Notes: All the News that’s fit to Print
To paraphrase the motto of the venerable New York Times
“All The News That’s Fit to Print”
We copy below some excerpts which recently appeared in a blog by Robert Hillyer:
“Many years ago, at my first sommelier job, I picked an obscure, organic Cabernet from Monterey as my house pour. The distributors had never heard of such a thing, but promised to get me a good “by the glass” price for an obscure product. That wine … “Cachagua” Cabernet Sauvignon, is now known as Heller Estate. The name was the Native American pronunciation of “Cache Aqua,” the Spanish name for “Hidden Waters” as the vineyards are fed by underground springs.
When I first encountered the Cab, as a waiter, it was sent back by a table as not being “California Enough.”
The bartender left it behind the bar for the somm to taste the next day, but forgot to cork it back up. When we arrived the next morning, the entire bar area smelled like blackberries. From that day on, I decanted the wine whenever anyone ordered it by the bottle. The other waiters asked me why I would decant a then-$35 bottle, and I said “Walk by the table in 15 minutes, and you tell me.” The cloud of blackberry aroma was evident from five feet away. Imagine a house wine that not only doesn’t go BAD, but gets better when open for a day or two!