BEg2 ice cream / 9:30 Cologne / 1985 Sassicaia

[Michael Bailey]

Or rather, it’s right near her office so it all - definitely the ice cream
& maybe/maybe not the money - went upstairs with her

On Sun, Feb 13, 2022 at 2:24 AM Michael Bailey <michael.lee.bailey at gmail.com>
wrote:

> How is she going to carry all that ice cream and the money?
>
> “She ends up with a number of half-kilo Family Packs in an assortment of
> flavors.”
>
> Pynchon helpfully states the meeting with Igor took place about 11:30 am,
> so she had time to go home first, hard to imagine Chuy’s going full tilt
> before dark.
>
> Also, there was no appointment, but - like the absence of parking
> enforcement - it’s hard to imagine it was a chance meeting near her office.
>
>
> Allen Ruch wrote:
> The 9:30 Club in DC is legendary. But the club did change venues sometime,
> I dunno, late 1990s? Early 2000s? And that's the joke here about the "9:30
> Club cologne."
>
> The *original* 9:30 Club was a real shitty place, and was FAMOUS for the terrible smell: a mixture of urine, beer, and sweat. You just had to deal with it. I saw many groups there in the late 1980s, early 1990s. It was *the* place to see underground music and alternative acts. (I used to drive down from Harrisburg, PA to see Hawkwind, Electric Hellfire Club, etc.)
>
> When they moved the 9:30 Club to a different venue, they lost that terrible smell, and people even joked about missing it. The original 9:30 Club also had terrible Fen Shui, with these fucking columns that obstructed the stage...
>
>
> - thanks for that!
>
>
> Waiting on her office doorstep is a case of wine, which when she sees its label causes
>             her to observe, “Well, holy shit.” An ’85 Sassicaia? A case? Must be a mistake. There
>             seems to be a note, however—“Turns out you saved us some money too,” unsigned, yet
>             who else can it be but Rocky, the ol’ ethnoenologist? Good anyhow for enough guilt
>             to get her back into the increasingly problematic hwgaahwgh/hashslingrz books.
>
>
>
> 1985 Sassicaia -
>
> https://www.christies.com/en/lot/lot-4666309
>
> A lot of 3 magnums sold for $15,275.
>
> A case is what, 12?
>
> About 60k? And there’s no mention of giving that back. Heck, the note isn’t even signed. Plus Slagiatt might take offense, although he has certainly taken a shine to Maxine, hasn’t he?
>
>
> Wine writing is even more florid than sports or music writing, isn’t it?
>
> “As a student in Pisa, during the 1920's, the Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta dreamed of creating a "noble" wine. Like most of the Italian aristocracy at the time, the Marchese's taste in wine ran strongly to fine Bordeaux. After settling with his wife into their two thousand acre Tenuta San Guido estate, he experimented with several French grape varieties and concluded that Cabernet, "the bouquet I was looking for," would thrive in central Italy. Distinct from the local, traditional Tuscan and Piedmontese varietals of Sangiovese and Nebbiolo, the use of Cabernet Sauvignon as the primary component of a wine represented a radical shift away from the traditional Tuscan varietals. The Marchese's decision to plant Cabernet was also influenced by the microclimate of Tenuta San Guido, which is similar to Graves in Bordeaux. Just as "Graves" means gravel in French, Sassicaia in Italian means "place of my stones." The Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta passed away in 1983. His son, Marchese Nicolo Incisa della Rocchetta, now oversees all estate operations. The 75 hectares of vineyards are planted with 85 Cabernet Sauvignon and 15 Cabernet Franc.
>
> “Vintage 1985 *****
>
> 1984 provided the sparks; in 1985 the engine fired. A brilliantly successful and well-timed vintage. Producers rose to the occasion, merchants bought and their eager customers, me among them, fell for them. With the advice of Belfrage and Gleave, I explored a wide range of the best. Unquestionably my favourite Italian vintage.
> MB, Vintage Wine
>
> [ not me (-; I would’ve said “I among them” for one thing ]
>
> Sassicaia--Vintage 1985
> Tuscany
> In original wooden case
> "I had this wine in a blind tasting - I have had it frequently, and have never failed to give it a perfect rating. At the same time, I have often mis-identified it in blind tastings as the 1986 Mouton-Rothschild. In this tasting, the wine was phenomenal. The color remains an opaque purple. The bouquet is beginning to develop secondary aromas of cedar and truffles to go along with its intense cassis, black-raspberry, blackberry, tarry, toasty personality. Exceptionally dense, concentrated, and full-bodied, this wine possesses layers of concentrated fruit that are beautifully balanced by the wine's sweet tannin and well-integrated acidity. The finish lasts for nearly a minute. A monumental Cabernet Sauvignon, it is one of the greatest wines made this century. Tasting after tasting continues to confirm this wine's surreal level of quality. Despite being 11 years old, it remains youthful. My best guess for when it will reach full maturity is between 2000-2025. What a wine!" Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (Feb 1997) (erobertparker.com)
>
> 3 magnums per lot
>