[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 70 (Tuesday, June 6, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H3406-H3408]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE VICTORY OF UNITED STATES WINEMAKERS 
                       AT 1976 PARIS WINE TASTING

  Mr. ISSA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 399) recognizing the 30th 
anniversary of the victory of United States winemakers at the 1976 
Paris Wine Tasting.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 399

       Whereas on May 24th, 1976 in Paris, France, the premier 
     wines of California and France were judged in a blind taste 
     test by leading French wine experts;
       Whereas the winning red wine was the 1973 Stag's Leap Wine 
     Cellars SLV Napa Valley Cabernet crafted by winemaker Warren 
     Winiarski;
       Whereas the winning white wine was the 1973 Chateau 
     Montelena Napa Valley Chardonnay crafted by winemaker 
     Miljenko ``Mike'' Grgich;
       Whereas this event became known as the Tasting Heard `Round 
     the World, and heralded the beginning of the rise to 
     preeminence of California wines;
       Whereas the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of 
     American History has placed bottles of the winning wines in 
     its permanent collection;
       Whereas wines from all over the United States are now 
     enjoyed all over the world; and
       Whereas the domestic wine industry now contributes over $50 
     billion a year to the United States economy: Now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That Congress--
       (1) recognizes and honors the 30th Anniversary of the 
     California victory at the 1976 Paris Wine Tasting; and
       (2) recognizes the historical significance of this event to 
     the United States wine industry.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Issa) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Davis) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.


                             General Leave

  Mr. ISSA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on the resolution now under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from California?
  There was no objection.

[[Page H3407]]

  Mr. ISSA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and 
I appreciate that this resolution is being taken out of order, but one 
might say it is being taken in the correct order. One might even say 
that it is being taken one after its correct order.
  As a Member from California, with my colleague from California on the 
other side of the aisle, it is important to note that California wines 
are, in fact, the finest in the world; that they enjoy a special place 
and a personal honor around the world. So although we came after beer 
tonight, I would certainly say not far after beer this evening.
  Mr. Speaker, until 1976, France was generally regarded as having an 
unchallenged reputation as the foremost producer of the world's best 
wines. In that year, a wine merchant in Paris, Steven Spurrier, 
organized a prestigious wine tasting, now known as the Paris Wine 
Tasting of 1976.

