Smelling Emptiness

the night Pierre Overnoy threw me a book party

Buried somewhere in my New York City desk is an invitation from my French publisher. It arrived on a spring day in 2010. Translated, it goes something like this: “Join us for a book party in honour of Alice Feiring’s new book La bataille du vin et de l’amour: Comment j’ai sauvé le monde de la Parkerisation. Hosted by Pierre Overnoy.”

Did the hyperventilation come first, or the pacing around my apartment? I know the third action was to pen an email to said publisher, Jean-Paul Rocher, who spoke not a word of English: “QUOI!!!!???”

Pierre Overnoy: mystical, mythical wine and bread maker. He was one of the early disciples of the natural wine guru Jules Chauvet, and one of his star students. While always organic, Pierre’s wines have been sulfur-free since 1984. Ignored by famed wine critic Robert Parker, he had also been side-stepped by well-heeled collectors – yet coveted by those in my set. For a while, we could find bottles from Pierre (and the other hot-shot Jurastic producers) in great wine shops and restaurants. But today, it’s impossible.