Goou luck! Report back. I’m tasting the Krug '74 next month.
Will do - opening an 81 Kenwood Sonoma Monday night to celebrate my wife’s birthday . . .
3 Likes
Grew up with wine at the family table, so tasting a small sip here and there already set the train on its rails. A few good value Medoc cases during university got me buying, which eventually turned into a few bottles of solid left bank GCCs (Pontet Canet, Calon Segur) for nice occasions. Two special bottles stand out and really opened the doors, for me:
1945 Chateau Yquem - At a family friend’s birthday party. The depth of that thing was otherworldly.
1990 Guigal La Landonne - First big splurge to go along with an engagement ring. I think it had even more of an effect on my partner. Exceptional wine!
A Sattui Cab! 
A friend who was “into” wine and had gone to Napa multiple times, gave me a bottle as a thank you. I held onto it for a couple of years. Then I met my wife who liked wine. The first time I had her over to my apartment for dinner, I decided it was time to open the bottle. It was still better than anything I had ever had.
1 Like
This is such a great topic, one that I’d wager holds dear to almost everyone who really loves wine. I’ve gotten such a charge out of reading the dozens of stories here. There’s almost nothing more exciting than hearing about someone’s gateway into the world of wine. So here’s mine:
In late July 2001, I was 22 and on my first trip to Napa and California wine country. One night, at dinner at the restaurant at Domaine Chandon, I ordered Pinot Noir to go with a grilled veal chop. I only did this because my dad always like Burgundy, and so in that fine setting, I thought it had to be Burgundy. The waiter, extremely knowledgeable and friendly and forgiving of my age, suggested a bottle of Russian River Pinot Noir that he talked aout with such passion and in such detail that I couldn’t say no.
And to this day, I can stil smell the wine. There are times where I get a scent memory out of the blue, and it’s THAT wine, just filling my nose. I can still see the color. I remember the effect it had on me. It was like a bolt of electricity up my spine that sent me tumbling down a hill from casually being into wine to feeling genuinely passionate about it.
The wine was 1997 Joseph Swan Vineyards Pentagon Reserve, a single block of the great Trenton Estate Vineyard. There were only 49 cases bottled, and it’s only ever been made one other time, in 2016. I was so charged up about it that I changed the trip itinerary to seek out Swan’s tasting room, where I met Rod Berglund for the first time and was completely mesmerized by the whole operation and lineup of wines.
That one bottle, however, led me to great friendships with Rod and the folks at Swan over the years. It’s my favorite winery and one of the most special places on earth. I owe so much to that slice in time where all things wine lined up for me in a purely magical way … the right person, the right botlte, and a legacy that, to be honest, feels unfair it’s so enjoyable.
8 Likes