West Side Wine

In case you missed it,  there was an excellent piece on SLATE the other day about importers who bring in wines that, according to the article, will guarantee you a good bottle every time.  I urge you to read it.  This is somewhat selfish, because I do a lot of business with most of these characters,  but I do it because they have great palates and a true sense and appreciation of natural wines and wine-making.  When I got into this business ten years ago, vin naturel was one of the best kept secrets in the business.  Fortunately, the guy that I bought the store from had a few wines left from a guy named Joe Dressner of Louis/Dressner. These bottles had been purchased by a former employee who really knew her wines.   At the time Joe, and probably Neil Rosenthal, were the only guys in the market that were going around with these “oddball” wines mostly from France.

Flash forward ten years, and the marketplace abounds with a number of savvy importers.  If you’re at all tenuous about selecting wines, the names mentioned in this article are great guideposts.  Just turn the bottle around and read the back label.  There, sometimes in small print you’ll find the importer’s name, which in the case of any of the guys mentioned, is a great seal of approval.

West Side Wine has come upon a unique marketing opportunity in the ever-expanding world of promotional possibilities – TomatoCam.net. 

Nestled at the base of Mt. Tamalpais lies the home of  Douglas and Cessna Kaye.  The Kayes have planted an exquisite tomato and pepper patch on their deck.  Doug, being an Internet pioneer and entrepreneur,  installed a camera overlooking the patch so that anyone could, at any time of the day, follow the progress of their suburban agrarian adventure. 

Think of it.  You’re hassled, getting yelled at by your boss, hounded by creditors,  frustrated by the daily annoyances of life.  Just stop.  Take a breath.  Visit TomatoCam.net.  Get rejuvenated, resucitated, re-energized, or just zen out.  That is the beauty of TomatoCam.net,  and that is why WSW seized the opportunity to secure an exclusive sponsorship.  I urge you to see for yourself.  It’s free, it’s fascinating, it’s fun.  Who knows?   You may actually catch a glimpse of Douglas or Cessna tending their crop or readjusting their irrigation system.  That’s the beauty of it.  You never know what you’re going to see on TomatoCam.net.  And that’s exactly why WSW is there. 

We are committed to improving your quality of life.  So when the day-to-day insanities are getting to you, chill.  Go to TomatoCam.net.  Everything will be okay.

The other day I had the opportunity  and privilege of meeting with, and tasting through the wines of, Sean Thackrey.  Our initial meeting was kind of funny, because here was this stranger pacing back and forth outside my store, who looked like he might have been out just a bit too late the night before.  Ever so slightly disheveled, he kept peering in and looking at me.  My first reaction was, “Oh, boy, what am I in for?”  When the guy finally walked in, I hesitantly asked if I could help him.  He said he was here to meet me.  I knew I had an appoinment with Sean Thackrey and his wine distributor, so I brilliantly put two and two together and said (embarassingly) “Ah, you must be Mr. Thackrey.”  What’s that thing about judging a book by it’s cover?  It turned out that I wasn’t entirely wrong, because he and the salesman did admit that they had indeed been up until all hours “tasting” the night before.

Anyway, he proceeded to place four bottles in front of me (Pleiades, Orion, Andromeda, and Acquila) and off I went.  Sean’s wines are legendary and they carry the price tags to prove it.  But if you ever get a chance to have a sip, do not pass it up.  As he pushed the Pleiades toward me (I did the pouring, myself — unheard of !), I took Sean through a Q&A to find out what he and his wine-making philosophy were all about.   He very modestly and clearly laid out the sheer simplicity of it all.  “I’m a chef, basically. I have these vineyards, one of which was  planted so long ago that no one knows what’s exactly what’s in it.  Then I harvest these grapes, bring them back to where I make the wine (he doesn’t use the term winery because it isn’t in the traditional sense) and proceed to put the dishes together.”   Sean is trained, but in Art History, not wine-making.  He doesn’t believe that that wine-making is something that can be taught. While he acknowledges that science has a place in the process, it’s a small one.   To quote from his website, “All the science in the world isn’t going to tell a chef what to do with a chicken.  It may suggest some experiments, and may explain some results, but the only result that counts is a better tasting chicken, and the only judge of ‘better’ is the pleasure the chicken gives the palate; and the essential job of the ‘chef’ (‘wine-maker’) is to make that judgement, right now, right here, while the pan’s still on the flame.” 

Boy,you just can’t put it any better than that, and he’s one hell of a “chef”.  The wines were all complex, layered, balanced, and stunning.  And the next time I sample a wine that’s been “manufactured” with all of the latest and greatest  technologies, I will think back on my meeting with Chef Sean Thackrey.  Bravo, Sean. Keep the dishes coming.

Thank god for Stan’s, is all I can say.  Louie and I went up to the Bronx for our first game at the new stadium on game two of the first home stand.  We met at Stan’s, per usual, and the gang was  all there — Joe, Mike, little Mike, Carl, and Lou (the owner). It was like we never left. We congratulated them on their fine article in the Sunday New York Times “City” section, and settled into getting caught up on life’s happenings durning the long dreary winter months.  Ah, the rites of Spring.  After about an hour and a half of beers (not me, I was doing diet coke, another story), we headed on over to the new edifice, monument, mausoleum, whatever.  We were initially blown away by the openess,  light and airiness of the grand concourse.  So up we go to our second level seats, and a surreal Yankee Stadium concession and seating experience begins.  Starting with young, bright shining faces in pinstripes holding up signs that read, “May I help you?”  Huh?  We shook that off and looked at the concession stands to see what was being offered.  Beers starting at $9 (Budweiser.) Ugh.  Heineken — $11 for 16 oz.  Okay, but do we need to know the caloric content?  Apparently we do, because every food and beverage item comes with that piece of information.  Am I in a dream or a nightmare?  I had this experience once at a San Francisco Giants’ game, but I expected it there, not here. 

After taking this all in, we shrugged it off and took our seats.  Very nice.  The Stadium is the Stadium, on the field.  Same dimensions,  pretty much the same layout, with the exception of the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar in centerfield.  We kinda felt that we were actually in Yankee Stadium, until the home runs started flying out of the park.  Five for the Yanks, a couple more for Cleveland.  Weird, but we lived with it because we won.  But throughout the game we just felt that something was missing.  Like people in those ritzy seats in and around homeplate.  That can not look good on television.  Then those skyboxes with nobody home.  Then the craziness — there was none.  That was the most telling difference. We felt like we were in some civilized place, like Kansas City or Minnesota. 

I don’t know.  Maybe the stadium needs to be broken in and not treated like some precious new thing.  Time will tell.  We won,  and that was good.  By the way, if you’re interested, a 16 oz Heniken is 363 calories.