"Open That Bottle Night," Saturday 23 Feb!

On Saturday night, Feb. 23, Carolyn Pearce of Kerrville, Texas, is finally going to open a bottle of wine she calls "Nancy."

What are you going to open for this year's Open That Bottle Night? Share your plans. Plus, see a calendar of events.It's a Corbett Canyon Chardonnay that was served at a salute to Nancy Reagan during the Republican National Convention in New Orleans in 1988. After the event, a Secret Service agent gave two bottles of the wine, specially marked for the occasion, to his girlfriend and her roommate, who were both medical residents at the time. The girlfriend soon opened the wine and forgot it, but the roommate, Dr. Pearce, saved it. And saved it. And saved it. Next month, Dr. Pearce and her husband will open the wine to have with Caesar salad, scallop risotto -- and, if needed, a backup bottle.

After all these years, what finally has moved Dr. Pearce? Feb. 23 is Open That Bottle Night 9, when all of us, world-wide, finally uncork our own "Nancy" wines and celebrate the memories that flow from these cherished bottles that have always seemed too precious to drink.

Imagine if an evil genie took some of your very best memories and hid them in a wine bottle. That's what so many of us do to ourselves. These dear bottles have a special way of retrieving warm and often-forgotten memories, but you have to pop the cork to release them. That's why we invented Open That Bottle Night. So very many of us have that special bottle -- from a departed loved one, from a visit to a winery, from a vacation -- that we're always going to open for just the right moment, but, of course, that moment never comes. So the wine sits and sits and sits and becomes more and more precious, so it sits and sits some more.

(The rest of the article is available to Wall Street Journal subscribers only, but if you want me to email you a 7-day access link drop me a line at thebigpigeon-at-yahoo.com)

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I probably should be pontificating on the satellite shoot down, but I figured it was time for an upbeat post!

As mentioned numerous times, I'm not a huge wine drinker:  I might drink 4-5 glasses a year, and usually at a restaurant or party.  I've ruined more bottles by letting them sit for months between openings.

That said, I don't see why I can't pass this holiday along to my readers, or why I can't recommend other special libations.  To wit, a neighbor bought me a bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Scotch Whiskey when he learned I was selected for promotion.  For those of you who aren't whiskey fans, Blue ain't some cheap rot gut--it's a blend of scotches up to 50 years old and runs a low 3 figures a bottle.

And the taste?  I've had one tumbler in my life, and if I close my eyes and find my happy place, I can STILL taste it!

Needless to say, the gift means a lot... but I'm also reluctant to open it; I mean, each sip is probably worth a dollar (but what a fine dollar it is). 

In my case, though, I've already planned an opening date:  the first neighborhood barbecue of the season, or roughly April-May time frame.  We'll typically sit around in the garage 'til the wee hours of the morning, talking everything from politics, to music, to religion, to topics typically not fit for discussion among supposedly mature 30-somethings.

But what about you?  Do you have that special bottle sitting lonely, pouty and watery-eyed in the corner?  If so, then I highly recommend you invite some friends and family over tomorrow evening! 

And remember, the roosting arts are not for the faint of heart.