An Insider’s Wine Picks
This year’s festival stars in the wine arena are Linda Murphy, Leslie Sbrocco, and Kate MacMurray: all friends from the Sonoma County area. You don’t want to miss any of their presentations. We got lucky. All three thought it might be fun to come together and explore Austin, see some old friends, and try some Texas wine.
First up is Linda Murphy, the wine editor of the San Francisco Chronicle. Fifty-two Thursdays a year, Murphy puts out the single most influential newspaper publication on wine in the United States. Her encyclopedic knowledge of wine comes from working in, for, and around wineries for years. She’ll be offering two workshops. For Pinot Noir lovers, there’s no more exciting area in the United States right now than the Russian River Valley of California. On Friday at 10am at the Shoreline Grill, Linda will be leading a seminar covering the appellation and showing wines from Dutton-Goldfield Winery, Hook and Ladder Vineyards and Winery, La Crema Winery, Roessler Cellars, and MacMurray Ranch (represented by Kate MacMurray). She will also do a workshop on Saturday, from 2:45-4:15pm at the Shoreline Grill, titled Women in the Wine Industry. This is a great opportunity to hear – and taste – how women have changed the wine industry during the past decade. Again, there’s a stellar panel including the first lady of Texas wine, Susan Auler of Fall Creek Vineyards, Nicole Birdsall of Bonterra Vineyards, Mary Colhoun of Landmark Vineyards, Ginny Lambrix of De Loach Vineyards, Isabel and Dina Mondavi of I’M Wines, the aforementioned MacMurray, and Maria Martinez-Sierra of Spain’s wonderful Montecillo Winery.
Leslie Sbrocco is the author of Wine for Women: A Guide to Buying, Pairing and Sharing Wine (William Morrow, $24.95), winner of the Georges Duboeuf Best Wine Book of the Year award. She is also a regular writer for the San Francisco Chronicle and the host of KQED’s popular restaurant show Check, Please! Sbrocco will be offering her workshop Wine for Women: The Basics of Buying, Pairing, and Sharing Wine on Friday from 3:30 to 5pm at the workshop of Austin artist Kathy Womack. Men will like her workshops, also, as Leslie is magic in front of a crowd, and the place will probably be jammed with women.
Finally, we have MacMurray. Besides being the spokesperson for MacMurray Vineyards wines, maker of some excellent Pinot Noirs, she is also the daughter of the original owner of the ranch, the man who wanted to get away from his regular job: actor Fred MacMurray. Now, depending on your age and inclination, you might remember Fred MacMurray for his Disney films like The Absent Minded Professor or Son of Flubber. Baby boomers might remember his TV work as Steve Douglas in My Three Sons. But to film buffs, his name will forever be tied to the brilliant work he did with renowned director Billy Wilder in The Apartment and in what is probably the most famous film noir of all time, Double Indemnity.
What most people don’t know is that Wilder originally shot a different ending for Double Indemnity. Kate will lead us through a viewing of the film at the Alamo Drafthouse South on Saturday from 6:30 to 9:30pm, including a discussion of the original ending and a rarely seen still from that ending. To make things complete, she’ll also present a tasting of her wines paired with a full dinner prepared by chef John Bullington. Chale Nafus of the Austin Film Society, who has been a fan and student of Double Indemnity for decades, will lead a Q&A afterward, and Kate has some wonderful stories about the golden era of Hollywood.Ê
Besides the three ladies, there are a few other events you should try to make. If you have any interest in Texas wines, I am leading a tasting with an interesting twist: We’ll be tasting Texas wines, as well as some good French, Italian, and Californian, but all the bottles will be hidden in brown paper bags from both the audience and the panel. Everyone will have the chance to pick which wines they like; we’ll have some expert discussion from a panel of all the winemakers or winery reps; then we’ll uncloak the bottles and see who wins. It’s Saturday from 10 to 11:30am at the Four Seasons.
The biggest bangs for the bucks come Friday evening and Sunday afternoon. The Stars Across Texas Grand Tasting at the Hilton is from 7:30 to 10pm on Friday. More than 30 wineries will be pouring more than 100 wines, and 60-plus restaurants will be showing their signature dishes. This is the event at which you’ll be likely to find the occasional $100 wine to go with a little foie gras and caviar. On Sunday at the gorgeous San Gabriel Park in Georgetown, the Sunday Fair will house more than 100 food producers and more than 200 wines, plus cooking demos from big names like John Ash, Susana Trilling, Patricia Quintana, and others.
Finally, for the prosperous among you, don’t miss the Saturday night Rare & Fine Wine Auction at the Four Seasons. Diana Kennedy and Miguel Ravago will be in attendance and preparing the hors d’oeuvres, Chef Elmar Prambs will oversee dinner, and the wines will be stratospheric in quality. The event is formal dress, black tie, and the auction items will probably average about $3,000 each, but this is one of the top auctions in the Southwest and always a great party. – Wes Marshall
This article appears in April 7 • 2006.
