of autumn is in the air. September offers a great opportunity to embrace wines of all shapes and sizes, regardless of a specific need to celebrate. Sometimes simply unwinding at the end of a long day is the way to go. This month we offer some bubbly for just such an occasion, as well as a cool white that could fly under the radar screen if not given proper attention and a dynamic duo of opposing, but equally enticing reds. School may be back in session, but September is absolutely not a month for “Time Out” in the wine world!

Pop on over to Wicked Local for this month’s roster of recess-worthy picks.

What else are you sipp’n on this month?