Indulgence

Bacchanalia

Sam Sneed
I have never dreamt of becoming a millionaire; only to live like one.

Wine has always been considered as part of the finer things in life. Anyone can drink wine, that's for sure. There are bottles that go for 200 pesos, after all. As long as you drink enough, it'll still do the trick. But it takes real sophistication to enjoy wine. Watching Sideways and listening to real wine experts talk about wine as being "dry" or "strong" or "biting." Do you taste the oak? This one is very fruity. It's something I'm picking up and learning slowly. There's a chi-chi quality to drinking wine and even on a cheap house wine, there's a feeling of class, of being able to enjoy the finer things in life. After all, unlike other hard drinks, wine doesn't immediately bring you there. Even the hit, the drunkness of it is different.

I was assigned by Metro to cover a gala dinner that was hosted by Wine Depot. It was a charity auction where the best premium wines from all over the world were being auctioned off and the proceeds would go to charity. Now, we all know I'm totally not a formal person and I couldn't find my tie, which I have not worn in 2 or 3 years. My leather shoes were worn beyond repair and I had to borrow my brother's pair. My coat hasn't been used in 2 or 3 years. Thank God I bought it in Italy in 1998 and, in my opinion anyway, was still in good condition and style.

I arrived at 6:30pm, the third person to arrive and immediately they started serving us wine. We began with a Banfi Rosa Regale from Piedmont Italy and while many people found it very fruity and sweet, I liked it because it was suave in taste and texture. Later on, John Silva disagreed with me saying that he'd rather drink champagne if it was to be this sweet. I agree but I did prefer the Banfi Rosa Regale than a biting wine.

People were coming in slowly and so we had to stay outside for a good number of time and the ladies pouring the wine were rather charming and I found myself having drank 4 glasses already and was getting considerably drunk. Then they ushered in for dinner.

What followed was a Nobilo Icon Sauvignon Blanc 2004 from Marlborough, New Zealand which I thought had a lot of character and was quite biting. I thought it was too strong as it was but what followed, the Simi Russian River Chardonnay 2003 from Russian River Valley in California was even stronger.

I shared a table with the other press people, joined by John Silva and Bambi Harper who are good friends of my Father and Mother and gave me some valuable insights on the wine. Also there were a couple from The Philippine Star who also shared some of their knowledge of wines. And Tim Yap joined us also and shared his thoughts on the wine. We accentuated our dinner, which was excellent, with talk on the tragedy of the Guimarras oil spill, the anti-gay column that was written by Isagani Cruz and the visit of the son of Princess Caroline.

Following were the Banfi Brunello di Montalcino 2000 from Montalcino, Italy which I found rather dry but easier to drink than the two previous bottles. The Arzuaga Crianza 2006 from Ribera Del Duero Spain followed and that was forceful and assertive. And yes, I could taste the oak. The Veramonte Primus Carmenere Merlot Cabnernet Sauvignon 2003 from Casablanca Valley in Chile was the next and by this time, I couldn't tell the difference. The dinner was excellent but was rather rich in flavour as well. And no amount of water or walking towards the smoking section could not free me from my inebriation. I was in it. I was in it deep.

The auction was intermittent, selling off 2 bottles per dish (it was an 8-course meal) and while some of these wines began their bid at 8,000 pesos, they would eventually sell for double that amount. The highest bid began at 30,000 pesos and was sold at 64,000 pesos. For charity, one particular wine whose bid began at 21,000 and was sold at 44,000 would be matched by one individual -- he was going to match the price and give that to charity and in one bottle, The Springboard foundation was to receive 88,000 pesos.

By this time, I was drunk, talking fast and a little louder than usual. I had eased up in my discomfort and was conversing easy. I was amazed at the amount of wine and the money being thrown around for charity and a bottle of fine spirits. The last two bottles in our menu very much helped me ease into the mood -- the Torbreck Steading Grenache Mataro Shiraz 2003 from Barossa Valley, South Australia and the Grant Burge Filsell Shiraz 2003 also from Barossa Valley were good but by this time, my taste buds had failed me. I would not have been able to qualify its taste. All I know is that it was good.

It was the finer life that I had been a part of last night. I was so very conscious to fit the part, you know? No elbows on the table, no scratching of the plate with my utensils, things like that. I was so trying hard to make sure that I was in the best of behaviour. It had turned around for me, especially since quite a lot of people decided to speak to me about my parents, and so there was very little dead air. It was no longer uncomfortable and awkward. I was no longer just press, a mere observer, but somehow, even though I did not participate in the auction, was part of the revelry.

I remember studying the Bacchanalia in ancient Greece, where people drunk in wine, enter wild orgies, loud music and the overflowing of wine would turn the steps into a cascade of spirits. It was a grand debauchery, it was extravagant and wasteful. I wouldn't say that that spirit was alive that night, though a lot of wine wasn't finished and if you open a bottle of wine, you better finish it before the taste is lost. But if you think of the half a million pesos that was raised for The Springboard Foundation, to help under-privileged children in the country, you think the wine was really what helped coax out the money.

Yes it was grand and extravagant but in the end, it was helpful, in a larger scheme of things. And I was a part of that last night. Once in a while, it's nice to get out of your comfort zones, wear clothes you don't usually like wearing and playing a part that you are never comfortable with and just submit. You always end up learning something new, anyway.

posted by wanggo @ 2:43 PM