1964 Giacosa Barbaresco Santo Stefano Riserva - This was the first vintage of SSR, and also the vintage of Ray Tuppatsch. Some of you may know him as King Angry; he later transformed into the Cardinal, then La Machina. I may be missing a name or two. To me, and to those that knew him well, he will always be King Angry, ready to let everyone know if someone was not representing appropriately for any given event. Ray was one of my first true friends in wine; we explored and drank our way through everything together. It is with great sorrow that I let all of you know that Ray died in 2021 at the very young age of 57. It was a heart attack. Ray was not a big doctor guy; in fact, he avoided them. All I can tell you is that you need to check yourself every year for everything, and if you don't this is what could happen. This was my first great loss of a friend, someone my age. When Bad Boy summoned a few of us for a gathering, this bottle reached out to me, and it was the perfect choice for the perfect gentleman, Ray Tuppatsch. The wine was complex with cement, rose, sour cherry and ceramic aromas and flavors. Clay, cigar and more cherry dripped in my mouth. I couldn't and didn't stop drinking this nectar of a wine. Italian wines don't get better, and neither do Italian guys! I love you and miss you Ray Tuppatsch.
