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“I love when a wine is well-balanced—when the shirt goes with the pants.”
This was early July, and I was on the phone with Tony Bommarito, head of the original Anthony’s restaurant downtown before starting up A. Bommarito Wines. One of a dozen local oenophiles I interviewed for an article this issue (“What We Talk About When We Talk About Wine”), Bommarito was rim-filled with metaphors about his wine philosophy. Among them: Know what wines you like, and let them become part of your personality (“A lady might not feel good in a red dress—she might like black”); and, most essentially, seek out wines that are properly balanced (“Otherwise it feels clumsy—think of a seesaw”).
A few weeks later, I had the pleasure of being a guest on “Free Candy,” a civic-minded but delightfully laid-back live talk show at the Hartford Coffee Company in the Shaw neighborhood. A few questions in, I found myself making a Bommaritian point: We love when an issue’s well-balanced. It’s our monthly goal, in fact, to create a single issue that comfortably focuses on food, style, and health over here, and shifts to culture, education, and history over there. What we want is for readers to know, throughout the year, that if one month’s cover topic happens not to strike their fancy, there’s a lot more inside that likely will.
Presenting this September issue feels like an opportune time to make the balance point. At the issue’s center is our annual fall-fashion extravaganza: “Best Dressed 2009,” a guide to smart shopping, and a beautiful portfolio of a day in the life of a stylish mom. Surrounding those is a report on a local school that’s not often part of St. Louis’ high-school conversation; a heady exploration of our city’s greatest landmark by one of our country’s most decorated writers; a profile of a professor in a balancing act of his own; and, of course, the wine piece that started it all. As you finish this issue, we’d love to hear your thoughts: Does the shirt go with the pants? Was it a smooth ride or a seesaw? Send your verdict to feedback@stlmag.com.
Stephen Schenkenberg
