March 31, 2004
that's a 1976 German syrah
3/31/04
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The picture above gives you a good idea of the massive pile or mountains that separate the insane, toxic, seductive basin of Los Angeles with the vastness of the Rest of California. You follow that road clear into the center of those staggering hills, go over the Tejon Pass, and if your car is still working, you can speed up the backbone of the Sierras to Napa Valley, where my dad and stepmom live.
I took this trip because my entire cast – and director – all went to New York and Texas and god knows where else, leaving me to stew in my own juices for two days. So I figgered fuckit, and went to see the folks and the sister, who is currently running the Culinary Institute of America (or at least a chunk of it), which is housed in the ancient Christian Brothers winery.
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This school is state of the art – you see all those sinks at each desk? That is where you spit out some of the finest wines the world has ever created. There are also little bowls for aioli, mole dips, pesto, and various other ways to cleanse the palate. They teach a class there called Lord God Master of Wine that only ONE PERSON has ever passed. Here's the final exam: you get blindfolded, taste a glass of wine, and then tell the proctors which grape, which country, which winery, which hillside, and which part of the hillside the grape is from. Or something like that.
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My favorite part of the place is the Barrel Room that has been in there since 1888 or so. Get this: behind the barrels are a catacomb of caves that they used to store wine in the 19th century. During a major earthquake, most of the caves, um, caved in, then were sealed. Legend has it the finest wines ever made could be buried in those caves, and several rich people are itching to dig. How motherscratchin' cool is THAT?
And no, you can't write a story about it. I have been SCOOPED SO MANY TIMES over the last five years that if YOU do it, I will FIND YOU and CLOSE YOUR HEAD IN YOUR LAPTOP. SEVERAL TIMES, WITH MUCH FORCE.
Not a bad place to spend two days stewing. We spent at least a couple weekends a year meandering the Silverado trail when we lived in CA. Each season brings something new to Napa valley - Enjoy your visit.
Here's another view of the Tejon pass, taken last Saturday:
Artistic license notwithstanding, I believe that--geologically and/or cartographically speaking--it would have been the backbone of the Coast Range, rather than the Sierra Nevada, that you were speeding up to Napa.
"I have been SCOOPED SO MANY TIMES over the last five years that if YOU do it, I will FIND YOU and CLOSE YOUR HEAD IN YOUR LAPTOP."
This sounds like my own journalistic neurosis, which I thought was idiosyncratic. Are you talking about when you think you don't bother to pitch something, because you've found out everybody's read about it already, and then it ends up on the cover of Discover three months later and National Geographic a year and a half after that? And then you find out these stories weren't by staffers but by freelancers? If so, I think murder by laptop is perfectly understandable; and with the right expert testimony no jury would give us the maximum sentence.
"I have been SCOOPED SO MANY TIMES over the last five years that if YOU do it, I will FIND YOU and CLOSE YOUR HEAD IN YOUR LAPTOP."
This sounds like my own journalistic neurosis, which I thought was idiosyncratic. Are you talking about when you don't bother to pitch something, because you've found out everybody's read about it already, and then it ends up on the cover of Discover three months later and National Geographic a year and a half after that? And then you find out these stories weren't by staffers but by freelancers? If so, I think murder by laptop is perfectly understandable; and with the right expert testimony no jury would give us the maximum sentence.
Stop by and see us on your way back.
hey ball, dave,
would love to catch up. give me a shout...please...
the last time i saw you you said Leo wasn't "funny".
845 639 7230
1800 431 7013
jamie.block@wachoviasec.com
Hey, I had to bypass SFO entirely to get back to rehearsal on time, but we are taking a special trip up there in a couple of weeks.
Jamie, is your pale ass ever getting out here?
congratulations you are a google whack w typed the words HAZELNUT and GOOGLEPLEX and your website was the only result to come up. well done.