2012 was only four short years ago, but in our brave new age of content, it might as well have been a century ago. Perhaps that’s why I was so shocked when a rabbit hole of late night internet sleuthing (don’t ask) led me to stumble upon Train’s “Drops of Jupiter” wine. How had this slipped through the cracks of my content-consuming — and wine-consuming — lifestyle??
I’d dutifully listened to “Drops of Jupiter” on repeat in the summer of 2001, mourning my one true love (AKA the guy I knew for a week and held hands with at summer camp), so I am definitely on the market for some good old-fashioned drinkable merch from a cheesy rock band who evoke teen nostalgia in my heart.
Does the fact that this wine first came out in 2012 change that? Hell no! It actually made me even more intrigued to watch the video. (I’m fairly certain this is completely in earnest.)
“No cheese, no nothing, just drinking the wine…” Yeah, that sounds about like how I drink wine too. Maybe me and James (call him Jimmy) Stafford, Train Guitarist and Lead Wine Explorer have more in common than I previously realized.
The band themselves founded the Save Me, San Francisco Wine Company in conjunction with ACME Wine Movers, a division of The Wine Group, to put out the wine, and made several varietals. First and foremost, of course, was “Drops Of Jupiter,” a California Red vintage that was a Petite Sirah-based Red Wine with tasting notes of boysenberry. From the website:
Together with winemaker James Foster, we created this fruit-forward petite sirrah-based red. The minute you uncork the bottle, the boysenberry fruit leaps from your glass. With soft, supple tannins, this wine is great with food or without. And I like it at cellar temperature to allow the flavors to evolve in the glass. (Pairing suggestion: Lava chocolate cake with berries or eggplant lasagna.)
Man, remember in the early 2000s when you could find lava chocolate cake everywhere? Those were simpler times. Following the initial petite-sirah, the band also released the Calling All Angels Chardonnay, Soul Sister Pinot Noir, California 37 Cabernet Sauvignon, Marry Me Rosé, Bulletproof Picasso Sauvignon Blanc, and last but not least, the Hella Fine Merlot. Yes, Train hails from the Bay Area, so yes, they’re allowed to use “hella” in the name of one of their wines.
Perusing a Fox News article about the wine from that year, I’m reminded that Hard Rock Cafe carried it for a while, possibly still does… I haven’t been there in awhile. Also, their website notes that “Drops of Jupiter” won a gold medal at the 2012 San Francisco International Wine Competition. That’s pretty incredible! Not quite as incredible as the fact that Train have been nominated for eight Grammys and won three of them, but pretty close.
I was gonna say, since everybody else from the early 2000s is staging a comeback, we should get another Train album soon — but guess what? They put an album out this year. It came out in June and it’s called Train Does Led Zeppelin II. Fairly obviously, it’s all Led Zeppelin covers. However, all the proceeds from the album’s sales will go to the San Francisco-based charity, Family House. Coincidentally, a fair amount of the profits off wine sales go to that charity, too.
It seemed like this was just going to be a funny #TBT post about my summer camp crush, but by the end of this rabbit hole, I’ve developed a genuine respect for Train and their wine. I just bought a bottle of Marry Me Rosé, and when it comes, I’m going to drink it and listen to their Zeppelin cover album. I will keep you posted on the tasting notes — oh, and if the cover album is any good — when it arrives.
If you’d like to order some of Train’s wine too, go to the Save Me, San Francisco website.
