I would like to teach my sons — 16 and 17 — that wine is a wonderful part of a meal.

I want to teach them to enjoy it while also drumming it into them that when abused, wine, like any other alcoholic beverage, can be a grave danger.

As they were growing up I occasionally gave them tastes from my glass

With both boys now in high school, I thought it was time to offer them the option of small tastes at dinner.

In European wine regions, a new parent might dip a finger in the local pride and wipe it lovingly across an infant’s lips — “just to give the taste.”

A teenager might have a small glass of wine, introducing an adult pleasure in a safe and supervised manner.

This is how I imagined it in my house

But about a year ago, my wife attended a gathering

sponsored by several high schools addressing the topic of teenagers and alcohol

discussion centered on the real dangers of binge drinking and peer pressure

and of the law

We agreed to hold off on the tasting plan.