Posting in a hurry this morning in Manhattan as I get ready to head back to Texas and my girls. But here are a few highlights from my demi-week in the city…
Monday I was very fortunate to be included among the guests and tasters at Vino Italiano 2017, the annual Italian Trade Commission wine event. The organizers really did a great job of bringing top wine professionals and writers to New York for the seminars and grand tasting. It was great to catch up with some of the top people working in our filed like Alan Tardi, Meg Houston Maker, and Rebecca Murhpy, and Elin McCoy among many others. There were a bunch of high-profile sommeliers from Texas there as well like June Rodil and Thomas Moësse. Great event and great to catch up with so many talented folks.
On Tuesday, I connected with my good friend Jon Pack (a fellow italophile and an immensely talented photographer) at the student protest in Foley Sq. downtown.
Please check out these photos from the rally.
New York is the city that produced Trump and the city that loathes him most. I spent ten years living here and feel very connected to the people and the place. Even though I can’t really put my finger on it, there’s something very different about the vibe here.
Seeing the students protest and hearing them chant brought tears to my eyes.
One of the restaurants I was most excited to check out was Lilia in Williamsburg. My friend and client Tony in Houston had raved about his dinner there.
I thought the food was terrific, the wine list compact but spot on, and we even had a celebrity sighting (and I ran into a bunch of my friends there as well). Super fun. Williamsburg is SO different from the years when my band used to hit the stage at 3 a.m. at underground raves.
Another highlight from the trip was interacting with sommelier Georgia Harrison at Terroir (Tribeca). Her wine service was super sharp and her recommendations and pairings were truly brilliant. It’s so remarkable to look back over the years and reflect on how interest in wine has grown and blossomed in our country. Georgia (who shares her name with our oldest daughter!) is the face of a brave new generation of extremely gifted wine professionals. I couldn’t have been more impressed by her knowledge and service.
That’s all the news that’s fit to blog about this morning from midtown Manhattan. Now it’s time to get my butt on a plane and back to Houston…