In The Press
From Palm Beach Cottage & Gardens:
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 February 2003 - Baroness Sheri de Borchgrave
BRINGING THE HISTORY OF WINES TO LIFE, ONE SIP AT A TIME
Over the years, this country's growing wine obsession has given rise to a whole pantheon of wine-related diversions: world class tastings, tours, courses and auctions. Before I heard about "The Wine Diva," it seemed every wine-linked avenue was already being exploited. But the Diva, wine entertainer and connoisseur Christine Ansbacher, has found a captivating new way to capitalize on the wine craze among the smart set. In fact, the wine-themed parties she's been designing have become all the rage in Palm Beach, New York and the Hamptons. Ansbacher was recently commissioned to entertain at a Palm Beach bash-lunch for 60 at Mar-a-Lago-hosted by Mary Frances Turner, chairwoman of the Zoo Ball and the Palm Beach Tropical Flower and Garden Show. Invitees included Arlette Gordon, Alfonso Fanjul, William Koch and Betty Scripps.
Dubbed the Wine Diva after a bravura performance at the Metropolitan Opera Club, Ansbacher kicks off her shows by brandishing an antique saber. In grand Napoleonic style, she whips her blade towards a big magnum of Champagne, slicing off the top of the bottle in a single well-placed stroke. Once she's grabbed the audience's attention with that move, the storytelling spectacle begins. The wine tastings are accompanied by a spirited performance exploring the history, culture and legends of wine. "Now, I'm going to turn back the clock to 1784," she began during one recent performance, "and take you on a journey to Paris where Thomas Jefferson's tastes in wine, women, architecture and music were dramatically influenced during his five year diplomatic assignment." Christine offers up period detail ranging from 18th century-style high life to an Enlightenment world of racy women, literary salons and fine wine.
When the Champagne is poured, the Diva launches into a brief rundown of 400 years in the life of that magical bubbly elixir-from the origin of the Champagne toast to its transformation from the drink of kings to a more popular beverage. There's the legend of Dom Perignon and its most celebrated champions like Oscar Wilde and Winston Churchill.
History and lore give way to practical tips and wine drinking trivia. Ansbacher's talks are haphazard and encyclopedic, covering everything from wine and food pairing and pneumonic tricks for remembering wine names to techniques for getting red wine out of a tablecloth. The ideal wine glass, she says, is made of thin crystal that is uncut, un-engraved and egg-shaped. Why does the wine you enjoyed on your vacation taste so much better that when you get the same wine at home? "Wine is food and mood," she says. "Surroundings determine how you appreciate a wine" (Also consider the quality of the producer and the vintage.)
But the Diva is most inspiring when she takes her audiences around the world with wine. She does a gourmet tour of Spain as well as one on Italy and a tasting called "Wine and War: Caesar to Churchill." For that, Pol Roger Champagne, Churchill's favorite, is poured generously.
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