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Vampire queen turns talents to wine
From Correspondent Paul Vercammen
LOMPOC, California (CNN) -- In Anne Rice's bone-chilling books, a vampire's favorite libation is often compared to red wine.
Now there's an even greater connection: New Orleans' favorite daughter is boasting a libation of her own.
It all started about 50 miles from Santa Barbara, where a unique search by author Rice ended in a vineyard.
Rice's managers found specialized wine-makers Brian and Walter Babcock and their vineyard, flourishing in a cool climate with oceanic soil. Rice found their grapes were ideal for producing a drink fit for any vampire: syrah.
"There's lots of hang time for the syrah on the vine, (so) it develops true maturity (with) real high sugars," Brian Babcock says. "So when you take it to the cellar and crush the grapes, the color just bleeds into the wine."
Named for her character in "Interview with the Vampire," Rice's Cuvee Lestat Syrah is sold for $30 a bottle.
Just 200 cases of Cuvee Lestat Syrah exist, each with a ghoulish painting by Rice's husband, poet Stan Rice, on the label.
For the Babcocks, the venture has been an experiment into the unknown.
"I didn't know what to make of it," Walter Babcock says. "I said, 'Who's Anne Rice?'"
They learned the author's hard-core following the hard way.
"People would call us from New York state at 5:00 in the morning, not thinking of the time difference, and you'd stumble to the phone, thinking someone has died in the family and it was someone wanting Cuvee Lestat," Walter Babcock says.
Interestingly enough, the potion will never touch Rice's lips.
"I myself, don't drink," she says. "I've not been able to taste one drop of wine, but I watch people's faces and they seem very happy."
Related sites:
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- The Official Anne Rice Home Page
- Yahoo! - Anne Rice (a list of sites related to Anne Rice's work)
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