Perks of the grape trade By Bob Wesley
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eing in the trade, we get to taste wine in a broad array of settings and situations, and the tableaux can range from utterly glamorous to downright rustic. I particularly love going to industry tastings at the Beverly Hills Hotel because it’s about the only way I can afford to get past the sentries there. With rooms starting at $975 a night and a Caesar salad with shrimp setting you back 34 bucks at the Polo Lounge, it’s a flamboyant, detail-laden, pink and green oasis that preserves the style of old Hollywood but requires a formidable investment to get in the front door … unless, that is, you’re a wine schlub like me with carte blanche access to a large-scaled importer or distributor event in one of the glamorous ballrooms. When sampling Chardonnay at a winery table I always half-expect Clark Gable and Carole Lombard to suddenly appear out of nowhere and elbow me out of the way. I love the Pink Palace, and with enough credit card reward points, someday I hope to be able to actually stay the night rather than just spend
a couple of hours sampling vino. What venues are at the less-than-picturesque end of the spectrum? Well, I’ve been to the Lompoc Wine Ghetto numerous times, where, hidden behind Home Depot, a bleak landscape of colorless warehous-
es offers no hint at the vinous treasures crafted inside. Here I’ve stood next to barrels stacked two stories high and spat into a drain embedded in the concrete floor, surrounded by plywood walls and building insulation, all illuminated in the stark glow of industrial lighting fixtures more suited to a stadium parking lot. In Lompoc, the only remaining spirits of days gone by (unlike Gable and Lombard) might be a huffy, outraged ghost or two from the temperance movement that tried to outlaw alcohol about four decades before the Volstead Act was implemented nationally in 1919. So, Prohibition actually failed twice in these parts, and “evil” fermented grape juice is now a significant (and growing) part of the city’s economy. While there’s no Beverly Hills ambiance, the wines are so noteworthy that the gritty surroundings are inconsequential. Bob Wesley is the general manager of Meritage Wine Market, 18 West Anapamu St. downtown. meritagewinemarket.com
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