I met Tony Danza at a Dodgers game when I was 9. For no particular reason beyond recognizing him as the star of "Who's the Boss?", my friend Jeff and I walked over to his seat and asked for his autograph. He was friendly, boisterous, laughed a lot. He signed our tickets and said "You kids stay out of trouble!", wagging a finger laughing to his buddy, a cue that the interaction was over. "Say no to drugs!" his friend added, elbowing Tony, both of them really getting a kick out of that, still laughing as we walked away. I only figured out why the joke was kind of funny 20 years later.

I really don't have any big celebrity heroes, so there's not much to ruin for me should any chance encounter occur. But I've met or been in close proximity to more than a few. I've helped David Byrne pick out wines for his birthday, I was in a bar bathroom with Shane McGowan, who peed all over the center of the floor, as natural as rain. I used to live in west Sonoma and would see Tom Waits around. He was always perfectly Tom Waits, even in a Whole Foods parking lot, his body like some crooked tree, scratching his head, unable to remember where he parked, a shopping cart filled solely with 4 gallons of milk.

I wasn't familiar enough with her wines to call her a hero (yet), but meeting winemaker, Arianna Occhipinti, was very memorable. Max invited me to a tasting when we worked together in New York, and in a sea of sport coats and booklets and lanyards and glasses (and yes, mostly men), a young 22 year old Sicilian winemaker held court in jeans and a hoodie, putting questions on hold for cigarette breaks... she was brilliant, passionate, and the wines were astoundingly vibrant. Arianna spoke about her desire to make wines that were pure expressions of the terroir of Vittoria, where she farms native Sicilian grape varieties (and olives for their tiny production oil!) and produces these beguiling wines. She follows biodynamic and natural farming practices and is dedicated to the principles of minimal intervention, using only native yeast for fermentation. 

While our celebrity hero, Arianna, will not be here in person, the amazing Alyssa Papiernik of Farm Wines (importers of Occhipinti wines) will be here - sharing these delicious wines and information about this harvest and these dynamic bottles! Come taste and experience the indescribable character of these amazing wines, this Saturday from 2-6pm! No need for autographs, Arianna's signature is in each bottle. 

SATURDAY 2/29: Alyssa Papiernik of Farm Wine Imports is pouring Occhipinti Flights! (with a couple special surprises too:)
2023 SP68 Bianco
2023 SP68 Rosso
2023 Frappato
Flights from 2-6 and wines by the glass from around the globe until 9!

TONIGHT: Thursday Night Flights! Loire Valley Cabernet Franc and Spanish Whites...
2023 Sebastien David Hurluberlu St Nicolas de Bourgueil
2021 Les Athlètes du Vin Chinon
2019 Domaine de Nerleux Saumur Champigny Rouge
2022 Nuria Renom Lil Blanco
2023 Fermi Bohigas Xarel-lo
NV Brincadeiro Naturalmente Turbio
Flights $15 from 5-9 and wines by the glass until close!


Cheers,

Daniel