Gleanings from ‘Wine & War’
A half-dozen things I learned while reading Don and Petie Kladstrup’s “Wine & War: The French, The Nazis & the Battle for France’s Greatest Treasure”:
• In the 6th century BC, Cyrus the Great (left) ordered his troops to drink wine as an antidote to infection and illness. Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte did likewise during their wartime activities.
• More on the wine-is-healthy front from Leon Douarche, vice president of the French Winegrowers’ Association: “The old and ill need wine. It’s an excellent food for them; it’s easily digested and a vital source of vitamins and minerals. It is the best elixir for guaranteeing a long life that has ever been invented.”
• During the 30 Years War, the city of Rothenburg was spared because e certain Burgermeister Nusch performed quite the heroic deed on a dare: emptying a 3.5-liter goblet of wine in one draught.
• The first year Domaine Romanee-Conti turned a profit was 1959.
• During World War II, there was such a bottle shortage in France that the Resistance fighters couldn’t make Molotov cocktails.
• Jan 24 is the feast day of St. Vincent, patron saint of French winemakers.
• A new, uh, twist in the cork realm: Two stalwart wineries (both recent winners of Wine Spectator’s Wine of the year), 
• With the onset of a new season of “House of Cards,” the ever-clever folks at VinePair offer up 
the 2013 
And in this case, bubbles! The nonvintage 
And so it was that I came to think of the connections between my favorite soccer team and my favorite wine region. And it turns out that Arsenal and Burgundy do have a lot in common:
teamwork in Arsenal’s case and that whole “the grape, the ground and the guy/gal” deal in Burgundy.
techniques. Meanwhile, Arsenal keeps on having basically the same season year in and year out: showing tons of promise in the first half (the Gunners led the Premiere League at Christmastime) and then fading wanly, in part due to physical or mental fragility.
• Blogger/author Jamie Goode provided insight and wit in a session on career paths. After aptly pointing out that the Internet “allowed geographically isolated geeks to connect and communicate,” he advised us: “Try to become as famous as you can be, and then try making money on it.”
• 
• Veseth then recounted some history I never had heard. “In 1940 Paul Masson was the most expensive American wine. In World War II, price controls went into effect. Other wineries couldn’t raise prices, so they bought Paul Masson and sold through their wines at higher prices under the Masson label. They ‘leveraged down’ the brand,” — which never recovered its lofty status, 
region or brand to love what’s in the bottle. Good thing, because the 2013 
hitting these shores over the years. But finding a steller one at a more-than-fair price is one of the true delights of wine shopping. The 2011 
• I never had the good fortune to meet Peter Mondavi Sr. (left) — although I thoroughly enjoyed breaking bread with his son, 
• On tasting notes: “Metaphors can be more useful to readers that descriptions.” And on wine writing in general: “I come down on the side of the subjective.”
Alexandre Dumas, speaking in the voice of Cardinal Richelieu (left): ‘They are neither generous nor vigorous, but the bouquet is not bad, and they have an indescribably sinister, somber bite that is not at all disagreeable.’ ”
• Fittingly, he called Thomas Jefferson “the founding wine geek” and cited a quote that has appeared on these pages: “No nation is drunken where wine is cheap; and none sober, where the dearness of wine substitutes ardent spirits as the common beverage.”
• I finally got to meet Cathy Corison (left), and she was as delightful as I expected: classy, plain-spoken and whip-smart. The next day, my way better half got a glimpse of why Cathy is in such good shape, spotting her walking from her winery to the auction at the CIA, a good 3-mile hike.
• I finally got to meet Bill Harlan (left), owner of Meadowood resort and of course Harlan Estates. I was praising the Meadowood property, and he said he originally had bought the land that now is the golf course with the intentions of growing grapes there. I didn’t ask, but I’m guessing the golf revenues would rival those that his first-class vineyards do.
Loire-grape wines under the Gamling & McDuck label. I asked what they thought was the optimum place in Napa or Sonoma to grow cabernet franc. Gabe’s answer surprised me: Carneros, where chard and pinot reign. Last year, Amelia Ceja of Ceja Vineyards declared Carneros the best North Coast local for merlot. Maybe there’s a future Cheval Blanc in them-there hills (hey, a guy can dream).