West Side Wine

Tony Coturri

We just got back from  a very long weekend in Northern California. My bro-in-law, Doug,  was turning 60 and we decided to sneak out there and surprise him. Mission accomplished. When we rang his doorbell at 10 pm on Thursday he opened the door and just stared at us.  Thank god he didn’t have a heart attack or something.

Anyway, as part of the surprise we drove him, his wife Cessna,  and son Warren up to Sonoma for a great lunch at The Girl and The Fig,  followed by a surprise tasting of a bunch of new wines with our friends the Coturris.  Tony, five dogs and long time winery manager Billy  graciously greeted us as we pulled up in our rented van.  It was a gorgeous day, and we weren’t there five minutes when the glasses came out, and Tony started pouring.

We started with a barrel sample of the ’08 rose.  Outstanding. This is his second vintage, and he puts every red known to man in it.  It will be bottled in a month or two, and I’ll get my hands on it by the beginning of June. I warned Tony that summer is fleeting and customers are waiting, but his response was that he thinks it’s perfect wine for Thanksgiving. While I totally agree with him, I  feat that I, and the people of Tavel in the Rhone Valley, are the only people who will drink  rose at Thanksgiving. In fact, Tony thinks his rose is very “Tavelian”, and we all agreed.  No pale pinkies for Coturri.

Then Nic (Tony’s son) joined us, and we moved on to the reds. They are really hitting their stride.  The ’07 Primitivo was delicious.  Slight bit of residual sugar, but screaming for gorgonzola.  Then we moved on to a new Zinfandel, the ’07 Jewel Pinot Noir, and then the star of the show –  the ’07 Petite Syrah.  This wine is one of the finest he has made, in my opinion.  Focused, and a perfect assimilation of fruit and acidity.  All I could say to Tony after the first sip was “bulls-eye!”  I also did not spit any of it out.  Way too good to go down the drain.  We then moved on to his Cote de Cailloux Rhone blend, which was stunning, followed by a revisiting of their ’07 Grenache and ’06 Carignane.  What a treat.

I looked at the birthday boy, and he was  very happy.  All in all it was a fine day.  Great wines, wonderful hosts, and being with family.  Before we left, I couldn’t resist buying a few bottles  for the family’s wine cooler and for dinner that night.  The mood in the car as we drove away was one of total contentment and satisfaction.  It was a wonderful way to end a perect weekend.  We can’t until the next big birthday.

The period at the end of the sentence came a week ago Sunday, when Ellen and I attended Cathy’s (guide dog #1) graduation at the Guide Dog Foundation.  Any thoughts about her being released (and us getting her back) were eliminated. But in the end, it’s a very good thing.  

We got there early to drop off Tiffany (guide dog #2) at the kennels. We then went up to the administration building to be reunited with Cathy, and to meet her new partner/friend/companion/love/charge, Leon.

But before we get to it, we gather as a group to be given very strict instructions as to how we are to behave at the reunion.  No talking to, looking at,  or touching the dog you’ve lived with for an entire year, until you’re given permission.  Fat chance. I knew that wasn’t going to work.  Finally we’re brought in, one family at a time, to a large room where all the graduates (human and canine) are seated and awaiting our arrival.  Of course, the first thing that I do is look at Cathy, and her tail starts going a mile a minute. Aha!! She still recognizes me.  I knew it.  Then she starts to jump on me.  I loved it, but that’s a serious no-no.  We try to correct her, but then we realize that that’s Leon’s job, not ours anymore.  After things settled down, momentarily, we had the chance to get to know Leon.  A great guy…a high school physics for 42 years until he retired in 2002.  His wife urged him to apply for a guide dog a couple of years ago.  He had been together with Cathy for the preveious three weeks, training, and you could tell that he loved her and that they would be wonderful friends, partners and companions. That realization, and the fact that he had three kids, six grandchildren, a big backyard and a loving family, made it completely okay.  Cathy was in for a wonderful life. 

At one point in our conversation, Cathy’s lightbulb went off and she recognized Ellen.  She (Cathy, that is) started making weird noises like she was trying to tell her something.  The reunion was complete.  On the way out we spoke to Cathy’s trainer, who, rumor had it, had gotten particularly close to her.  As he started to talk about her, he said he was getting goose bumps.  “She’s one in a million.  She’s one of the great guide dogs,” he told us.  We were blown away.  We had serious doubts about her cutting it, let alone being one of the “greats”.  But, obviously, what do we know?

