I come across a lot of stories that are interesting, but don't command an 800+ word blog post. I hope you'll enjoy these updates in the worlds of wine, perfume and style.
All the Single Ladies
Put your hands up...and make your reservation now for a winemaker dinner featuring none other than The Bachelor himself, Ben Flajnik, who created the Envolve wine label with friends Michael Benziger (whose family owns Benziger Family Winery) and Danny Fay. Ramekins Culinary School in Sonoma is teaming up with the trio to host a VIP reception and a sit down dinner created by Ramekins chef Doug MacFarland for Friday, February 10. There are only 25 VIP tickets where you get to meet Ben - and maybe vie for a red rose from him. But if you can't get into the VIP meet and greet, there are 120 spaces at the dinner table, where you'll be served a four course meal paired with Envolve wines.
Tastebud Training
Today the New York Times announced it is offering an online course about California wine via the Times' "Knowledge Network". For $65 you get a four-part course about California wine with a focus on Cabernet Sauvignon. It's one of those self-study programs, with instructors Eric Asimov who is the Times wine critic, winemaker Cathy Corison and Master of Wine Chris Cree. They'll also lead a video wine tasting of six wines that you can follow.
Lucky Wine
What does wine have to do with the Chinese Year of the Dragon? About 1000 cases if you are Iron Horse Vineyards and you make bubbly. Joy says her family's winery created the Iron Horse Chinese Cuveé to celebrate this luckiest of years in the Chinese astrological calendar. She presented San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee with a bottle at City Hall on Tuesday. "As luck would have it, the Mayor, San Francisco's first Chinese American mayor, was born in the Year of the Dragon," says Joy.
The color red, which is also considered lucky, is in the yellow and red wine label. What makes this sparkling wine special is that is a vintage wine, from 2007, so this has been in the works for five years. According to Joy, 880 cases were shipped to Bejing for the beginning of this Chinese New Year. That leaves 120 cases for us here in the US to get a hold of. But there's always the next vintage. Joy says, "We are really looking forward to the Year of the Horse in 2014."
Rewined
Missed seeing the head honcho of Kendall-Jackson Winery on CBS's Undercover Boss? I have been watching this series for some time. The stories are always tear jerkers (this episode is no exception and starts early on). You see a direct impact on the boss and the company which is admirable. I do wonder what happens a year or so later, once the cameras are gone. I think W. Blake Gray did an excellent write up of the show on his blog The Gray Report. Pour yourself a glass of wine and watch it here.