An Extraordinary Life
Mijenko “Mike” Grgich, 1923 – 2023
I last saw Mijenko “Mike” Grgich at Marvin Shanken’s Wine Spectator Magnum Party in Napa Valley. All of Napa’s best winemakers were there, and all were toting a magnum (1.5 liter) of wine and a guest. For the last page of his autobiography, Mike chose a picture of himself taken at that party, followed by the words, “At 92, I was not the oldest vintner … but maybe I will be when I’m 100!”
Mike reached the century milestone on April 1st and passed away at his home in Calistoga on December 13th. And while the man may be gone, his legacy will live on as long as wine is produced in America. He led an extraordinary life and helped transform Napa Valley, once a fledgling wine region, into a prestigious player on the global wine stage.
Read MoreSuper Bowl Wine Pairings: Bashful, Happy, Dopey, Grumpy & Sleepy
OMG! The Super Bowl is tomorrow and I haven’t written my annual wine and food pairing suggestions for the big game. Lucky you – this will have to be a short article because somewhere there’s a plate of nachos with my name on it (it’s true – my parents named me Don Jalapeño Carter).
The game time temperature in Minneapolis is expected to be in the single digits but the wind chill factor will make it feel colder than Melania Trump’s bedroom. That’s going to be rough on the players who will have to perform in the comfort of U.S. Bank Stadium – which is indoors! (You never see badminton players competing indoors.) Football players can be such p≈ssies. It’s no wonder they won’t go to the White House; they’re afraid the president might grab them.
Read MoreProper Stemware? Bah Humbug!
I‘m not one to obsess over matching each specific wine varietal to its own particular type of wine glass. Just last week I tasted Shiraz from a Riedel Syrah glass and I couldn’t even tell they were spelled differently. I’m even less sensitive when it comes to spirits. I drink my whiskey from one of those pint beer glasses. Anything less and I’d have to get out of my chair too often.
The Wines of Anjou-Saumur Take Me Back to a Classier Time
Chapter Sixteen. Part Twelve.
If you follow the Loire River about a hundred miles eastward from Saint-Nazaire on France’s Atlantic coastline, you will come to the picturesque vineyards of Anjou and Saumur. Both red and white wines are produced here but the largest production in Anjou is a dry rosé that goes by the name of Rosé d’Anjou.
This uncomplicated wine, produced from the Grolleau grape, is hardly revered around the world but it has a special place in my heart because it was briefly popular when I was a young man courting my wife. For you Millennials in the audience, “courting” is an English term for “hooking-up”. Courting was a refined ritual, a classy pursuit that entailed actually “driving” to her house and “picking her up” in my “car”. Then we’d dance and drink Rosé d’Anjou like a couple of sophisticated continentals until we puked.
Today Rosé d’Anjou has fallen out of fashion as young American consumers have decided it’s much classier to puke Provence rosé.
Read MoreSuper Bowl – The Menu Says Sweet, Your Friends Want Dry
The holiday season comes to an end this Sunday. We celebrated a harvest Thanksgiving, rejoiced in the birth of our savior, and welcomed a new year. Now comes that most sacred of American holidays – the Super Bowl, a holiday commemorated by 114 million people paying homage to hostile 300-pound men battling in day-glo tights. Don’t you just love this planet?
I didn’t expect the Giants to make it to the Super Bowl and they didn’t let me down. They lost in the first round of the playoffs and I spent the following week watching game replays on ESPN because depression makes me so happy. I was so disheartened I actually stopped eating for a minute.
To cheer me up my wife decided to have friends over on Super Bowl Sunday even though she knows I like watching football without a lot of distractions. That’s why I always make the kids leave the room when the game begins. This starts with some simple cajoling but usually ends with a tantrum and a lot of tears. Sometimes the kids get upset too.
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