A familiar face was seen at the barrel auction during last week’s Auction Napa Valley. Mitch Cosentino, who has had a myriad of health problems over recent months, was pouring his 2007 CE2V Meritage and 2007 Cosentino cabernet sauvignon.

He seemed to have disappeared from the scene, but that had nothing to do with the recent financial tribulations of the winery — he had been in a hospital and in and out of doctors’ offices for several weeks suffering from what turned out to be a viral infection that resulted in fluid in his lungs and heart.

Word had erroneously spread that he had suffered a heart attack. “They have run virtually every test known to man on me and still don't know the exact cause,” he told me. “But all the test results have been good, clearing me of any other diseases, NO heart problems, no cancer, etc. (what a way to get a complete checkup!!)”

He added, “The doctors did drain about 750 ml of what looked like a light, dirty rosé out of my left lung (make jokes here).” He said some fluid remains, but that’ll work its way out of his system naturally.

While the company continues its quest for financing, Mitch is back to work on a part-time basis and continues to do what he has always done and likes to do — make wine.

(In addition to those winemaking duties, he said he has some new irons in the fire — but you can be sure making a light dirty rosé is not one of them.)

Rosé remains pure

The war of the rosés is over.   

Wine producers won; the European Union lost.

You may recall that we reported the EU was considering allowing winemakers to blend white wine with red and call it rosé, and that French, Italian and Spanish producers were up in arms about it.

The EU capitulated, with the EU’s agriculture minister saying, “It’s become clear over recent weeks that a majority in our wine sector believe that ending the ban on blending could undermine the image of traditional rosé. I am always prepared to listen to good arguments — that’s why I am making this change.”

That, and the fact that there could easily have been a revolution.

So now Everything’s Coming Up Roses for rosés.)

Hello Kitty wine

There’s a wine coming onto the market named “Hello Kitty,” after the iconic cartoon character featured in children’s television shows.

No, I’m not making this up.

Decanter.com reports that Italian producer Tenimenti Castelrotto in Lombardy has joined forces with Italian luxury goods company Camomilla to market four wines featuring Hello Kitty.

The Web site quotes the proprietor: “Hello Kitty is not just for children. She is a recognized cult fashion icon among teenagers and adults around the world. She has been trendy for years. You see her on everything from bags and clothing to Porsches and Smart cars. We’re very proud for our wine to be associated with her.”

The winery will produce four wines, all made from pinot noir: a red called Devil, a white called Angel and two spumantes. All will have the Hello Kitty logo on the label.

The wines are distributed in the U.S., Russia and Singapore.

(I can just see a mother shopping with her child — “Oh, look, Mommy. Let’s get the Hello Kitty drink.” Then they get home and the child takes a swig from the bottle when Mom’s not looking.)

1,000 bottles of Cheval Blanc on the auction block

Chateau Cheval Blanc is often referred to as the finest wine in the world, and wine buyers will have  chance to bid on vintages from 1900 to 1995 directly from the winery.

Sothebys in London will conduct an auction June 17, offering 287 lots totaling more than 1,000 bottles, with every format in an original wooden case, according to decanter.com. All bottles from 1900 to 1976 were re-labeled and re-capsuled in April, and some of the older vintages have been re-corked.

(I wonder if Miles Raymond of “Sideways” fame might bid on some of those. Cheval Blanc, which is about half merlot, was his favorite wine, although he made his dislike for merlot well known in the movie.)

A new wine movie

There’s a new wine movie coming out. “Corked,” described on winespectator.com as a “Spinal Tap-style mocumentary of the wine business,” debuted in Los Angeles last week.

The Web site said the movie is “aimed at the laughable elements of the world of wine,” and added, “The film’s trailer features the pretentious winemaker (walking the vineyards in a white tuxedo), the self-important wine critic, the wine marketers (“I certainly don’t have to drink wine to sell wine.”), the drunken tourist (replete with Hawaiian shirt) and, finally, the young, clueless, billionaire winemaker who is crushed when told he can’t make a Burgundy because his vineyards aren’t in France, only to enthusiastically counter with ‘Sake!’”

(Let me know of others who could be mocked — but please don’t include the “Sideways” types who drink from the spit buckets.)

Quote of the week

“It's impossible to separate a great wine from a great experience.” — Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher, “The Wall Street Journal Guide to Wine”

Jack Heeger can be reached at jheeger@pacbell.net.