09.28.07
Wine Weekend V: Grapes and Greek gods
I owed myself a weekend of fun for ages and cashed in last Friday, Saturday and Sunday by attending five wine events. Here’s number five:
Sometimes you need to cut your losses. After four fun wine events, I pushed Lady Luck when Sir Campbell T called last Sunday afternoon about a wine auction being held at a new store - Dionysus - in Jianwai Soho. I made a hasty retreat from The Rickshaw, met Sir C, and headed for Soho where, with the help of Cafe Europa’s Joseph, gained entrance to an open-air event being held in the middle of the complex.
The themes were eclectic - a company named after a Greek god, a backdrop that was a tribute to jazz, an entertainment lineup of classical music acts, a virtual ceiling of traditional Chinese lanterns, and a hint of trailer park America (the plastic lawn furniture). The free wine was… um… not a tribute to Dionysus, let’s just put it that way.
Anyway, I’m not sure if the auction ever happened, as I was more interested in the wine shop, which unfortunately wasn’t quite ready, though I was able to sneak in there with a wine lover named Vic, who bought the first bottle the night before as he watched the inventory being moved in (yes, that was a very long sentence). It was one of those, “I would like a bottle”, “Sorry, not for sale yet”, “[Grabbing one] Oops, I accidentally opened the screw top“, “Um, okay, I guess we have to sell it to you now” deals.
I’ll have more on Dionysus soon, especially since Sir Campbell T says they are bringing in some very nice wine.
Note: Get more info on the Chinese wine scene - go to Facebook, search “China Wine” and join the group.
Previous wine weekend stories:
A grape-stomping time
One year for wine bar
Cabs, quizzes and sauerkraut
Reds, whites and you