by Howie Hart » Sat Nov 10, 2012 9:06 am
While I dabbled in the popular stuff of the early 1970's (Blue Nun, Mateus, Hearty Burgundy, etc.) my interest grew after visits to the Finger Lakes, where I had the pleasure of drinking wine with Dr. Frank and Walter S. Taylor. However, I went off the deep end after having 3 fantastic red wines in late 1977 and early 1978. The first two were purchased at a local wine store for $10 each; 1967 Ch. Haut Brion and 1967 Ch. Lafite. My wife and I liked the Lafite so much that we spent a portion of or tax return to buy a case of the 1975 and we opened a bottle every 5 years on our anniversary. I still have a few left. The 3rd eye-opening bottle was my first exposure to a premium CA red - 1974 Raymond. The whole home wine making thing was a slippery slope, with a few early disasters and some pleasant surprises. My goal was to make wines as good as quality commercial wines. After over 36 years of home made wine, I'm still learning, but for the most part, I think I do OK.
Chico - Hey! This Bottle is empty!
Groucho - That's because it's dry Champagne.