We left not shedding a tear.  Neither of us could figure out why not.  We finally came to the conclusion that we were just happy for her, for Leon, for his family.  No reason to cry.  It’s all good.  So long, Cathy.  Be happy.  Do greatness.  We love you.

Ellen and I got all dolled up on Monday night to attend the Broadway opening of “33 Variations”, a play starring Jane Fonda.  Now, normally this event might not get us out of the house, but it also happens to star my niece, Samantha Mathis, which is a very cool thing.  She decided to leave California and a nice TV and movie career for a year and try her luck in NYC.  No sooner had she unpacked, when she got this gig.  Doesn’t that happen to everyone? 

Anyway, it was a sparkling, star-studded event — Dolly Parton, Rosie O’Donnell, Geoffrey Rush, to name just a few. They all came to see Ms. Fonda return to Broadway after a 46 year absence.  Except us.  This was a family affair.  In fact, I ran into a WSW customer entering the theater.  I proudly told him that I was there to see my niece who’s starring in the play. “Well, what about Jane Fonda?” he asked. “Oh, yeah, she’s in it, too” I replied.  I don’t think he took that too well.  I hope he wasn’t her agent or something.

All the performances were excellent, Sam was great, and we were all weepy and proud at the curtain call.  We did the whole backstage thing afterward, and then subwayed it down to Buddakan for the big party.  All the limoed guests beat us to the food and booze line, which was endless.  Chaos was the watchword, but eventually we managed to find a quiet, empty corner of this massive space and had a great time. 

Go see it if you’re around.  I’m sure they are tickets at TKTS.  And if you bump into Samantha at the theatre, tell her we sent you.

It happens just about every day.  Someone needs to get a special bottle of wine in appreciation of something…..taking care of the dog, watching the apartment, helping to get that job (not much of that these days.) You know the drill.  You’ve undoubtedly bought wine as a “thank you” yourself.  It’s often hard to figure out what to buy. But the one I came across Sunday takes the cake. 

A young guy comes in and says he needs a very special”thank you” bottle.  I responded with the usual question. “Do you know what the person drinks?”

“No,” he replied. ” I don’t really know the guy.”

“Really?” I asked, intrigued.

“Yeah. I’m actually thanking him for saving my life. He gave me the Heimlich maneuver the other night at a cocktail party.”  

“Well then,” I responded, “you really do owe him a thank you. So just how much is your life worth to you? “

He paused for a second. “I don’t want to be ostentatious. How about $70 to $100?

 ”Ostentatious?” I chided. “We’re talking about your life.“ 

We cruised the aisles together. I showed him around some generic “names” like Barolo, Barbaresco, Bordeaux, Brunello, Burgundy…all the “B”s.  We finally settled on a Chateau Brane Cantenac ’04. A nice choice.  I wrapped the gift as he described his mortification during the ordeal. It was at a client party. 

“Was it a client who saved you?’ I asked, knowing that would have been particuarly mortifying. 

“No, it was a fellow worker. It was all due to a scallop. I’ll never eat another one again. Nor should you. Those things can kill you.”

 I told him  I’d keep that in mind, as I crossed my fingers behind my back and thought about those amazing Peconic Bays I picked up in Bridgehampton a couple of weeks ago which went down smooth as silk, with a little help from a Thevenet Saint-Veran Clos de l’Hermitage ’07, of course.

Cathy and The Wine Guy

Yesterday, Ellen and I learned that our first guide dog puppy, Cathy, has qualified to be a full-fledged guide dog, and will be  graduating with her new owner/partner, Leon from Port Washington, N.Y.  on March 15th.  I have to admit that when Ellen called to tell me I was slightly disappointed, only because if Cathy had not cut it we would have gotten her back. But I quickly got over, it and am extremely proud of her and happy for Leon.  This will be his first guide dog.  We’ll attend the ceremony which, by all accounts, is a major tear-fest.  We’ll get to meet Leon, but we will not be allowed to see Cathy, except from far away when she accepts her “diploma”.  It’s probably better for all that we’re not able to reune. 

So, this isn’t exactly a wine blog this time, except that we lift a glass to Cathy and Leon and toast their long and loving relationship.  We also toast each other for successfully raising her and having a hand in helping someone.  Pretty cool, I have to say.