Closing in on the ninth decade, the beret and the smile are still unmistakable.
Miljenko “Mike” Grgich, now a California winemaking legend, turns 90 this year
. For those who aren’t familiar with the tale, Mike’s life story could make fitting fodder for a TV wine drama: one of eleven kids; stomped his first grapes at age three; fled communist Yugoslavia in the 1950s; hit the Napa Valley wine scene just as it first began to bud, studying under the master André Tchelistcheff; for all intents and purposes, practically invented the sciences of controlling cold sterilization, malolactic fermentation, and the proper use of oak barrels for wine; eventually went on to establish well-regarded and successful wineries under his own name.
The biggest feather in the beret, though, was the triumph of one of his wines – a Chateau Montelena Chardonnay – at the 1976 Paris tasting, an event that put California (and, to a large extent, all U.S. wines) back on the global fine wine map for good (for a detailed account of that fabled tasting, check out George Tabor’s excellent Judgement Of Paris).
Mike has been sunning himself in Palm Desert, but I was invited to catch up with him over email to talk about his wines and his legacy. At 90, the guy is still a sharp as a tack. Here’s the conversation I had with Mike, which includes his advice for advancing your own tasting prowess, followed by a few thoughts on some recent releases from the apple of his vinous eye, Napa Valley’s Grgich Hills…
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Thanks to all of you who tuned in and/or sent questions for our The Punch Down Episode Three interview with Gary Vaynerchuk. We kicked off a tad late, but it was well worth the wait.
The replay of the live broadcast of our interview with GV is below – if you missed it, you’re in for a treat, as Gary (who connected via telephone) was in typically fine form, pulling no punches with his candid answers.
How does Gary views the wine world’s forays into social media? What does he think the next big thing will be in wine and tech? Does Gary feel as though he abandoned his popular show’s followers when it comes to vino? Who’s getting it right on-line in the wine world? Questions answered in the ensuing vid!
Special thanks to Gary, who once again shows why he’s a passionate and intellectual force with which to be reckoned, as well as one of the most candid wine personalities ever to pull cork from neck.
The Punch Down Episode Three with Gary Vaynerchuk
Cheers!
Welcome to the Weekly Wine Quiz!
This week, we’re finishing off the series of questions related to the research cited in Master of Wine Tim Hanni’s new book, Why You Like The Wines You Like (full disclosure: I received a review copy, and I am mentioned favorably therein). Hopefully these questions have tilted your view of some of the wine world’s long-standing (but potentially false!) prejudices in terms of how we view how we taste.
Hard-Wired Wine Brains?
True or False: People who taste wines often, such as sommeliers, may actually re-wire their brains to perceive wines differently from less frequent tasters?
Cheers – and good luck!
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