For The Love Of Port

What is the wildest thing you have ever seen or experienced when visiting a winery?

Apart from drunken visitors? I remember Josh Jensen at Calera in the early 1980's opening bottle after bottle with a swiss army knife corkscrew and wondering if he couldn't get a better one. The best winery visit I've ever had was visiting FE Trimbach in Alsace in the late 90's. I arrived on a Saturday but the gates where closed. This surpised me since I had visited before on the weekends without an appointment, but they had changed their schedules. It was just before 10 am and I was forlornly looking through the closed wrought iron gates when a couple of gentleman asked if I was visiting the winery. I said I had hoped to, but was out of luck. They then said wait around and a few minutes later Hubert Trimbach drove up and opened the gates. It turned out these gentlemen were the Trimbach's importer into Scandinavia and were there for a tasting. Hubert Trimbach graciously let me join in. We tasted the entire line up including Cuvee Frederic Emile and Clos Ste. Hune with Piere Trimbach pouring. We then had some older vintages of Frederic Emile and Clos Ste. Hune back into the 70's. Some fabulous wines. It was then about 3 pm and Hubert then took us all out to lunch at a nearby restaurant that had a great Tarte Flambe. We drank many of the left overs from the tasting. Great conversation as well. Ended up leaving the winery at about 6 pm.

Eric Ifune wrote:Hubert Trimbach graciously let me join in. We tasted the entire line up including Cuvee Frederic Emile and Clos Ste. Hune with Piere Trimbach pouring. We then had some older vintages of Frederic Emile and Clos Ste. Hune back into the 70's. Some fabulous wines.

No kidding. That must've been epic!

I met Dr. Loosen once at tasting in Boston. Ernst was pouring some sublime vintages.