Old Bali Hai Wine Bottle Discovered

Near Clove Rd in the Town of Schodack NY   In a small wooded area just off the highway  I discovered  what appeared to be an old wine bottle. It's obscured and deeply faded label , what was left of it was of a blueish tint. It was not intact , just the upper portion of the bottle was found. After checking out the internet and looking for a corresponding  picture I do believe I know what it was. An old broken bottle of Balli Hai wine.  It did spark a memory. This wine I believe made by Gallo was an inexpensive wine or in other words cheap. Sold in pints and quarts. This was sold in the late sixties through much of the seventies. It was of the old " Pop Wine" movement to lure younger people and wine drinkers whose taste had not moved to a more dry taste in wines. Very Fruity , quite light. To use an old parlance , it was chuggable. Since yes I did partake of this variety of wine let me say it had tastes of peaches , strawberry , a hint of apple.and but of course grape. Very sweet aftertaste. It was a wine for newbies but surprisingly more adults drank it than one might assume. It was advertised on TV in the late sixties as a sort of taste of the East. Some House Parties used it as a base for an early American Waspy version of Sangria. You have to remember.......America was still in the process of discovering wine and it was not as widely consumed as it is today. There were not very many boutique wineries as there is today as well. Gallo or Taylor were the big producers. For anyone wishing to sample what it may have tasted like I have been informed that a wine called Frutezia is the closest one can come to it today. As for me my last taste was at the Powder Ridge Music Festival in July of 1970 in Connecticut. So , perhaps a quick disposal of an old bottle led to it being chucked into this wooded area that I would many years later dig into after it had become more overgrown. and three quarter buried. My thanks to Ted Franconis , a favored bartender and  Kimberly Peacock of the Tousey Winery for some assistance in writing this blog

Going Home Again Schodack NY

I really did start the day hoping to finish my short dig on Clove Rd in my home town of Schodack NY. But today after a seemly long winter and slightly late spring I decided to just drive around  what appeared to me a newly minted home town. Thomas Wolfe was essentially correct , "you can't go home again". But on this warm , sunny , vibrant , spring morning everything seemed alive and beckoning to me. Gould Orchards with it's apple trees in full flower was remarkable. Stopped by to buy a bottle of wine. Residents bushes and trees were opening up in a fragrant explosion it seemed to me. Many people were busy tending gardens and mowing lawns. Maple Hill High School which was my old high school had kids out on the track and it appeared a class was being taught on the Tennis Bleachers. People soaking up the sunshine if not learning. Near Schodack Landing what appeared to be a mangy coyote ran across the road on Schodack Landing Rd. The Hudson River lite up with mid morning light , a high tide pushing up the river. I have had a stressful week.......but my mood began to feel more on the tranquil side as I toured. My mind did wander to some past things .....how things have changed , how they have not. This final 1.6 months of High School before graduation for the class of 2015. That truly is a mixture of feelings.Todays return filled me with transcendent calm. A quiet day in an upstate New York town. Sometimes therapy can be only a few bucks of gas away. So I write this ode to you my hometown. We certainly have had our differences , but transcendent thought can make quiet this so often intense life we may lead.