                              {time}  2215

  The blind tasting contest was judged by eight of France's top wine 
tasting experts. In the white wine as well as red wine consumption, 
California wines took first place, ending the French wine domination of 
that industry.
  Mr. Speaker, I will include the rest of my statement for the Record. 
I respect so much the co-chairman of the Wine Caucus that I do not want 
to take the thunder that likely belongs to him and all of the good work 
my colleague from California has done.
  Time Magazine's Paris correspondent was on hand for the tasting and 
broke the news to the world. Less might have been made of the contest 
had the renowned French tasters been less disdainful toward the 
California selections as they tasted. The French tasters were stunned 
when the names of the wines were revealed. The impact of the tasting 
for California wines was immediate, showing people everywhere that 
exceptional wines could come from somewhere other than France. The 1976 
Paris tasting has been duplicated over the years with many times the 
same result. Today, California wines continue to demand respect and 
admiration of wine experts all over the world.
  I urge all members to come together to support adoption of this 
resolution on the 30th anniversary of that historic tasting.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield such 
time as he may consume to the champion of wine tasting in the House and 
the sponsor of this legislation, the gentleman from California (Mr. 
Thompson).
  Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from 
Illinois and my colleague from California, and I concur that this is an 
important resolution. Although the beer measure was taken up first; as 
someone who has lived in the wine industry my entire life, someone who 
grows wine grapes and someone who has worked in many different jobs in 
the wine industry, I can tell you firsthand that there is truth in the 
old saying that it takes a lot of beer to make good wine. So it is 
probably appropriate that both of these measures are taken up tonight.
  Mr. Speaker, I have the distinct honor and pleasure of representing 
California's 1st Congressional District, home to over 500 wineries, I 
believe and I think everyone would agree, the heart and soul of the 
American wine industry. So you might ask why it is that I would have 
introduced a resolution honoring a French wine tasting.
  As my colleague from California said, the fact of the matter is the 
Paris Wine Tasting of 1976 is the seminal event in the history of the 
U.S. wine industry. At that event, some of Europe's greatest wine 
critics, those from within the European wine community, chose U.S. 
wines as the winners of that tasting in a blind test. That is why that 
wine tasting is known even today as the tasting heard around the world.
  The Paris tasting was proof that American wine makers could compete 
with the best in the world, that wine makers like Warren Winiarski of 
Stag's Leap Wine Cellars and Mike Grgich of Chateau Montelena, he now 
owns his own winery, but at the time he was the wine maker at Chateau 
Montelena, were in fact making some of the best wines in the world.
  Robert Parker, the world-renowned wine critic, put it best when he 
said, ``The Paris tasting destroyed the myth of French supremacy and 
marked the democratization of the wine world. It was a watershed in the 
history of wine.''
  The tasting served as a launching pad for an industry that has grown 
to become a major contributor to our national economy, now totaling 
over $50 billion a year. There are over 4,000 commercial wineries 
throughout all 50 States. Many of them are small family-owned 
businesses. The number has grown by 30 percent in the last 4 years, and 
the wine industry and the tourism that it generates employs over 
250,000 tax-paying Americans.
  It is, in fact, a great industry, and our wines are in fact the best. 
It is appropriate that we take this time to commend those who 
participated in and the industry that has grown out of the Paris Wine 
Tasting of 1976. I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of this. 
I thank you for the courtesy of bringing this measure up tonight, both 
out of order and on the floor, recognizing the 30th anniversary of this 
famous wine tasting.
  Mr. DAVIS of Illinois. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Let me just say that Californians, whether Democrat or Republican, 
take their politics seriously. They do not always agree on all things, 
but I think they do agree and I think all of us can agree with them 
that California does in fact have some of the finest wines known to 
humankind. I am pleased to join with them in passing this resolution, 
and perhaps one of these days Representative Thompson might even make 
me an honorary member of that tasting club.
  Mr. Speaker, until 1976, France was generally regarded as having an 
unchallenged reputation as the foremost producer of the world's best 
wines. In that year, a wine merchant in Paris, Steven Spurrier, 
organized the prestigious wine tasting competition now known as the 
Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. Spurrier sold only French wines and later 
said ``I thought I had it rigged for the French wines to win.''
  The jury of nine testers in the wine competition included eight of 
France's top wine tasting experts. Blind tasting was performed so that 
none of the judges knew the identity of the wines that were tasted. 
First to be tasted were white wines. The comparison included 
Chardonnays and matched the very best French Chardonnays from Burgundy 
against California Chardonnays. The winner was a California Chardonnay 
that was from Chateau Montelena and made by winemaker Mike Grgich. 
Third and fourth places also went to California Chardonnays. All nine 
judges awarded their top scores to either Chalone Winery or Chateau 
Montelena, both of California. The red wines then were tasted. A 
Cabernet Sauvignon from California's Stag's Leap Wine Cellars and 
produced by winemaker Warren Winiarski was chosen as the top wine of 
that type.
  The tasting results were surprising to the judges and wine 
connoisseurs worldwide. The lone reporter who attended the competition 
was from Time magazine, and that reporter's story promptly revealed the 
results to the world. Leaders in the French wine industry banned 
Spurrier from the nation's prestigious wine-tasting tour for a year, 
apparently as punishment for the damage his tasting had done to 
France's image of superiority. And as recently as 2005, some of the 
judges still refused to discuss the tasting, saying that to do so would 
have been ``too painful.''
  This resolution recognizes and honors the 30th anniversary of the 
California victory at the 1976 Paris Wine Tasting and recognizes the 
historical significance of this event to the United States wine 
industry.
  I urge my colleagues to support H. Con. Res. 399.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ISSA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time, and I 
might remind the gentleman from Illinois that wine tasting is a full-
participation sport available to all over the age of 21.
  Mr. Speaker, I would just close by noting that many, many times 
California's superiority as the grape wine capital of the world has 
been repeated in Paris. With that, I close by saying I eat French fries 
and drink California wine.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Issa) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 399.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was 
agreed to.

[[Page H3408]]

  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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