The Wine Knows

As a journalist, I get a fair number of pitches from public relation types for stories and/or coverage. Via email, I'd say they number two dozen per day. I receive two to four daily by mail and an occasional phone call.

What arrived today was easily one of the most bizarre. The fact I'm writing about it probably proves it served its purpose and perhaps its expense.

The box was large enough to hold a half-dozen books from Amazon.com, and it was from Frei Brothers Vineyards in Healdsburg, Calif. Inside was a bottle of Redwood Creek Pinot Noir Vin de Pays D'oc, meaning it was a table wine from France, which retails for $8.

Accompanying the wine was a single hiking shoe from a company called Hi-Tec. It appears to be size 9. I wear a 14.

Curious? Me, too.

Is this a way to get people with similar-sized feet to hook up for a glass of wine? Unlikely.

Instead, it appears to encourage coverage of the Northwest Regional Campfire Classic Cook-Off, which takes place May 31 at the Pike Place Market Street Festival in Seattle. Redwood Creek, a second label for Frei Brothers, appears to be putting on the event.

At first, I was offended that a California wine would be sponsoring an event in Northwest wine country, much as I was when I discovered Gallo of Sonoma was the official wine of the Seattle Seahawks (that was a couple of years ago; no idea if this is still true). Turns out, though, that Redwood Creek puts on this national campfire cook-off, and this is simply a regional semi-final.

Still, promoting the event with a single hiking shoe and a bottle of French wine? Strange.

Turns out the bottle of wine fits perfectly inside the hiking boot. I'll just leave it on my desk and enjoy the stares and questions from co-workers.