Bottle # 1 -- Fusion

Name -- Fusion
Type -- Red Table Wine
Bully Hill Product Description -- A light, fruity red wine. A great introduction to red wine enjoyment. A blend of Baco, Aurora, Ives and Colobel. Enjoy chilled or at room temperature.
Bully Hill Dryness/Sweetness Scale (0=driest, 11=Sweetest) -- 2
Date Opened -- Monday, June 27, 2005. Late evening.
Date Finished -- Wednesday, June 29, 2005. Early evening.

On the long drive back to Manhattan from the Finger Lakes, I pondered. In the trunk of this little rental car sat two cases of wine from my favorite vineyard. I planned it all out. As soon as we got back to our little apartment, I would unpack the bottles and just stare at them. Which is exactly what I did.

The wines stayed on the dining room table, arranged in order from dry to sweet, white on the left, red on the right, for at least a day and a half. We shifted them slightly to the side so we could sit and eat. But they stayed arranged in order. Like so.

If you are familiar with urban living, you know that space is a cherished commodity. Having only room for one table in the common space of our 600 square foot apartment leaves little room to accommodate 24 bottles of wine. The wine rack already full, we had to improvise.
I cleared off a small end table that could be sacrificed and moved the bottles there. Like so.

Eventually, the question came up.

"Uh, honey? Are we going to drink any of this wine?" J. asks, tentatively.

"Well, yee-aah! Of course!"

Pause.

"Uh, when?"

"Well, not yet! I don't want to break up the set."

J. nods and smiles knowingly. We made the journey to Bully Hill together. He understands. There are currently only three types of Bully Hill wine available to Manhattan consumers according to my wine shop hunts. We would practice self-control.

BOTTLE OPENED:

On Monday night, we went downtown to see an acoustic in-store performance by Leela James at Tower Records on lower Broadway. She was fabulous and powerful and we left the performance high off of good ol' soul music.

New York rained summer onto our skin. Not fearing this hot dampness, we strolled casually and looked into different shops. Soon, we became hungry and took the train back uptown. We stopped at the Food Emporium on the way back to the apartment and picked up some fresh pasta for dinner. On the walk up Ninth Avenue, I had an immediately Pavlovian experience.

We passed The Nook, a small eatery that serves pleasantly uncomplicated American fare. The Nook, like most of the restaurants in Hell's Kitchen, had it's doors and windows open to the street. One two-top table straddled the sidewalk so the couple dining were an arm's length from me.

The man picked up a dark green bottle and poured it's contents evenly between two stout wine glasses. I watched the stream of thick, red liquid cascade in a long rivulet and settle into the base of the goblet.

I sighed, "Let's drink one tonight."

"Are you sure?" J. looked at me suspiciously.

"Yes, yes. I am sure." I stated seriously, like a Zen master. Inspired with this revelation, we hurried back to our apartment.

When we arrived at our place, I told J. that I would make dinner and he complied. In a 600 square foot apartment, there is literally only room for one chef in our kitchen.

"Which wine are we drinking? I'll put it in the fridge to chill it."

"I don't know, I don't know," I blabbed frantically.

J. snorted simply and shook his head. "Okay, well, you choose."

I tucked my head down to clean and chop vegetables. Admittedly, I was still feeling unready to open a bottle, but I desperately wanted some wine.

We purposefully chose to purchase doubles of a few of the wines. That way we could sample one bottle and give away another. I decided to pick one of these wines, and my instincts led me to the Fusion Red.

Dinner -- Porcini mushroom and black peppercorn ravioli served in a red sauce with sauteed white button mushrooms and roasted whole garlic cloves.

I poured out two servings of the Fusion Red into stemless Pinot Noir goblets we picked up at the Corning Museum of Glass.

The color of the wine is a very bright, light red. It is very fruity - like cold berries, but not sweet like a dessert wine. However, it may turn off those who enjoy fuller, earthy reds. It is a very good wine for people who think they do not like wine. It is not complex.

"Mmmm. I love it. It's perfect!" I gushed at the first sip. I put the remaining wine in the refrigerator, knowing it would taste even better as it chilled.

Jason nodded his assent but added, "I don't think it's the right match for this meal."

"I disagree."

"Of course you do."

Still, we drank about half the bottle, refrigerated the rest and fell asleep pleasantly.

DAY TWO:

I had the most heavenly experience with the Red Fusion wine. It is afternoon and I am alone in the apartment.
I am hungry and a little bit stoned. I have been working all afternoon on a story about our trip to Bully Hill and stop to make a snack.

I take out a hunk of cheese that we purchased at a farmhouse outside Seneca Lake. (Backstory.) We discovered recently that the Amish Market down the street sells Portuguese Bolos Levedos. It is the most amazing bread for sandwiches, soft and floury. I decide to make a grilled cheese using this bread and the triple cream bergenost from Doris' farmhouse.

I settle into a perfect lunch with the sandwich, a thick slice of cold watermelon and a chilled glass of Fusion. In the background, on the radio, is NPR -- "All Things Considered." Otherwise, it is silent. The fan in the next room hums to itself. Even the traffic does not pervert the boundaries of acceptable din.

It is hot and my fingers smell like butter. I try to sip the wine slowly, to make it last. It tastes like the sunset.

RED FUSION RECOMMENDATION:
Enjoy this wine when you are very hot and it is very chilled. Sit somewhere all alone and eat something organic and clean but comforting. Listen to something quiet like jazz or talk radio. Read a trashy magazine. Tell no one.