Advocate Jan 2014

THE ADVOCATE VOL. 72 PART 1 JANUARY 2014
45
THE WINE
COLUMN
By Paul Daykin, Q.C., and Bruno DeVita*
“I might go to Canada eventually, but I think I’ll stop along the Columbia on the
way. I’d like to check around Portland and Hood River and the Dalles to see if
there’s any of the guys I used to know back in the village who haven’t drunk themselves
goofy.”
—Chief Bromden, in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey
“Pinot Noir is a righteous grape, chock full of incredible texture and hedonistic
pleasures; it is sex in a glass, so seductive that it is hard to say no to.”
—Master Sommelier Madeline Triffon
OREGON!
There is a lot to be said for Oregon. It is relatively close to B.C. It has an
agreeable climate and an abundance of outdoor recreation. It is one of only
five U.S. states that have no sales tax. Portland is home to one of the last
great independent book stores (Powell’s Books on Burnside). Some claim
that the “food cart” phenomenon originated in Oregon; in Portland alone,
one can sample street food from almost 500 food trucks. There are wonderful
artisanal brewers of beer. And, of course, there is the wine.
When students of American history think of Oregon, it is Lewis and Clark
that come to mind, dispatched by Thomas Jefferson in 1804 to explore the
* Paul Daykin, Q.C., is a partner of Aaron Gordon Daykin Nordlinger, where he also chooses wine, but for a smaller but
equally thirsty group. Bruno DeVita is the managing partner of Alexander Holburn, a job that includes the important task
of choosing wines for firm functions. Bruno and Paul have been friends since the age of nine and have been enjoying wine
together for more than 30 years. They do not plan to stop doing so unless required by their physicians or force majeure.