WEST CAPE HOWE Wines :5 Points Of View / 5 Levels Of Reality In Picture Taken @ WEST CAPE HOWE, western Australia Feb. 12-13th 2008?

Enjoy this picture that I took of me holding my wine glass out and taking a picture of the white wine inside it as well as the Sauvignon Blanc vineyard just beyond and the beautiful blue skies and the hills beyond that as Chris Pigott and I sat on the porch on the west side of the winery with Nick Stacey and Rose and later Gavin Berry. Such beauty, such tranquility : such excellent wine and company, too.

Can you see the five points of view that I count or the five possible levels of reality that jump out quickly at me? There may be more : there certainly are.

I love the composition of this picture that is partly luck once that I quickly frame it and snap away on my old Kodak Easy Share CX 4200 that worked well then with my double A batteries and still works today, Monday morning here at home in northern Virginia, 2009 on November 30th, 2009 and I pine for those wonderful moments that I spent in Denmark, western Australia seeing the vineyards like WEST CAPE HOWE who's wines I had been selling for quite some time : as well as having both Nick and Gavin tasting their wines at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 20008 Tel : 202-363-4265 anthonyquinn@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com ).

We currently have the WEST CAPE HOWE Zeppaard Sauvignon Blanc in the store and that along with the red Zeppaard Shiraz are both doing quite well. It's about time for a visit from either you Gavin or you Nick to get me to buy more of your excellent wines. Even an email would be nice to hear how things are with you these days.

Cheers, TONY

I Miss You Gavin! Gavin Berry Of WEST CAPE HOWE, Western Australia Examines His Vines & Grapes Before Harvest, Feb. 2008 W/ Chris Pigott & Tony Quinn

This was a once-in-a-lifetime-experience and trip for me and so I took lots of pictures. I'd like to take this occasion to share them with you now and to help shed some necessary light on the good/great work that some of these smaller vineyards are doing in Australia to bring the world some pretty special wine. It can compete with any of them in balance, focus, finesse, charm and appeal. These wines are also quite reasonably priced.

Now as Australia is really struggling in the wine market I want to do more to help them in any way that I can. I'm due to buy some more WEST CAPE HOWE wines and I will ask my Country Vintner rep Arielle Monaco what is in stock as I am really low here on the last day of August, 2009.

Cheers Gavin and I hope to see you soon I hope. It's been way-too long. You are due to do another in-store tasting of your wines at Cleveland Park Wines & Spirits ( 3423 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Washington D.C. 20008 sales@clevelandparkwine.com www.clevelandparkwine.com Tel:202-363-4265 ). You are certainly welcome anytime. Best to everyone back at WEST CAPE HOWE that made our visit so memorable and rewarding.













This was a gorgeous day in Western Australia as Chris Pigott and I got a tour by Gavin Berry of WEST CAPE HOWE in Denmark, Australia before he got us to our next rendezvous with Dan Pannell of PICARDY vineyard in Pemberton, Western Australia.

I took some pictures of the vines and the grapes that we inspected on the drive with Gavin as he drove us around touring the countryside and his vineyards and vines. It was so nice and hot this day and Chris Pigott and I were having a blast on this trip, just the two of us.

I will never forget this trip and I miss you Gavin. So here's to you and to your continued success as well as that of WEST CAPE HOWE. Cheers, and enjoy these photos of the Sauvignon Blanc grapes, Chardonnay, Riesling, Shiraz and more I believe. TONY

Rob Gibson, Owner-Winemaker of GIBSON & LOOSE END, Barossa, South Aussie Wines Visits Washington D.C. Late 2008 : Leaves Lasting Words / Impressions

     It was great to see Rob Gibson and the rest of the Aussie crew as well as owner Barbara Lawson of LAWSON wines in Marlborough, New Zealand. They came ( all four of them ) and left lasting impressions on me. It was a great weekend's visit ( I think the last weekend of September 2008 if memory serves me well ) with an in-store wine-tasting as well as an Orioles baseball game at Camden yards and later a dinner/wine tasting at my home in northern Virginia.

     Rob made a special point to speak to me briefly during each and every one of these three activities. Oh, actually there were four because after our in-store tasting on Saturday night ( the evening - day that our customers Jennifer and John tied the knot ! ) we afterwards went over to Chef Geoff's in downtown Washington D.C. ( across from the National Theater I believe ). Though he spoke briefly to me each time his few words were like honey to a starving man.

     At Chef Geoff's restaurant Rob came up to me after the dinner and said simply two things  that went straight to my heart and touched me as few words have. He complemented me for the excellent in-store tasting ( Nick Stacey had already done this at the other head of the table from where I say when he toasted me - thanks Nick- loved that, too )  and also made a comment about his wine-tasting operation back home in Barossa. He said that at times he would wonder how to accomplish something there, how to do it ? He then added that he would try and imagine what I would do, how would I handle it? Wow Rob, that's really nice. Thanks for the complement. I love it, really I do. I'm glad you think that highly of me and my way of operating. That means a whole lot to me , one hippie to another.

     The other comment that you made was at my home when we did our dinner/wine-tasting at home. You immediately went and examined all of the bottles with Liz not far behind. You took a lot of time tasting, evaluating, and comparing the various wines that I poured ( American from California, and French, too ). They all had lots of bottle-age and so I wanted you all to enjoy some of my old treasures that I have waited to taste and enjoy with special people like the lot of you fine Aussies!

     You can see all the wines in the pictures when you enlarge them on your screen. Anyway, when you were about to leave Rob you told me that it was one of the best tastings that you had ever been to. That really touched me to the core and I am thrilled to have been able to offer this to you Rob and to the rest of you that all took great pains and great care when both Chris Pigott and I visited Australia this past February ( 9th-21st I believe ). This was " pay-back " time as far as I was concerned, my small way of showing some of my thanks and appreciation for those two great summertime weeks in Australia. 

     I have lots more to say and will very soon but want to post this now so that you may all enjoy these fun photos now.

     Thanks Rob, Barbara, Liz, Nick, Jeremy, Peter and Chris : you are all the best. Here's to all the great times and work that we have already done and to many / much more in 2009! 

     Happy New Year 2009 to One & to All of Us : we need it desperately as we get through these trying times and sort things out and find once again our places in this incredible world of ours. Yes, I'm in love with life, have and always been.     TONY