Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/80298
NEW YORK CITY SIPS Doings Around Town W by Lana Bortolot ith its sizeable French ex-pat community, the ques- tion in NYC is not if there's a Bastille Day celebra- tion—it's which one to attend. We headed downtown to Barolo Restaurant at the invitation of Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte, and cheered on the sidelines as employees from 27 of Manhattan's finest restaurants tried their hand at pétanque. Team Fiat Café in NoLita took the honors, followed by the team from L'Orange Bleue, the former French-Moroccan bistro turned catering company. L'Orange Bleue may have come in second, but they took the prize for going the distance, with players traveling in from Brazil just for the tourney. Celebrating Bastille Day with Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte. Newly launched spirit Hiro Saké toasted the debut of Japanese superstar Ryoko Yonekura in the Broadway musical Chicago. Yonekura played the role of merry murderess Roxie Hart in the one-week engagement. In her honor, the "Funny Honey Hiro" was created and served at the after party at INC Lounge in the heart of Broadway. The cocktail, as sassy as the heroine, featured Hiro Saké, vodka and fresh blueberries and blackberries. Saxon + Parole, the downtown bar where the horsey set can drink along side East Village hipsters, debuted its Cocktail Cabinet program, masterminded by Naren Young. Hosted this month by Brooklyn Gin, a hand-crafted, small-batch spirit, the "Cocktail Cabinet of Curiosities"—the first of its kind in Manhattan—offers frequent drinkers a chance to "own their own" special cocktail crafted by Young. Bottled and stored in an elegant glass cabinet, it's yours for the drinking any time you stop in, with or without your hunting party. Trend met trendy at a Summer Soirée hosted by Hiro servers serve it up with Japanese superstar Ryoko Yonekura (center) and Carlos Arana, co- founder and President of Hiro Saké. Tenuta dell'Ornellaia at the stylish new NoMad Hotel. A pioneer in the Northern Maremma, an increas- ingly important wine region in Tuscany, Ornellaia's 2009 vintage made its NYC press debut last month. With suggested retail prices ranging from $55 to $215, this was no ordinary sipping party. The star of the kitchen was Daniel Humm this Custom-crafted cocktails at Saxon + Parole. 30 / the tasting panel / september 2012 year's recipient of the Outstanding Chef Award from the James Beard Foundation, who also runs the kitchen at Eleven Madison Park. But the head- liner for the select tasting was the Ornellaia 2009 DOC Bolgheri Superiore, a complex blend (52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot) retailing for just over $200. Tasters also sampled the little sister wine, Le Serre Nuove dell'Ornellaia 2009, made of the same grapes, and Poggio alle Gazze 2012, an IGT 100% Sauvignon Blanc. PHOTO COURTESY OF TENUTA DELL'ORNELLAIA PHOTO: LANA BORTOLOT COURTESY OF HIRO SAKÉ PHOTO: LANA BORTOLOT