I love waking up to NPR. I get all my highlights for the day in a neat little package and often am entertained by their little side stories to boot. The only challenge is I'm literally coming to when many of their finest news bites are coming over the air waves. With that said, I think it was just this week I woke up to the 'idea' that if it was legal for a President (read: Obama) to sign marketing deals with the Nike's of the world, we might actually see some light at the end of the National Debt tunnel; any "proceeds" generated from endorsements could be pumped back into the US economy. (Don't you just love such capitalist creativity?!) So what does this have to do with wine? Well, if you saw the latest cover of Wine Enthusiast magazine, you know there is a full page picture of Obama.... Apparently he has quite a remarkable 1,000 bottle wine cellar, the details of which will only be revealed by his staff after the Inauguration, Decanter reported this week also. The wine industry is thrilled. Not only are people going to need a nice glass of wine to distract and relax them even more given the economic woes that abound, but Obama serves as the unofficial endorser of fermented grape juice - and perhaps reaching a younger audience, thereby giving additional 'legs' to the success of the trade over/in time.
But for those of you who don't just seek out a glass of wine at the end of a long day and prefer a real escape, check this out: you can go to the Netherlands and recuperate at De Vrouwe van Stavoren Hotel. And when I say "recuperate" I really mean re-cooper-ate.... This fine establishment offers guests the chance to room in an old, French wine cask! Seeing is believing, or is that sleeping?
What do you think is so special about Obama's collection we have to wait until after the Inauguration to find out what lies within?